The EntreMD Podcast

Stop Wasting Time: How I Pick Events That Pay Off Big

• Dr. Una • Episode 469

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Struggling to figure out which events are truly worth your time?

I feel you. After traveling internationally three times in just two months, I knew something had to change. I was wasting my time and money, and the ROI just wasn’t there. I needed to be more intentional, so I created a simple but powerful 3-filter framework to evaluate every event I consider.

Learn why not all events are worth your time, how to calculate the real opportunity cost of attending, and how to make event decisions that serve your long-term vision.

Tune in!

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Key Takeaways: 

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:17 My default answer 
  • 05:19 The host 
  • 09:01 The attendees 
  • 11:45 The content 
  • 14:45 EntreMD Live 
  • 19:59 Outro 


Additional Resources:


When you are ready to work with us, here are three ways:

  •  The Profitable Private Practice Movement - If you want to build a thriving private practice that serves a lot of patients, while creating time and financial freedom for you, come join us here. 
  • EntreMD Business School Grow - This is our year-long program with a track record of producing physician entrepreneurs who are building 6, 7 and 7+ figure businesses. They do this while building their dream lives!
  • EntreMD Business School Scale - This is our high-level mastermind for physicians who have crossed the seven figure milestone and want to build their businesses to be well oiled machines that can run without them.

To get on a call with my team to determine your next best step, go here ...

The Million-Dollar Conversation

Speaker 1

It will change your world . You put yourself in the room with the right host , the right attendees and the right content . You cannot tell what happens . I've had conversations that I can trace a million dollars to a conversation . Actually , one of them was not even a conversation . I just heard somebody asking a question and I was like huh , and that led to a million dollars in revenue . Hi docs , welcome to the EntreMD podcast , where it's all about helping amazing physicians just like you embrace entrepreneurship so you can have the freedom to live life and practice medicine on your terms . I'm your host , dr Imna .

Speaker 1

Last year , I had a two-month period where I took six six trips , and three of them were international , and that put me in a position where I was like there are very few events that I'm going to attend , and I came up with specific criteria that will let me know which event to attend and which not to , and I want to share those criteria with you . Maybe those will be the only kind of events you will attend from 2025 onwards . Okay , all right . So when you're growing your business and you haven't had a certain number of opportunities whether that's speaking or attending certain types of events or things like that it can sneak up on you , and so for me , last year was one of those years . I did a lot of travel last year and you know , when we got to September October , it was complete nuts . So September October , it's a two month period , but I traveled six times , right . So if you think about it , I was just gone period , right ? I traveled six times , and three of those trips were international . So one of them we went to Europe , and in that trip actually it was a number of countries . We did France , we did Italy and multiple cities in Italy , and then after that I went to the Bahamas and after that I went to Cancun . Okay , so these are the international ones , and there are three local ones as well , and so at the end of that month , oh my goodness , I was so exhausted .

Speaker 1

I wasn't a fan , because I'm a homebody . I love being at home , I love my family , I love being with my family , and so being away from my family that much was just was just not fun , right For me , and so I didn't like that piece either . I don't like sleeping in hotel rooms , like I don't , and when I'm away from my family it feels like there's a hole in the room , so it's harder for me to sleep . So I dealt with quite a bit of insomnia with that and so for me I just decided , like the opportunity cost of the travel was just not worth it to me . And they were all great trips and I had a great time and I had a great ROI . And you're like Dr Uno , you say you weren't happy about that and you had a great time . Like both can be true at the same time .

