The Austin Cohen Podcast
The Austin Cohen Podcast is for chiropractors ready to grow beyond the adjustment. Hosted by Dr. Austin Cohen, this show dives into business, leadership, retention, and personal growth to help you build a practice—and life—on purpose. No fluff, just real strategies that move the needle.
The Austin Cohen Podcast
EP70: The Raise You Shouldn't Give (And the One You're Too Scared To)
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Every practice owner knows the knock on the door. Your associate sits down and says "I've been here three years, I think it's time we talk about my pay." And most of us get this conversation wrong in one of two directions.
Some of you give the raise on the spot just to end the awkwardness, even though nothing about the results changed. Others are sitting on 50% margins telling yourself that a doctor making 125K is already "a lot," and then wondering why your best people keep leaving to open up across town.
In this episode I break down the compensation framework we use across all of our locations, where there are no ceilings on what a doctor can earn and every dollar is built around math and margins instead of tenure and feelings. I share a raise I gave early on that I never should have, a recent comp negotiation I walked a practice owner through, and the exact four pieces of a structure that kills the awkward raise conversation forever.
And if you're the associate listening, don't skip this one. There's a whole segment on how to walk into your owner's office and propose a deal instead of asking for a raise, and the honest audit you need to do before you ever knock on that door.
Pay for results, not for time served. And when the results show up, pay big.
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This is the Austin Cohen Podcast where we talk real strategies for chiropractors ready to grow beyond the adjustment. If you're building a business, developing your leadership, and trying to build wealth without burning out, you are in the right place. Let's get to work Don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode What's up, everybody? Welcome back, Austin Cohen Podcast. Uh, man, hopefully everyone's having a good start to the year. A lot of people talked about reflection day to me, which is really cool. Go back and listen to last week's episode. For me, it's July 1 through July 15th, and, you know, one of the biggest changes I actually just made was, in this reflection time, was, I love working out, but I wasn't excited about where I was going. And so after 12, 13 years, I finally switched facilities for where I'm going to work out now, and it has been awesome, uh, over the last week. Really good coaching, great energy. There's a lot of people in the class. The programming's really good. New opportunities for relationships. So, you know, I just, once again, just really reflecting on where I needed to raise my standards for the rest of 2026, and that was definitely one of them where I needed to start. And so, you know, like I said, that- that's what I was, like, talking about when I was talking about, like, reflection day. We're really evaluating every single thing for who you're around, the circles that you're putting yourself in, the podcasts you're listening to, the books you're reading how you're training yourself and taking care of yourself. So really just starting to level up a lot of areas. And by the way, like, it didn't cost me anything different to switch gyms. It's the exact same amount of money. But what was it costing me by not moving over to where I ended up moving over to? So great, uh, opportunity there. And I also love all the feedback from the Jesse Itzler podcast too as well. That was really fun. Uh, just big chiropractic fan, good dude. So yeah, and just a lot of good stuff. And by the way, I just realized this. We are about a little over six months away from Growth Summit. That is wild to think about. There are not a lot of seats left for that. Uh, if you go to chiroand80.com and you click on Attend Growth Summit, highly recommend coming to that. That is my, like, hallmark signature event every year. We can only take 100 people. And it's already, I know it's already over 90% sold, so there's not, there's only, like, a few seats left. And for those that have been before, you know because it's such a small room. Definitely come to that event. Um, today though, I wanna talk about something from two angles. I'm gonna talk about it today from the associate doctor angle, but also the owner angle. So this is kind of like an employee-employer relationship conversation that I wanna have today. And what I wanna start with is something that I know every single practi- Like, if you've ever owned a practice before, you've lived through this or you're gonna live through this. And you're sitting in your office, and it's the end of the day, and one of your doctors comes up to you, and it could be your best bo- doctor that says, "Hey, Doc, you got a minute?" Now, before they say anything, you know what's about to happen. You can feel it in your chest because, you know, maybe they've been there for three years, maybe they've been there for five years, loyal, patients like them. And they start with, "Hey, you know, I've been here for a while now, and I think it's time we talk about my compensation." And, you know, that's the question I want you to sit with for the next, you know, as we go through this, let's say this is gonna take, I don't know, 20 minutes or so we're gonna be going through this concept and some frameworks around this too as well. But like, what is the raise actually for? That's what I want you to be thinking about. Because if your honest answer is for just being here, we got a problem, and it's probably costing you a lot more than money. And for those of you guys that are in my Ascent coaching program, you're learning a lot about this now 'cause you're very transparent in how you're talking about your