Nobody likes being corrected. And most practice owners don’t particularly enjoy doing the correcting either. But when a staff member makes a mistake, handles something poorly, or does something that could harm the practice, ignoring it isn’t kindness. It just allows the problem to continue.
The trick is to correct the action, not attack the person.
Instead of, “You’re always careless with this,” try: “I noticed this happened yesterday. Let’s go over what happened and how we can prevent it next time.”
Ask first. There may be information you don’t have. “Can you walk me through what happened?” often produces a much better conversation than starting with an accusation.
Then make sure the staff member understands what should have been done and why it matters. Don’t assume they know. Sometimes what looks like carelessness is actually a lack of training or an unclear procedure.
And when possible, finish with confidence rather than criticism: “Good. Now you know exactly how I’d like this handled next time.”
Correct quickly, privately and specifically. Then move on. A good correction should leave the staff member better trained, not beaten down.
