Episodes

In today's episode, I have the pleasure of introducing Mr. Elliott Spiro, who is an Independent Entrepreneurial Optician Contractor. Elliot is a bilingual optician specializing in replacement and temporary assignments. He has made a business focusing on replacement and locum work, helping clinics ensure smooth operations while offering quality service to patients. With over 20 years of business experience combined with hands-on optical expertise, Elliot will share with us his path to working as ...

Today, we’re shining a light on one of the most essential — and sometimes under appreciated — part of business success: The Optician. Joining me is Jess Merrick the Pres. Of the Indiana Opticians Association, and Windy Walker the secretary and Treasure….The INOA is an organization dedicated to supporting opticians through education, advocacy, and professional development. (00:00) Introduction (04:18) INOA overview (08:29) The roll of the Optician (14:00) The extended value of the Optician (...

In this episode we will discover what it means to be a Mobile Optician and what is involved in pursuing this entrepreneurial passion. Helen Whitaker is a Licensed mobile optician, Contact Lens Fitter and Refracting and Dispensing Optician based in British Columbia, Canada. She is the founder and operator of Secure Vision, an award-winning mobile optical business providing affordable eyewear accessible to all—regardless of age, mobility, or financial status. In addition Helen has created the Sec...

Thank you for listing to revenue RX optical Retail Wins and we are back with Mr. Dean Thompson and part 2 of a conversation on subjects regarding challenges and influences affecting the optical business. As you will continue to hear, Dean is one for promoting the optical industry at every opportunity and is very well suited to lead the Association of Opticians of Alberta. Today we continue with more insights with Dean Thompson, and we begin with one of the most pressing concerns in the industry,...

This is the first of a 2 part series with guest Mr. Dean Thompson. As chair of the Council for the Alberta Association of Opticians, he is responsible for creating a new board of directors overseeing all aspects of creating a not-for-profit organization. The AOA's mission is to Advance the profession of optician-ry in Alberta and across Canada. With more than 40 years in the optical business, Dean is keen to explore the future direction for eye care Professionals. His perspective as a lifetime o...

LeadOD Empowers doctors to integrate leadership, sales, and culture building with patient care. It's a process of, or a transition, in seeing yourself differently and moving from employee technician to visionary owner. Today we continue with more insights with Dr. Thayil and we start with change. Change brings with it many challenges one of which is friction………! (00:00). Introduction (01:31). Change - Allows us to be in a better state than before (04:57. Tech and AI allow for more customer fo...

This episode is the first of a 2 part series with todays guest Dr. Ben Thayil of LeadOD. LeadOD is a leadership development organization. Founded by Dr. Ben Thayil, LeadOD serves to help doctors and business owners build success through leadership development. From team building to corporate culture, Dr. Thayil believes that everything rises and falls on leadership. If you build better people, you build a better business. (00:00). Introduction (02:55). The Hidden curriculum - Business know...

Public speaking, and make no mistake about it..... is exactly what you are doing all day, every day, when you engage someone entering the clinic. Your ability to communicate effectively is becoming increasingly more important. Public speaking is what you do all the time with strangers. By upping your game…and adopting new skills … it will translate into better customer experiences, a higher conversion rate and more revenue. In this episode we are going to discover where public speaking technique...

In 2025, we're not just running medical practices but a tech-enabled business that delivers eye care. In this episode I will have a candid conversation with a brilliant optician / entrepreneur and founder of SpexBot - https://spexbot.com/. Practice owners are often surprised when they find out these automation tools exist…. I certainly was! The repetitive work tasks that used to require deep expertise and complex processes can now be on autopilot. Perry Brill created SpexBot and defined a catego...

As an entrepreneur, who was attracted to the Optical business with little or no knowledge of the industry, the only resource I had was my creativity. My ability to assess and innovate on the run. With a history of multiple careers and changing environments it was my self belief, my attitude and the willingness to take risks that drew the creativity from inside me to be able to adapt to change. In this episode we will take a look into understanding creativity and its significance for business suc...

In this Episode we will examine just what business coaching is all about. Business coaching is a personalized service that helps develop leadership, business skills and solves specific challenges. It can help you find solutions and take your practise to the next level. While a business coach won’t make decisions for you or tell you what to do, the person can act as a sounding board for your thoughts and offer an external perspective on a variety of business issues. What defines success will depe...

Have you ever felt that positive visualization hasn’t changed your life as much as you’d hoped? Have you ever wondered why those vision boards and affirmations haven’t manifested your dreams? Fantasizing about success can actually hold you back…..unbridled positive thinking can sometimes backfire if not tempered with grounded optimism. In this episode we will discover that the problem isn’t optimism itself – it’s that we’ve stopped distinguishing between grounded confidence and wishful thinking....