Speaker 1

Okay ,

Six Trips in Two Months

Speaker 1

you know , like one of my ways of approaching things is I can't change what is and I'm not going to go back on my commitments . If I told somebody I was going to be there , right , but I can still , in the moment , go , okay , I'm not going to cry over spilled milk , we're already here . But knowing what I now know , what do I do so I don't find myself in this spot again ? And once I make that decision , I can then choose to be happy , right , like even though I'm still in the midst of it , because by trip number two I was like , oh , this is , I don't know what I was thinking , okay , but I still had a number of trips to go , and so I was able to still enjoy them because I'd made a decision that this is not ideal , but this is not going to happen again , not in this way , right ? So it put me in this position where I sat down and said , okay , I'm going to be . My default answer to will you is just no , and I'm not recommending this . You know , I just don't want to make up stuff . I just want to tell you exactly what happened . I was like so I'm going to start with no and then work my way back to why should I ? Right , and you know it made me come up with this way of filtering events and this events to attend . Okay , so I'm again .

Speaker 1

I'm big on , you know , personal development and stuff like that . I recognize , you know , as a leader in the physician space . One of the worst things I can do is I can stop growing right , because , whether I mean to be or not , I'm a lid of sorts , right , I kind of show people oh , you can come this far , but that's it , right , and so someone can look at me as an introvert and they're like oh , I guess we can be great at speaking . You know , we can have podcasts , we can speak at events , we could rock networking and stuff like that . A pediatrician could look at me and say , wait , I thought we were all lowly pediatricians . I guess you know we can chart our own path . Someone could say I have a bunch of kids and I thought that was the reason why I couldn't do X , y , z . But apparently we could .

Speaker 1

That's my life and that's why I share a lot of my stories , so people can find themselves in and say , oh , clearly I can overcome this or clearly I can have a different story . That's the whole purpose . And if there's ever a story I've told that has made a difference for you , maybe you can send me a PM or DM and say , hey , dr Una , you told this story and because of that a story , there's a purpose behind it , right ? Okay , so I started choosing . I was like what kind of events would I go for ? Right , because I can't say yes to all of them and I will tell you what they are and you don't have to adopt mine , but you can adopt whatever works for you . But this is what I chose . And so I had three things . I look at you will see how I have never lost money on an event , never . It has never happened Like . I think about a certain way and I'm very intentional about how I approach it . Okay , so the first thing I look at is the host . Okay , I look at the host .

Speaker 1

Now , one of my mentors told me this you know , man , this must have been like either a final year in med school or , you know , the first year after med school . And he said I do not read books , I do not read titles , I read authors . And I'm going to break that down right I don't read titles , I read authors . And so what does that mean ? That can be a book like how to make your first million in revenue . And so what does that mean ? That can be a book like how to make your first million in revenue , and it was written by someone who hasn't hit that first million in revenue . And this happens all the time . There's so many things you see on Instagram , like some of them , people I know and I'm like there is nothing true , there's nothing factual about what is happening here .

Speaker 1

Okay , so the person who hasn't made the million , they can write whatever they want , they could chat , gpt , they could do all of that stuff , but they can't actually transfer the know-how to you because they haven't done it , they don't have the experience , they can only give what they have , period . So I'm not necessarily looking at the title , I'm looking at who wrote the book and I'm making the decision to buy the book based on the author , not on the title , okay . And so there are people that are mentors

Selective Event Criteria

Speaker 1

in my world that if they write it , I'm going to read it . Right , because everybody's secrets and strategies and methods and all that is found in their words , it's found in their books , it's found in their podcasts and stuff , right . And so you're trying to find , like , what is it that makes this person tick ? What made this work for this person ? Right , it's in their book . So , not titles , but authors , okay . When I go to events , I'm also looking at the host . Does this person have what I want ? Has this person helped other people get what I want ? And so if that person fits the bill and especially in the times we find ourselves in , okay .

Speaker 1

So at the time of this recording , this is 2025 . And one of the things about 2025 is many things are in flux , right . Things that used to work before that are not working anymore , or the things that were fads and the fads have fallen apart , that I've seen people with eight figure businesses like just right Because their strategies were based on fads and the fad doesn't work anymore . So I'm also looking for is this person leading in this time ? Right , is this person leading ? So , are they still at the forefront ? Are they still showing up ? Are they still making progress ? Are they still like , where are they ? Do they have what I want ? Have they helped other people get what I want , and are they leading in this time ?