ladder, but then also your floor. Then there's a container. So you understand these concepts if you've been in my coaching group because it makes also sense, like it's gonna be very difficult for you to have these conversations with people because there's already transparency that's built in there based on the ladder that they're on, and then also the floor that you built for them too as well. So let me tell you... Le- let me just talk about myself for just a second because, I, I've got a lot of scar tissue in this one. And early on at Corrective, I had a team member who came up to me, exact same conversation, with me for a couple years, great energy, reliable, and when they asked me for a raise, I gave it to them on the spot And I didn't give it to them because the numbers said to give it to them, 'cause I didn't even look at the numbers yet. I gave it because the conversation, this is not when I was a great leader, was very uncomfortable, and I wanted it to be over. And I gave it to this person because I liked them. I didn't want them to think I didn't value them, and saying yes felt like leadership, and saying, "Well, let's talk about this raise would be tied to," felt like it would be more of a conflict, if that makes any sense. So there wasn't like a direct correlation to what this raise was tied to because I felt like if I said that, they would start questioning because they felt like they deserved it based on time. And here's what I told myself, that if I was being a good leader, taking care of my people, rewarding loyalty, and what I was doing was, if you think about it, I mean, right, I, I was buying my way out of an awkward however long that was gonna take to have that conversation. The raise didn't fix anything. And within a year, that same person was frustrated again because nothing about the role changed, nothing about the results changed, nothing about the trajectory changed. Like, the raise was not a treatment. It was literally we were masking symptoms of what the underlying issue was. And eventually that's gonna wear off. And that to me was when things started to click, where compensation isn't tied to anything real. More money will not create more satisfaction. All it's doing for me when I gave that raise was resetting the clock on when that next uncomfortable conversation was gonna happen. And many of you know exactly what I'm talking about. And so, like I said earlier, this is like an employee-employer conversation because some of you as the employee have had these conversations and you're bringing it up based on you feel like you deserve more based on time. And you may get it. That's not really gonna solve anything long term for you, and it's also gonna potentially create a ceiling on top of you. A-and so it's really this is good for everybody to start looking at this conversation 'cause when I do my coaching, it's, you know, I'm talking to two-- I'm talking to lead doctors, I'm talking to o- clinic owners, uh, i-it's everybody. 'Cause we can all work together and everybody can win. Every- everybody can win, by the way, guys, uh, in any relationship. But I wanna talk about why we-- I think we fall into this. It's-- We're not bad business people. It's just that when someone's been with us for a certain amount of time, it does feel right? Like, it's a feeling, right? It's an emotional decision. So, you know, I had this team member who gave me years of her life and, you know, when things were not going as great, maybe they covered shifts in the office they've been with me like with family before. So when they're saying, you know, "It's been three years Something in my brain says, "All right, well, that should be worth something." Right? Like, I feel like that should be worth something, and it is worth something, right? Like to-- like loyalty does matter. Culture matters. Those things always count 100%. But where it breaks is a breaking point because time that passes is not the equivalent to value increasing, by the way. And, and you'll see this, by the way, like in the relationship that people have with their team. It's the same as patient experience. I mean, just because a patient's been there for a certain amount of time doesn't mean the value has gone up for what they expect the outcome to be and what their perceived value is of what they're paying. Right? Like it, it, it all connects the exact same Right? And, and if a patient's been with you for, three years and maybe their outcomes haven't even changed, like they don't owe me more money because time has passed. Listen, relationship is very valuable, but the value exchange is always about results. Always. And that's for the employee and that's for the employer to really listen to this conversation about, okay? So like a doctor whose patient visits, the retention, the revenue, if it looks the same in year four as it did in year one, that hasn't become more valuable. That's, uh, just a familiar feeling and, and it's not the same thing. Now, once again, does that also fall on the employer for not catching that and leading team for transparency to know where that person needs to go in order to create more income for their life? Hundred percent. But what about that employee for just expecting more income just based on, uh, time and tenure rather than results? Falls on both of us. And when you're paying somebody for this like familiar-familiarity because they've been there for a certain amount of time, you know, I think three things are gonna happen and not one of them is gonna be good for anybody. First thing is this, and I've seen this before and I'm telling you from firsthand, margins are obviously gonna go down and nothing else is gonna move. So you know, you're paying somebody for the exact same output and in a practice that will come out of the ability to invest in things like growth, marketing, your next hire, your office staff that's b-been there too as well for maybe not as time, but they're actually just an hourly