10 questions to ask about why you should share and care

The secret of success is constancy to purpose – Benjamin Disraeli. I’d include the pop culture reference Disraeli Gears by Cream, but if you’re over 50, you’re probably not reading this.

For

Cover of Disraeli Gears

years, I’ve lived on the Internet, trying to see how best to learn 24/7/365 about my specialty – DENTISTRY. I remain convinced that while it is lucrative for some to build a business and invite people to their sites using the social media tool of the day, to their events, and to provide them product access where membership has it’s privilege et al, this is logical from an entrepreneurial perspective and that is “kewl”; however, does EVERYONE benefit?

To monetize a site, you have to make sure that butter wouldn’t melt in your mouth when talking to the folks who pay your tariff……that assumes everyone operates from the same moral high ground. You only have to read a newspaper or news.google.com to realize that this is one cockeyed world. So consider the following on STRATEGIC AND COLLEGIAL COLLABORATION which is the intent of the forthcoming revision to the Oral Health website and the building of a second blog called MyDentalChronicles to showcase clinical effort…..

Questions to ask before you “share and care” – COMPLETELY OFF THE TABLE – what’s in it for me!!!?

1. If I share and care, will I learn from the commentary on what I post?
2. If I choose to work in a collegial environment, will it be a respectful one?
3. Will everyone share equally?
4. Why should I share under your auspices?
5. Will this make a difference to the profession?
6. Is there a sense of urgency to this?
7. How easy is it to post a case or other materials?
8. Will I be treated fairly,is this to be profession or industry driven?
9. How will the impact be measured and how will the contribution remain viable?
10. Will I have any say in the needs and direction of the platform being used?

Answers:

1. There will be zero tolerance for flaming. Those that condemn,not constructively critique will be banned from the forum. Egos are not allowed…the profession is at a point of massive tectonic shifting and must speak with a unified voice to ensure the paradigms being changed are in the best interest of the most important individuals – our client base.
2. Respect comes from evidence based presentation. Learning is an endless iteration of knowledge. What will be viewed askew is validation based on experience, not substance. Even Edison realized he screwed up ten thousand times before he got the filament right. He just persisted.
3. Define equal…….all that is expected is someone’s hundred per cent. Each person’s hundred per cent is unique. Lurkers are welcome, but they will learn little. Getting your hands “dirty” is the best way to learn because a failure offers a second chance to get it right.
4. Oral Health has been the voice of Canadian dentists for over 100 years. The current stewardship recognizes it’s fiduciary commitment to the parent company, but not at the expense of the integrity of the journal or the website/blogs.
5. The profession is in many ways being hijacked by paid gunslingers. That is the way of the world. Health care is big business; the problem is that it should be focused on delivery of the best in an evidence based construct, not an eminence based one. An expert may simply be someone repeating the same thing long enough in enough forums to be construed as knowledgeable. The medium needs to be the message. By constructive dialogue, the truth shall be uncovered. If the expert’s message and the truth are one and the same, all the better; if not…………
6. Learning used to be generational; the Internet has made the paradigm shifts literally a daily event……yes there is urgency.
7. The new platform for the Oral Health website and Blog will be Word Press and Buddy Press. It is the industry gold standard…….there will be tutorials on how to post.
8. The industry is being approached to support the initiative – they will however, have no say in the content. They will be encouraged to bring the initiative to their advocates and endusers to provide content not control it.
9. The site will be developed with serious analytics to determine trends. The material will be archived under categories and sub-categories in easily accessible silos.
10. You can’t expect people to give freely and not be heard. That’s called government. This is an educational entity – content and connectivity are the drivers…..without the contributors and the collaboration, this doesn’t exist.