Speaker 1

Okay , so I'm looking for that and one of the things I you know I didn't used to look for this in the very beginning , but I have looked at it for at least six years at this point , I'm also looking at the relationship between them and work and their lives and their health and all of those things . So I'm at a stage in my business where , if someone is trying to their strategies work , but it's at the expense of your health , or the strategies work but it's the expense of your family , like what's family , like this is , you're doing the work for them anywhere Grind , grind , grind , all that Like , if it's not congruent with the life I'm trying to live , I don't do it either . I'm just like , nah , okay . So I'm looking at the host . Do I want to be in this room ? Do I want to be in this room put together by this host ? And if the answer is not yes , if I look at , have they done it ? No , have they helped other people do it ? No . Their work life you know all areas of their lives Is it in alignment the way I want mine to be ? No , are they leading ? No , they're hiding . No , I'm not going for that event Like , I'm just not going to do it .

Speaker 1

The opportunity cost like it's expensive . Not the price of the event , or the price of the flight , or the price of the hotel room , the price of being away from my family , the price of I mean , when I did those trips I I'm tired all the time because I'm sitting so much . The opportunity and the cost of attending an event is expensive For me it's expensive , and so if I'm going to do it , then I have to be sure of the ROI , okay . So the first thing I look at is the host okay . The second thing I look at is the attendees Okay . So you guys have heard me talk about preparing to show up at events . I've done multiple podcast episodes about them , but this is the deal . Okay , podcast episodes about them , but this is the deal . Okay .

Speaker 1

There is a think of it like a vertical ROI , like what you get from the host , what you get from stage , what you get from their team , all of that stuff . So the vertical ROI , and then there's this horizontal ROI , and the horizontal ROI is the when I say ROI is return on investment . The horizontal ROI is what you get from your peers that you came to the event with , right . And so I ask myself for the people who are going to be in the room , are these people I can learn from ? Are their connections that open doors for me ? Are these people who were just on our way to the bathroom and we have a conversation ? In that conversation , I can download a $250,000 million idea or I can have this big shift , something that has been a big obstacle in my business . It could just flip .

Speaker 1

And so I ask myself , like , who's going to be in the room ? Because if those people are going to be in the room , let me tell you something about me . Even if the speakers didn't say anything , I will walk away with a huge ROI because I know how to tap into the horizontal ROI . I'm like I'm good at it , right , ok . So I asked myself who's going to be in the room , right , and so I went to an event recently and it's an event where there are entrepreneurs . They are running six , seven and eight figure businesses

Host: The First Filter

Speaker 1

and I'm like , yep , I know what to do in that room . Right , I know what to do in that room .

Speaker 1

At the time of this recording , we're getting ready for our events at the Entrepreneur MD Business School , business Makeover Mastermind . So we have an event every April where we do a deep dive in their businesses , right ? So we optimize the four big pillars and so that would be the seven figure mindset . We're optimizing their revenue generation framework , we're optimizing their team and something else I can't say because they may be listening . Okay , so we show up , but guess who's going to be in the room ? We're going to have businesses all the way from startup to multimillion , right , and it's not like 7,000 people in the room . We're probably going to be 45 , 50 max in the room . And man , we're going to workshop , we're going to do deep dives , but they're going to be in the room with these phenomenal physicians and some of the .

Speaker 1

I mean , if you've attended any of our workshops , you get to hear them tell their stories , right , and it's just mind boggling . It's just mind boggling to hear them , and they get to be in the room with them , right , and that's done on purpose , because now in this environment there's so much that can happen , I mean , and it doesn't take much . It could be during lunch , it could be during a break , it could be during a session . You hear somebody else's story , something clicks . All of that stuff . It's amazing . So I asked myself you know who's going to be in the room , who's going to be in the room ? And if it's a great room , then okay , great host , great room , two for two , okay , like the host , like the attendees .