employee, so they need... They're definitely gonna need more income for sure falling in that, you know, usually twenty to thirty dollar an hour range. The second thing is you're teaching people, especially your best people, the wrong lesson. It's that the path to more money is waiting, not performing. So you know, your most ambitious, maybe one of your best potential doctor watches a time lapse raise happen and goes, "Oh, so that's how it happens. Okay." So what's happened now is the ce-- like I said earlier, like the ceiling's been capped and we've told them that the way to move up is really just based on timeline or calendars, not the way it should be happening. And this third one, and I've dealt with this before as well, is just resentment will build on both sides. What happens is you say yes then because of that awkward fifteen minutes that you may have after that conversation, but what starts slowly happening is resentment starts building with that payroll number going up. Now, they start quietly resenting that the raise didn't come with anything new. There's no bigger role, there's no clearer path, and everyone's relieved for that short amount of time But that is a tolerated problem. So once again, if you go back and you heard the episode I did on what you tolerate becomes your standard, this is the episode's, uh, second half of that. And a comp structure that somebody has that isn't tied to anything could essentially be one of the most expensive things that most practice owners are tolerating right now. And I'll bring that into today's world, for example, um, because I just walked through this recently with a, a client of ours, and I'm not g- I'll, I'll keep the details very vague, obviously, to protect everybody. Now, I consult over 30 people, so it'd be very difficult for somebody to know who that is. Um, but, and this owner has an associate doctor, great doctor, who's been there for a few years. Associate comes in, asks for a bump. The owner calls me in a slight panic because their gut is split right down the middle. Half of them are saying, "I can't lose this person," but the other half is saying, "But Austin, the numbers don't support this So the first thing we did before their conversation happened was we pulled the action numbers up. What does this doctor produce? What's their black hole? What's their close percentage? What's their retention? What's their dollar visit average? What's their case average? What ge-- what business do they generate to the clinic? And then also, what do they cost when they're fully loaded? Salary, benefits, taxes, all of that. And then what would the practice look like with a new number? And here's what we found, and I, I find this almost every time, by the way. The ask the person was making was not crazy. The problem was it wasn't attached to anything. They were asking for more money because it was based on time served and what another-- and they were also comparing to another person in another practice, by the way, which has nothing to do with the value that this doctor was creating or could create. So instead of a yes or no answer directly, what we talked about was building a third option, and this is the part I want you to hear. I had this person go back to their associate and said, essentially, "Hey, I want you to make that number, and I actually want you to make more than that number." So what I wanna do is build the bridge to it. And what we did was we talked about how this person can now tie compensation to results the doctor actually will control. So, for example, patient visits, black hole, PVA, OVA, case value, growth of their book and what they're bringing in. So like some business partnerships that they have, internal referrals that they're bringing in. Very clear threshold, so there's no mystery, there's no politics but that's where the comp moves. If you hit this level, your comp moves to here. But if you hit this next level, it moves again automatically, no questions asked. So there's no new awkward conversation required ever. It is full transparency of what you need to hit in order... So it's like, hey, once your revenue generator hits, let's just use, forty thousand dollars, you will automatically be bumped up to... I'm just making up math now. You'll automatically be bumped up to a hundred thousand dollars annually. Forty thousand dollars over three months, but w- you cannot go down below thirty-six thousand for one of those months. So an average of forty thousand dollars over three months. Can't go below thirty-six K because, you know, they could have a really good month of like fifty K, but then every month thereafter may only be like, thirty, let's say. So we wanna make sure that there is consistency too as well, so they didn't just get a bunch of prepays one month or a bunch of high PI checks or, you know, whatever it is. So that's where that conversation was had. And, you know, here's what happened, and this is the part that flipped my thinking years ago, and it flips owners' thinking every time. Was the associate insulted when this person had that conversation? The answer is no In fact, the associate was relieved because for the first time they said they felt like the income was now in their hands. It's not in the mood of the owner, it's not how the practice happened to be doing that quarter, or whether the timing felt right or the effort. It's, it's the effort, results, and the money that that person is bringing in. And you know, for those of you guys that are in my coaching program, this is why you know I always talk about honest job description. Very transparent in that because this is what we're looking for. Hey, if you're looking for a path to hit metrics, like if you tell me how much you wanna earn, I will create a path for you to get there. If you are looking for somewhere to go that you get a raise every year just based on time, not results and effort, this is not the place for you to apply to, right? So like