"No" is a good place to be

Today's article may seem a bit weird and philosophical. But to those of you who think about it and understand what I'm saying, it can make a huge difference – perhaps even doubling your case acceptance. So, here goes...

With respect to case acceptance, the word "yes" is nice. The patient accepts your treatment and away you go.

But, what I'm going to tell you is a strange twist on that.

If you want to have the best chance of getting a "yes" then you must believe that "no" is OK and acceptable. In fact, "no" is far  better than "maybe" or "I'd like to think about it".

The patient should clearly understand that it's totally fine if they don't want your best and finest treatment. The moment they understand that, you become their trusted advisor. Paradoxically, when the patient feels free to say "no" then they are much more likely to say "yes".

Strange, isn't it?

That's why, when you're financially independent and don't care if patients accept treatment, they almost all do.

Sometimes, when patients said to me that they wanted to "think about it" I'd tell them that I would assume the answer was "no" unless they told me otherwise.

Relax and stop trying to steer patients toward "yes". Let them know that they're totally free to say "no". It will take the pressure off you and also will give you much better case acceptance.