The Overlooked Trait Of The Growth-Minded Chiropractor

The Hanging Lake Trail outside of Glenwood Springs, Colorado is breathtaking. I hiked alongside a stream, clear, cool and calming. 

But it is a steep hike. And on top of that, I had parked more than a mile away just to access the park. I was tired, and I wasn’t sure how much farther it was to the lake at the top. Besides which, the elevation in Colorado will punish your lungs if you are not used to it.

All that must have been clear on my face. A couple coming down looked at me resting and said, “One last push.” 

“Okay,” I laughed. “I can do that.”

So can you. 

But the problem I have encountered with professionals and leaders that I coach is that not many choose to make the final push.

There are four traits of a growth-minded chiropractor. One is most critically overlooked. By growth-minded, I mean being truly professional, as the most respected chiropractor in the room; I don’t necessarily mean growth by numbers, but that plays into this too.

Four Traits Of The Growth-Minded Chiropractor

1. True Identity
2. Practical Serenity
3. Rooted Reaction
4. Noble Resolve

The professional with a True Identity describes the place in which they know who they are and are not, to the point where they can say no and yes to others because of it. The person with a True Identity has sifted through the ideas and ways others do things, and has embraced ideas and ways of their own. 

Practical serenity is a person’s ability to self-regulate when anxiety, hurt and unrest are present.

Rooted Reaction is how serenity is expressed to others. When someone else is critical or upset, a professional is able to both stay with the person, and respond in a manner that is appropriate and non-defensive. 

The Overlooked Trait

Noble Resolve is the trait I have found most challenging for many. Noble means that there is something worthwhile, something that once accomplished is beautiful and worthy of high regard. Resolve is tolerance of discomfort. 

When I reached Hanging Lake, words failed me. Green hills and foliage surround a small lake of clear water, the bottom visible as far as I could see. It is a noble place of nature. The final push was worth it; the resolve was rewarded.

Chiropractors enter their profession because they have a unique drive to partner with their patients in wellness. Not every medical profession is as opportune.

Yet, so many patients seek a fix, not freedom; a formula, not a focus. 

Without Noble Resolve, Chiropractors begin to settle. Demands are high; pressure is constant; simply handling the daily concerns of clients and the office are enough. Your practice becomes measured by numbers.

And then there beats on your soul the conviction that you were called for more than this. 

It’s not that you are unclear on who you are, or that you have not matured in your inner spirit, or that you are a simmering cauldron of hot mess stress. Just the opposite, most likely. You accepted what is and settled. You embraced routine and efficiency. I’ve done it myself at times.

You desire wellness for people. That is noble. Most don’t know how to be well, and many resist what it would take. That requires resolve. 

There will be discomfort in the confrontation you must have with yourself in order to realize the practice of your dreams. There is discomfort in the changes you must promote your clients to take for them to optimize their wellness.

Don’t give up. The client who moves from “just get me back” to “make me well” is also nature’s noble display, one who often has no words themselves for the change in their life, let alone for the one who helped them there. 

(By the way, my work as a Chiro-Coach can help you develop these traits further. And, as Co-Founder and Client Success Director for MyBack Pathways? I can introduce you to the best remote patient-care app on the market. I’m for you and available to help).