that's-- for those in my coaching, like that's what honest job descriptions look like, okay? So let's get practical 'cause if you're sitting there right now and you're thinking, "All right, well what do I do?" So here's how I think about building this, and I'll keep it simple because I think it is pretty simple. It's just not easy, but it's simple if that makes sense All right, so piece one is this, gotta be a fair base. And this is part of the floor, uh, that we talk about, by the way in business, right? So, you know, if this person's role is a... like they've moved up to the floor of lead doctor, you know, this is not about low-balling people or making everybody, you know, it's, "Hey, you eat what you kill from d- from day one, like dollar zero." People gotta pay mortgages, they've got rent checks, they've got utilities, food, whatever it is, right? So we pay someone a base that's solid enough for them to live on without any fear. Why? Because when they're in fear, what are people doing? They're playing defense. And does-- when people are in defense, are they growing practices? Absolutely not. The second piece is this, after they've got a fair base. The performance will trigger what that person actually controls. And this is, I think, where most mo- most owners can mess it up. So if the associate's bonus is tied to total clinic revenue, but they have no control over marketing, operations, close rates any performance structure, like that is not a way to do things. We wanna tie it to things that they touch every single day. My guess in chiropractic space is gonna be ROF commit percent, it's gonna be case average, internal referrals that they're generating think, uh, their patient visit average. So like those are things that can directly tie to them. Those are performance triggers. Piece three are, these are the thresholds that will fire automatically. These are things that are written down. You know, there's no annual review of, "Well, we'll see how the year goes." This is all laid out in the floor. Like, when this number gets hit, your comp moves to here, period. And to me, this is what kills that awkward conversation, by the way is having this like, "Hey, you're making eighty thousand dollars right now a year. When the clinic side of yours does forty thousand dollars, uh, a month in revenue average over a ninety-day cycle but never goes below thirty-six K, your close rate is above seventy-five percent, and your office visit average is above, seventy dollars per visit, you will get an automatic raise to ninety thousand dollars a year." No convers-- no, no questions asked. It's not based on time, and it's not based on feelings. That's how we move things forward. And the third thing is a path that goes higher than you're currently thinking. So we wanna show them what two levels up looks like. And I think a lot of owners are scared to do this because they think, "But what if they hit it, Austin? And then I've gotta pay them for it." That is the best problem you will ever have. If one of my clinicians doubles their production and their comp jumps, I did not lose money. I built a bigger practice with a doctor who has zero reason to leave, and it is a fair exchange for everybody. There's f- fair base, there's controllable triggers, there's the automatic thresholds, and a visible ceiling that is higher than what their dreams are. Those right there are the four pieces. Now, the conversation itself, because, I know how some people are, are thinking right now, uh, because you've got some people that are on your payroll right now on this, like, deals that are, "Hey, when you're here for a year, when you're here for two years, three years," like I don't wanna touch it. And some things I've learned the hard way is that, you know, first is I, I got lead with the destination, not the correction. Like, I'm not opening up a conversation with somebody of, "Hey, we need to talk about your comp structure." It's, "I wanna show you how to get a bigger number than the one you asked for." They tell you they wanna make a hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, let's show them how to make a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. One of those conversations feels like, can, can feel like a demotion, like you're bringing them down. But the other one, on the latter part, is actually how you f-- can make it feel like a door opening. Very similar structure underneath it, but it's just how we're opening with it because that, that, that's the truth. And, and that's something I've really been thinking about as I've gotten into coaching this year is just really raising the standard for this profession, right? Like, when we have standards for this profession just on taking care of our team and our own company, our profession will grow, right? Like, things are very all over the place right now in our profession. People are scared to pay per- certain people that amount of money. There's no structure, there's no ladders built up, there's no rung in the ladders built into our profession. There's no floor. Like, there's nothing. So how do we do that? And then we do that, and then we have standards across it. The second thing is, after you've opened that conversation, bring the numbers, and then you'll want them to do the talking. This is usually done as a mirror, right? Like, you lay out the production, the retention, the cost of it side by side. Most reasonable people will see it, right? Without you having to say a whole lot. The data will do the t- the, the conversation that you don't have to do. It's very obvious. People aren't stupid, okay? And then the third thing is you wanna give this person ownership of that design. Like, the question is, "Hey, what do you think you should be measured on?" My guess is a lot of clinicians right now, if you're on the employer side, are gonna be shocked. People are harder on themselves. Like, what do you think your close rate should be for us to move you to the