Your real competitive advantage isn’t what you think
Your real competitive advantage isn’t what you think
Seven years ago, Dr. Brian Nakfoor’s orthodontic practice was successful on paper. Two locations, steady patient flow, solid revenue. But behind the scenes?
“We felt like we were caught in a tornado with no idea where to start fixing things. We weren’t growing. We weren’t advancing. We were just surviving.”
Sound familiar?
Things changed when Dr. Nakfoor and his office manager, Joanne, decided to build something different. They spent six months developing core values, and here’s the key: every single team member had input. From the front desk to the clinical staff, everyone helped create the foundation.
The result was their vision: The Road to 10,000 Smiles. But the real magic was in their core values. Those values became the guide for every decision.
Here’s what Dr. Nakfoor realized: sometimes the best investment you can make is letting go of people who don’t fit your culture.
“We gained some people and lost others because not everyone wanted to go on this journey. Some team members didn’t buy into the new culture we were building. That was okay.”
Now, his team is so invested in protecting their culture that they speak up when someone isn’t a fit. “They’ll actually tell us they’d rather work harder than keep someone who doesn’t align with our values. We worked too hard to build what we have.”
That’s what happens when culture becomes magnetic. When you get the formula right—Vision + Expectations + Support—your team becomes the guardian of your culture, not just a participant.
Dr. Nakfoor’s story is one of seven featured in The Practice Rx, 2nd Edition, releasing October 1. Each story shows how the same formula works across different personalities, practice sizes, and challenges.
Because here’s the truth: your competition can copy your technology, your marketing, even your pricing. But they can’t copy authentic culture.
That’s your real competitive advantage.
Stay tuned,
Dino