Speaker 1

The third thing I look out for is the content . Okay , now , here we can differ . I will tell you what I do and I'll tell you why I do it , and then you can choose . It's not about taking mine hook like line of center is just you choosing how to think about yours . And so , for the content , I'm looking for a few things .

Speaker 1

I am not a fan of very broad conferences , and there's nothing wrong with it . Please don't misunderstand me , but here I'm picking , right . I'm picking the ones I choose to go to In my stage as an entrepreneur . The narrower it is , the better , right , like I don't want something that will talk about business or talk about health or talk about family and all that stuff . I'm like , no , I don't want to go to the ones where it's multiple speakers and every speaker has an offer , and so it feels like a pitch fest the entire time . Which there's nothing wrong with selling I talk about selling all the time and I sell all the time , right , there's nothing wrong with that . But to be in a room where 12 people are selling over two days , I don't want to listen to 12 pitches . I don't even mind listening to one pitch from one company 12 times , but I don't want to be pitched by 12 different people . So narrow focus , right .

Speaker 1

So I've gone to businesses . I've gone to events where it's all business or it's all one part of business , where it could be sales or it could be speaking , or it could be building your team or whatever . Right Now . Of course it could be broader within the context of business . I'll take that , but I just don't want , oh yeah , like I'm super inspired and this would change my life . I don't want that , right , okay . So something narrow , something . That is , it lends itself to a workshop style feel , which means that I'm not just listening , I'm not just getting inspired , but I can start working on this stuff right away , right , so it's either they're giving me really practical tips or we have time for co-working sessions , like working sessions right in the moment , so we start creating wins while we're still at the event . I love those .

Speaker 1

Right , I'm looking for content that's results oriented . I do want to be inspired and if you listen to the Ontario Beat Podcast or you've been to any of my events , you know that we are going to inspire you . But , by goodness , we want you inspired and empowered to take action . Right , like to have the strategies and all of those things . And so I don't want it raw , I want it to be result oriented . Right , that's the way I think about it and I do that intentionally . So if there's the events , I don't check the boxes . I'm just like , yeah , I don't , I'm not going , right , and these are events where for my personal development ,

Attendees: Horizontal ROI

Speaker 1

right , and I'm like , yeah , I'm not going to do that . Okay , so you can pick what your three are . But I think the important thing is to kind of think , like there is an opportunity cost to traveling , okay , like when I do my events .

Speaker 1

I just talked about the EBS business makeover mastermind . Oh my goodness , do we put a lot of time , effort , focus into that ? Because I want P and I tell them , I'm like , whatever it costs you to be here , whatever the investment was for you to be here , I want you to walk away with a minimum of a hundred X minimum , like you're walking away , like Dr Unai , I still owe you money . I know I paid for this , but shoot , I should have paid more . That's what I want you to walk away with . That's my driver , right ? Okay ? Now some may say , oh , man , I'm not in the business school yet , right , I'm not in the business school yet .

Speaker 1

So let me use a different event . Okay , so , we have EntreeMD Live . That's coming up June the 7th , 2025 . And , oh my goodness , this is our annual event . The first one we did was in 2019 . And then , after COVID , we did it virtually a number of times . Last year we did a hybrid and this year we're doing in-person only , going to be absolutely good .

Speaker 1

But I want you to understand that I use the same things that I use to pick what kind of events I would use to create this experience as well . Okay , so , let's look at a few things . So I talked about the host . Okay , so who's the host ? I'm the host for EntreMD Live . Now , if you want to grab your tickets , it's entremdcom forward slash live . You definitely want to be in the room . I mean like it'll be in Atlanta , it'll be amazing , no-transcript .

Speaker 1

So your results are my result . That's it . And you're talking about somebody who's run multiple very successful businesses , who has a business that's been on the Inc 5000 list of fastest growing companies for two years in a row . You're the Ontario MD Business School . Hundreds and hundreds of physicians and thousands of them through our workshops and all of that , and I've done this for the last seven years , right , and so this is something that I've done . If you look , you'll see the track record of results that we've created , and so this is something that is proven . Our integrity is proven , our authenticity is proven , our methods are proven , right , and so that's the whole stat of that meeting , right ? And when I think about , you know , last year , oh my goodness , like you know , the people who came into the room just to watch , you know , like this year , the theme is the seven figure entrepreneur . And we did something similar last year , not the same , but the same theme , right , but the content is going to be completely different this year upgraded , because that's how we roll and to see the light bulbs go off and to watch them .

