Cathy Jameson is the president and CEO of Jameson Management, Inc., an international dental practice-management consulting, lecturing, seminar, and product provider. An accomplished speaker, writer, and workshop leader, Cathy’s work in organizational psychology focuses on effective stress-controlled management. Cathy’s books, “Great Communication = Great Production” and “Collect What You Produce,” are top sellers for PennWell Books. You may reach her toll-free at (877) 369-5558, via e-mail at [email protected], or on the Web at www.jamesonmanagement.com.Fear is paralyzingThe ultimate fear of the unknown hovers around change. Most fears arise from not being sure about something:not being sure how to do something;not being sure if something will work;not being sure that the investment in time and money will pay off;not knowing if you are capable of executing something well;not being sure if doing something differently will make a positive difference or if the change will bring about a better result than the one you are now getting.Fear of the unknown is a real concern for most people in one circumstance or another. Certainly, if someone has been “burned” by a situation, it is a true “leap of faith” to try it again, even if the efforts involve a new method, scenario, or discipline.The best way to debilitate fear is to face it “head on.” There is nothing that will stifle a person’s growth more than fear. The worst thing that can happen if you try something and it doesn’t work is that you will have learned something. You will have learned that this method, this system, this “whatever” doesn’t work for you. Once you realize that something isn’t working, ask yourself: “Did we really give it a fair chance? Did we do our best to implement this change? Did we do everything exactly as we were instructed?” Then ask yourself another question: “Does this system (or whatever) not work or are we not working the system?”This is one of the best questions you will ever ask yourself ... and if you answer it honestly, you will probably acknowledge that you haven’t put forth a 100 percent effort. As a result, you did not obtain the excellent results you had hoped for. The efforts you put forth will be in direct proportion to the results you receive.Then there’s the fear of failure. Do not let fear stifle your growth. Marianne Williamson, in her book, “The Gift of Change,” says, “The only real failure in life is the failure to grow from what we go through.” There is no such thing as failure if you approach each and every endeavor with an open mind and a commitment to do your best. If you have a positive attitude, you will learn and grow - even if things don’t work out as you expected. Some of the greatest inventions and discoveries occurred when the expected result was not accomplished, but a new, unexpected result turned out to be better.Is there risk involved with trying something new? Of course! Think of risk as a two-sided coin. On the one side of the coin called “risk,” there is the chance that you might make a mistake or that things won’t work out as you had anticipated. However, if you choose to learn from each and every activity - even your mistakes - you’ll find ultimate success on the other side of the coin.You also need to realize that there is a very real fear of personal loss for some people who are resistant to change. They decide that they don’t want to make any changes, don’t want to do anything differently, and in fact, aren’t going to make any changes. Sometimes people on the team are very territorial.They do not want anyone “messing” in their area. They have fallen into a routine and have a sense of ownership of their area, their way of working, and their routine. They are quite often afraid of loss if change is recommended or implemented. In addition, some team members fear that if changes are recommended, the doctor must feel they weren’t doing a good job. They may fear a personal loss of respect on the part of the doctor. Team members become possessive of their relationship with the doctor and want the doctor to admire their work. If there is any suggestion of change, they may feel this is an assault on what they have been doing up to that point. Neither of these assumptions is true in most cases. If change is encouraged, that doesn’t mean that the doctor is unhappy with anyone. It means he or she is ready to go to the next level, and change goes hand in hand with that elevation.The sense of personal loss some staff members feel when a system or work area is changed will usually subside when the new way becomes the norm. It’s like getting used to anything new. It may feel awkward or uncomfortable at first, but will become the norm with time. And, hopefully, the new way will be better, and once the new comfort zone is established, staff members wouldn’t want to go back to the old way even if they could.