Before you lead others you need to understand how you lead yourself
It's 10.30 am, the day is already running behind and an unexpected clinical issue has disrupted the schedule.
How do you respond?
Do you remain calm and help the team reset? Do you become short with people? Perhaps you take over because it feels quicker or withdraw because you need space to think.
Your team notices, even when you don't realise it. The way you respond can influence the mood of the entire practice.
This is why I believe effective leadership begins with learning to lead yourself.
Clinical expertise does not automatically prepare us to lead
Clinical education teaches clinicians - Dentists and Oral Health Therapists - how to diagnose, treatment plan and provide patient care. It doesn't necessarily prepare you to delegate, give feedback, navigate conflict or communicate effectively under pressure.
As a clinician, you can be highly capable in your profession and still find these situations difficult. That doesn't make you a poor leader. It simply means leadership requires a different set of skills, and those skills can be developed.
The starting point is self-awareness.
What happens when you feel challenged? Do you become controlling, avoid the conversation or respond too quickly? What effect could that have on the people around you?
These aren't always comfortable questions. But understanding our patterns gives us the opportunity to make a different choice.
Your team experiences your behaviour not your intention
Most clinicians genuinely want to support their teams. Under pressure, however, your behaviour may not match that intention.
A quick answer between patients may feel efficient, but it can seem dismissive to the person asking. Taking over a task may be intended as helpful, yet it can suggest you do not trust someone to manage it. Avoiding difficult feedback may keep the peace today, but it often creates more confusion tomorrow.
Self-leadership means pausing long enough to consider your impact, not only your intention. It doesn't mean changing your personality or second-guessing everything you say. It means developing enough awareness to choose your response rather than reacting automatically.
You set more of the tone than you may realise
No leader can prevent every stressful day. What you can influence is what happens next.
Can you stay curious when someone sees a situation differently? Can you receive feedback without immediately becoming defensive? Can you acknowledge when you could have handled something better?
Sometimes a simple response such as “Tell me more” or “What support do you need?” can completely change the direction of a conversation.
Over time, these behaviours build trust. People become more willing to raise concerns, contribute ideas and take responsibility because they feel they will be heard rather than blamed.
That affects more than team culture. It influences communication, the patient experience and how the practice performs.
Develop the person behind the leadership role
Prime Practice's Lead Yourself workshop is designed to help dental professionals better understand their behaviour, communication and influence.
The workshop explores self-awareness, personal responsibility and how we respond when situations become challenging. It is relevant for practice owners, dentists, practice managers and emerging leaders - because you don't need to manage a large team to benefit from leading yourself more intentionally.
There are two face-to-face Lead Yourself workshops remaining this year in Adelaide and Perth, along with a range of leadership workshops available live online.
Our 2027 training calendar is also now open, with a 10% early bird discount available for bookings made in advance.
The strongest leaders aren't necessarily the loudest people in the room. They are the people who understand their impact and make conscious choices about how they show up.
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