In this episode we are reminded that stress is ever present in our lives. Even though it is difficult to live with at time, we need to realize that we can't live without it! Left unattended .. Stress can impact job satisfaction, lead to burnout, and even affect interpersonal relationships or physical health…. if not managed effectively. Recognizing and addressing stress in the optical field is essential for sustaining long-term success and personal well-being. (00:00) Introduction (02:17) Stre...

In this episode, you can debate how much humour to use, you can debate when humour is most effectively inserted, you can even debate the type of humour that should be used. But you cannot deny the power of laughter as a universal bond from human to human. (00:00) Introduction (03:16) Story telling with Humour (04:16) Humour is the Highest form of Language Mastery (05:55) Humour needs to be Learned (07:27) Humour builds relationships (08:26) Humour Fosters Connections and Builds Trust (10:...

The title of of this Episode is "Uncensored Anonymous Conversations", having anonymity in other words. I am requesting your contribution to thought provoking ideas, or suggestions that add value to the community of Eye Care Professionals. I am introducing a new segment in the podcast; offering an opportunity where your voice can be heard and shared with like minded colleagues who have ideas and suggestions for the betterment of the optical profession. (00:00) Introduction (02:54) An Invitation...

In this episode I will share with you my findings after entering 7 different optical business as a Secret Shopper. My objective was to look for a new frame and wanted to see how I would be engaged and if I might be pleasantly surprised. Hopefully, this would take the form of being educated on what might satisfy both my want and needs, but also provide me with an enjoyable experience, where they gained my trust and had my best interests in mind. So... here are the challenges and failings I encoun...

In this episode I offer insight about the person who is delivering this podcast content and why he thought he had the ability to pursue the optical business without any previous experience. There were a lot of lessons learned along the way in his journey that did not always follow any logical path, but rather an attraction for adventure and change, implementing innovation and developed a survival instinct or rather exposing it. It is his belief that we all have a greater inner strength ….that we...

Fear Is a Survival Mechanism. Our brains were built to protect us — not make us happy. In the past fear helped us survive predators or danger. Today our brain still scans for threats — just now it’s bills, judgment, failure, rejection. "nothing to fear but fear itself” It is a powerful motivational line that still gets quoted a lot today. What it means is basically: There’s nothing in the world we should be scared of, except for fear itself, because fear is the real enemy. Fear becomes the defau...

In this episode we are going to step away from references to selling and sales and being sold and move more towards what I believe is how to serve without trying to convince and persuade the customer to buy. But first we need to change the way we communicate and label opticians relative to selling and sales. We need to change the narrative when it comes to these 4 letter words, sell and sale. Position yourself as a partner, not a salesperson. If you don’t…. it's on you if they see a sales person...

In this episode we will examine this new world of tariffs that are having a direct and indirect effect on us as business owners as well as our customers. There is a ripping effect as well as a trickle down impact that needs to be understood. To close your eyes and ears and hope for the best is not a call to action. We need to be knowledgeable of what we can and cannot control, and begin to take actionable steps to protect our bottom line. (00:00) Introduction (01:22) Definition of a Tariff...

The Conversion Rate - The HOLY GRAIL for success in the Optical business. Conversion takes on many faces on the road to converting patients and visitors to the dispensary, into paying customers. The influencers that affect your conversion rate come from both internal and external forces. This episode will explore the many factors that require your attention, if you wish to succeed and grow the business. (00:00) Introduction (01:45) The impact of the Conversion Rate (03:49) External infl...

Welcome back to Revenue RX Optical Retails Win's and Part 2 with Mr. Robert Dalton the Executive Director of the OAC - The Opticians Association of Canada. Today we continue to drill down on the commercial aspect of the Optical Retail business and the important role the Optician plays it it success. Robert continues to offer his thoughts and recommendations on on a number of relevant topics and delivers actionable takeaways. Some highlights are inventory management in light of the current tariff...

Welcome to revenue RX, Optical Retail wins. Today we visit with Robert Dalton the Executive Director of the OAC The Opticians Association of Canada. In this 2 part series we will take a detailed look into the commercial aspect of the Optical Retail Business and the critical role of the optician. Through the past 15 years as the Executive Director and a lifetime of experience and expertises as an optician, Robert takes the lead in guiding the association through changing times. As you will discov...

Welcome back to Revenue RX, Optical Retails wins and Part 2 with Dr. Trevor Miranda. In this episode we continue to drill down on the commercial aspect of the Optical Retail business and its significance to the success of the practice. Dr. Miranda will continue to offer insights of what makes his practice successful by having a 100% buy-in to the overall culture he has created. (00:00) Destination or Location Marketing (06:00) Emotional Connection for Retention (13:10) Optometry - a Trust...