next tier for what your goal is on your income? And what do you think your sh- pr- production should be? And essentially what you're doing is you're building this scorecard with them where there's zero resentment on both parties. And then the fourth thing is this: be ready for the small percentage of people that are gonna absolutely hate this, which just ties back to knowing what you need to do now going forward, which is those honest job descriptions. Like, I'm not gonna sugarcoat this, 'cause every once in a while someone's gonna hear your pay will be tied to your results. They don't like that. And I want you to pay very close attention to when that happens because that reaction from that person is information. And a person who is offended by the idea of being paid for performance is telling you something about how y- you know, they see you their next five years with you. I would rather learn that now than have an expensive, uh, five years going forward. Because like I shared earlier, I mean, like, all that resentment's gonna build. They're capped on their ceiling. It's just, it's probably not a good fit, at least in my, my side of it. For my company, it's not a good fit. And before I wrap this thing up, you know, one thing I wanna share is, because some of you guys are, well, actually I'll, I'll, I'll go to that in, in a second, because, yeah, some of you guys looking at this right now, you're thinking in your brain, um... And, and this may be the most important thing I say today, by the way, what I'm about to say. Because some of you don't have a problem giving raises you shouldn't. You actually have the opposite problem. You're very timid in your pay, and I see it constantly, practices of what I coach. Like, I'll sit down with an employer, and we'll pull their numbers, and the practice is running at fifty percent margins. Yeah, fifty percent. The math is right there on the table saying this practice could comfortably replace somebody, let's just say for easy math, let's just say this, this practice could pay somebody two hundred thousand dollars and still be wildly healthy. The owner looks at me like I- I'm suggesting something crazy, because in their head, a doctor making, an employee doctor that's making a hundred to a hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars is already a lot. That is the ceiling that they've decided on. Not because the math says so, because somewhere along the way that our profession has decided that's what a chiropractor who works for somebody else is supposed to make. And then that same owner is gonna call me in eighteen to twenty-four months asking me why their best doctor left. You wanna know why? Because you told them to. Huh. You told them to with the ceiling that you've built on top of them. I wanna be very crystal clear about this. At our company, there are no ceilings on what a doctor can make. None. It is math and numbers built around margins. If a doctor's production supports two hundred thousand dollars, then great, they should make two hundred thousand dollars. And if it supports more, great, then they can make more. The structure we talked about earlier, the triggers, the thresholds, it is a ladder with no top rung. My job is to make sure the margins hold at every lever, lever, and then the doctor's job is to do what? Climb it And think about what that does for your business over the long haul. If you want a long-term team and a reputation in your market as the great place where great doctors wanna work, then take care of your people. Word travels, not just throughout our profession, but also through your patient base. That's one thing. We had a patient, uh, in our office recently who actually said that to me. He's like, "Man, I love that when I come here, it's the same doctors every single time and how long you've been able to keep people for." Like, in my Buckhead office, you know, obviously I've been there for 17 years, and Dr. Samira's been there for 10, and Taylor's been there for six, and, it's a great experience. And, and none of them have, they, none of them have ceilings. Each of them, if they, if they told me when we talked about how much they wanna earn, there's a path to get there, and of course it's built on performance, not on time If you're protecting this, like, fat margin that is massive by capping your best people, that to me is not leadership or discipline at all. That is a scarcity thinking. And for those of you guys that heard my episode a long time ago where I talk about the $2 valet tip, you know exactly what I think about scarcity thinking. It is costing you more than it saves you always. The math should set the ceiling, not your fear, and if you build it right, the math does not want a ceiling at all. Because every doctor-- dollar that your doctor earns past that threshold means the practice grew too. So what are you doing? And I know some of you listening to this right now are thinking, "Oh, I'm not the owner. I'm the associate." And if you've been sitting through this whole episode going, "All right. But I'm on the other side of this, Austin. Like, how do I bring this to my owner?" I love you, and I love what you're thinking, and I'm gonna just be straight as with you as I am with them. Step one, do not skip this. Look at your own numbers first before you ever knock on that dang door. I mean, literally, look at, look at them and study them. What was your visit count when you started at the clinic versus now? Your retention, your close rate, what revenue that you're actually adjusting in that clinic as well, right? 