Dr. Jim Hitson

Hey all. I really wanted to dedicate this post to all Chiropractic students. I have had the dubious honor of spending some real quality time with some of your from Logan and Sherman over the past couple weeks. It was a great opportunity for me to get back in touch with your reality at school as well as for you to get in touch with the reality of Chiropractic in the real world. I believe that we have both learned a lot from each other during our visits. I just really want to encourage you all. You are entering into an unbelievable profession with an opportunity to change the lives of so many people that you come into contact with. I encourage you all to begin to think about what you want your life to look like once you graduate from all those fine institutions. No matter where you are at in school, whether you have just started or are about to graduate, begin gather as much information as you can about the business of Chiropractic. Continue reading

Hello again Doctors. What I wanted to make sure that we cover before you begin this great adventure of owning your own chiropractic office is the fact that your are not only going to be “The Doctor”, but you are also the business owner. There are several different hats that you have to wear with in that office. This is something that gets quite often overlooked while we are school. We get so focused on the clinical aspect of patient care that we often forget it is vital that we learn how to run a business. I know that you all are striving to be the best doctor that you can be but it as equally if not more important that you strive to be the best business person that you can be. You need to master your business skills in accounting, advertising/marketing, staff, networking, public speaking, leadership, accountability, and office management. It is vital for the success of your business that you not be a “ Jack of all trades and a master of none.” It’s not enough to just have some knowledge in all these different areas. Remember this practice is your baby and no one is going to take care of your baby like you will. This is your source of major income for you and your family, so you can’t afford to slack in any or all areas of your business. There is so much more to the growth and prosperity of your practice than just treating patients and getting results. If that was the case than every doctor that saw patients and got results would be ultra successful and quite frankly I have seen some of these same doctors go out of business so we know that is not the silver bullet. The key is not being the greatest doctor in the world the key is having the perfect balance of being the greatest doctor and being the greatest business person you can be. Continue reading

10. Funding. In this time of economic turmoil, funding for a start up new business can be hard to come by. My suggestion is too align yourself with the right professional that can help guide you to what funding that you qualify for and what would be most beneficial for your situation.

9. Equipment. Right now there are so many offices closing and for sale that you can get some great deals on equipment. My advice would be to lease all of your big ticket items, then search diligently for deals on all the other small stuff that you’ll need to get.
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There is so much that goes into the opening of a successful Chiropractic office that sometimes the most important thing goes unnoticed. It’s your concepts and what’s between your ears that 99% of the time will determine if you’re going to be successful or not.

You may be thinking, “What do mean Dr. Hitson, I thought if you were the best adjuster you’d be successful?”

My friends that couldn’t be farther from the truth, I’ve seen even the Docs with the greatest adjusting skills go down in flames.
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This is probably the number one question in every chiropractic students mind and also in the minds of some seasoned chiropractors who are looking to branch out on their own. What are the options?

In this crazy economic environment it is as if the well has run dry for new small business start up. This is where I take off my chiropractic hat and put all the information I learned from real estate investing to start thinking outside the box.

Obviously as students you usually don’t come out of school with much but a degree and a lot of dreams. So traditionally you would approach Mr. Banker for consideration of a small business loan.
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There are many important decisions to be made and many things to be done before you can truly have that successful opening of that new Chiropractic office you have always dreamed. My sincere advice to you is do not go at it alone.

The Bible says in Proverbs 11:14 “ Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.”

There is no truer statement than that. Take it from me, I opened a clinic without the multitude of many counselors and after 6 months of doing everything the wrong way the Lord brought some people into my life who helped to put me on the road to success.
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