Speaker 1

Because some of the doctors after the event did come to join us in the Ontario Business School . And there are three that come to mind immediately . Right , we had a Dr Angelise and we just interviewed her in one of our workshops and she's like man , my revenue has been up 20% . She hasn't even been in the school for up to a year . She was like I've never been able to take two weeks off , but I've built my team . I took two weeks off for spring break . I think she said

Content: Results-Oriented Focus

Speaker 1

this has never happened before and just the level of peace and confidence . And she has a whole network of physicians as opposed to when she fought by herself , and all of that .

Speaker 1

We have Dr Lucy Mitchell . I think Dr Lucy Mitchell was in school for 90 days and already done $60,000 in revenue . We're like who are you Like ? Who are you and stuff like that , and she's amazing . She's an artist and she did the official art for National Private Practice Physicians Day . She's just absolutely amazing . And then we had Dr Makedja I think her first quarter in the school . Her business grew by 122% and she's like , whoa , right , and so to see real life change happen . That's what we're here for . We're here to help people get results . Right .

Speaker 1

When we did that event in real time , we couldn't even get the people to leave . They're like , oh my goodness , like I can have a different reality . Not their words , not in those words , right , cause that's kind of weird , that's what I would say . But you know , they're like , I have not met a community like this , right , like you know , let's connect , let's , you know , share our information and stay connected and all of that stuff . It was just beautiful , okay . So who are the people attending ? The people are attending are physician entrepreneurs and from startup to multimillion in revenue , and there are people who've raised their hands , right . There are people who've raised their hands and say I want to make this better .

Speaker 1

Your theme is the seven figure entrepreneur . I want to be that . And so talk about a room full of like-minded individuals , right , and just to be in that room is so powerful . And again , one conversation , one conversation can completely rock your world , okay . Third thing content . And what is our content ? A seven-figure entrepreneur . We're going to go through the mindset of a seven-figure entrepreneur , the strategies that they use , the kind of teams that they use and other things I cannot tell you about because I do not spill all my beans . Okay , I love surprises , okay , but that's what we're going to be talking about . So , if you're thinking like I want to get to my first million , or I want to get to my first million , or I want to add a million in revenue , then there's a spot for you in the room . So , seriously , go save your ticket .

Speaker 1

Entremdcom forward slash live is going to be June the 7th in Atlanta . Going to be absolutely amazing . I would love to see you in the room . The reason I'm sharing all of this with you so it'll make it even easier for you to make a decision . Like I want to be in the room because I'm choosing what events to attend . I want you to choose what events to attend , but I want to show you why on-training day

EntreMD Live Event Preview

Speaker 1

life fits the bill right . Okay ? So this is the deal . Events are great game changers . It will change your world .

Speaker 1

You put yourself in the room with the right host , the right attendees and the right content .

Speaker 1

You cannot tell what happens . You will not be able to tell what happens , like I was saying earlier , like I've had conversations that I can trace a million dollars to a conversation . Actually , one of them was not even a conversation . I just heard somebody you know asking a question , sharing her story and asking a question , and I was like huh , and that led to a million dollars in revenue in that year . Okay , so I'm not going to promise you a million , but I'm going to promise you that if you embrace this and put yourself in the right room , that in 90 days from the event , you'll go like wait , what what just happened here ? And I want that for you . Okay , so I want you to imagine that , because that is something that is possible for you , I want you to go save your tickets on tramdcom forward slash live . I cannot wait to see in Atlanta June the 7th 2025 . In the meantime , just keep crushing it . This is our time , this is the year of the physician and we're going to win this thing .

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