'Cause, like, you could have a high close rate, but just because you have a high close rate doesn't mean the revenue is high. Maybe you're doing barterers, maybe you're doing lowercase values, right? Like, so you're gonna have a high close rate. That tells a piece of the story, right? Like, 'cause at the end of the day, revenue at the end of the day is the part that does matter the most, for sure And that's gonna be step one, right? Like, is what you're bringing to them. You might feel like you deserve more, and that feeling is not backed up by anything. Now, feelings of deserving more usually are gonna come from your bills growing or maybe a buddy from school texting you what they make or like just time going on. Like, none of those are your owner's problems. And if the clinic is doing the same or worse since you started, walking in and asking for more money is one hundred percent not a raise conversation. That, to me, would be a mirror, mirror moment. The question isn't why am I not making more, it's why hasn't my presence here moved anything? That's the part to sit with because that answer to that question, to me, is worth more than any raise will ever get you. And if you do the honest audit, and your numbers are real, and if you've grown your book, and your retention is strong, and the clinic is measurably better with you in it, then here's how you bring it. Like, you don't walk in asking for a raise. You propose a deal. Big difference. A raise says, "Pay me more for what I'm already doing." The deal says, "Here's what I've produced. Here's what I believe I can produce, and I want my pay tied to it. So let's build a ladder, and I wanna climb it." So you're handing the owner the framework, but doing it from the other direction of today's episode. And, you know, listen, I'll tell you, like, a good owner, that conversation is irresistible. Like, you made yourself the easiest yes they will ever get to say to for the entire year. You're thinking like a partner with them, and those are the doctors, to me, who end up building real careers. For sure Bring the numbers with you, have it on paper, whether it's your production, your retention, your growth since you started, the clinic's growth since you started. Let the data make it so you don't-- aren't doing it from an emotional state. And one more thing, and if you do all that, and if you show up with the real numbers and let's say your owner still shuts it down with no explanation and no path, hey, listen, that's information. That might be the ceiling that I talked about in the last part where they feel like paying you, let's say between, eighty-five, a hundred, a hundred and twenty-five, that's what they feel like an associate doctor should be worth. And you've gotta be honest with yourself. I-if there's a ceiling and there's no climbing, that's up to you to figure out what you're gonna do next. A good owner, though, will not cap you. There will be no ceiling with a good owner. I know that for sure. So let's zoom out just a second because I wanna leave you with some mindset piece, not just like tactical stuff. Today is not about being cheap. It's-- I, and, and I, I wanna be very clear on that 'cause some of you saw the title maybe of this episode and you thought, "This is how to say no to your team." This is the exact opposite. I want you paying your best people more than you ever thought they would make. And more than they ever thought they would make too as well. Uh, you know, and I've seen what happens in a practice when a doctor is winning big and getting paid big. That is an electric feeling. That brings the whole place up. And, you know, really this is all about being honest. Like a ten-year raise is a just small dishonesty like everyone's gonna agree on. We pretend the raise is about value, they pretend the value went up, and you both, kick that real conversation down the road a year or two later when you've gotta do it again, and there's all this resentment that builds throughout that time too as well. The honest compensation says this: "Here's what winning looks like, here's what it pays, and I want you to hit every single lever-- level of that." The doctors who stay the longest and stay the happiest are not the ones who got the easiest raises. They are the ones who knew exactly what they stood for and how to climb it. We talk about clarity all the time. Clarity keeps people, comfort delays the leaving. We gotta get comfortable being uncomfortable. You've heard me say that, gosh, a thousand times, okay? So here's the homework. I want you to take a look at your payroll this week and ask one question about each key person. If they hit a home run year, does their comp change automatically or does it change only if they actually work up the nerve to ask you? And if the answer is, well, only if they ask, then there's no compensation structure. There is a series of most likely future awkward conversations that are gonna be the old, "Hey doc, you got a second? Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?" And if you're the associate right now listening to this, your homework is the audit. Pull your numbers since the day you started. Answer one question honestly, and it's this. Is this clinic better because you're there? And if the answer is yes, you've got opportunity to propose something. And if the answer is no you just found what your real job is for the next six months of growth. Fix one of them, just one. This to me is building that bridge for your next best person. If this one hit home with you guys today, please share this with the practice owner who's got that conversation coming and doesn't even know it yet. Or if you're at a point where you want help building this stuff in your practice for real, you know where to find me because we are starting our second cohort of the Ascent program in September where we will be doing live coaching together and be building every single thing that you're hearing here. Hope you guys have an awesome week. And if you, by the way, if you did anything too as well on your reflection day where you made a change too, make sure to give me a heads up on Instagram, send me a DM and let me know what you changed in your life. Have a great day to learn more about building your business, leadership, and life on purpose, visit chiro one eighty.com or follow Austin on Instagram at Dr. Austin Cohen.