No knowing what you precisely want is not OK. If you cannot name, with great specificity, what it is you want, you will never be able to claim it. If you cannot decide which movie to see, what meal to order or what to wear, is it any wonder you find it hard to identify your goals? Indecision creates inaction. Inaction leads to results you don’t want.

Imagine, you put an ad in the paper offering to sell your car for $6,000. What do you think the chances are that somebody will look at it and say, “Gosh! This is a really good car. I don’t think they’re asking enough. Let me offer them $8,000?” Sound crazy? The lesson here is that if you don’t ask for enough, the most you will ever get is what you asked for.

I can’t count the number of times I asked a dentist what they wanted and they responded with,” I want my practice to be successful, my team to be happy and my patients to be healthy.” It is a commonsense answer right? But as far as a vision, it is destined for failure.

Consider a practice that is focused on, energized by, and defined in relation to goals; then contrast it with a practice that doesn’t know what is missing or doesn’t know what they want. Naming what you want means you can begin to guide your practice like a ship toward a harbor light.