Meet Dr. Ben Thayil | Optometrist, Executive Coach & Keynote Speaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Ben Thayil and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Ben, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Ever since I was in 2nd grade, I wanted to become an Optometrist. I thought once I did that, that was it! Growing up, owning my own business never crossed my mind. After finishing my residency training, I started practicing at different clinics throughout South Florida. In all of the places I worked, I noticed 3 things: 1) The patient’s who go to these offices are not loyal and are happy to go somewhere else the next year, 2) The people who worked at these clinics didn’t work as a team and there was always some drama going, and lastly, 3) the doctor’s (including me) didn’t really like practicing there because there was always something more or better.

As the hunt for finding my ‘perfect job’ continued, I came to the realization that if I wanted to find a place where patient’s love to recieve care, doctor’s like to practice, and people love to work, then I have to create that place. Those three things became the pillars of why I started my own clinic and went into entreprenuership. In everything we do at Lifetime Vision and Eye Care, we look at it through the lens of creating a place where patient’s love to come, people love to work, and doctor’s love to practice. Living on that foundation has brought tremendous success to our business!

Growing my own company lead me to want to help other doctor’s and business owners grow their businesses. That’s why I started LeadOD, a consulting company, to help other doctor’s and organizations grow their teams and businesses. In my role as executive coach and corporate trainer, I help organizations build teams that want to stay for the long-haul, help to implement systems and processes, and increase thier patient volume through loyalty and trust. These strategies worked for my own business and now it’s part of my purpose to help others do the same!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
As I mentioned earlier, the reason I decided to start my own clinic was to create a place where patients love to recieve care, people love to work, and doctor’s love to practice. I’m a firm believer that if you take care of your people, your people will take care of you. What does that mean at Lifetime Vision and Eye Care? It means that if we are hyperfocused on creating a great customer service experience and if I, as a leader, am focused the personal growth of my team, then both the patients and my team will help create a successful business. A successful business is important because it gives job security for my team and it ensures we are open for business so we can continue to help deliver eye care to our community.

Anything worth having in life is hard work. So to answer the question if it was easy. It definitely was not. In the early days it was hard to pay the bills, it was hard to get people in the door and I was overcome by anxiety. I had so much anxiety, in fact, that I went to the ER for a panic attack because it felt so much like a heart attack!

How did I overcome all of the obstacles of creating my own business? I surrounded myself with mentors and coaches who wanted to see me be successful. I believe everyone should have a mentor in every area of life. From business, to faith, to family, to fitness. Everyone should have somone who can speak into every area of your life. Through these friendships I was able to learn how to run a business (and not just own a job), how to obtain and keep customers, and live a balance life without burnout.

One of the biggest things I’ve learned along the way is that if you are at the point of really wanting to give up, that’s your sign to keep pushing forward. To double down on your efforts, and step on the gas. It’s easy to cave under pressure, it takes a lot of grit to keep going even when you don’t feel like it. At the end of the day, you’ll be happy you did. No one ever regrets being persistent. People always regret quitting.

One thing I’d like the world to know about me is that because of my (almost 15) years of experience and hardhips, it’s important for me to help others. Denzel Washington has said ‘each one teach one.’ With that mentality, I started a consulting company where I coach executives and organizational leaders in building healthy teams and businesses without burning out. This journey was very difficult and it was hard for me to find people who would actually help me. Becuase of my hardships, part of my purpose in life is to help others along their journey. That’s why I started a consulting company in 2020 called LeadOD.

If you come to our clinic or want me to come into your business to coach you, just know, you will be taken care of. Your success is really important to me!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If I had a week to show my best friend around here’s what we would do:

1. Whiskey Creek Hideout…a little known tucked away beach where parking is easy and it’s never crowded.
2. Queen Miami Beach…amazing food at an amazing venue
3. Lifetime Vision and Eye Care…they’d probably want me to give them an eye exam while they are here!
4. Everglades Safari Park…because everyone who visits wants to see an alligator
5. Florida Panther’s Game…it’s always a good time when your team is dominating!
6. Anywhere to rent jet ski’s…it’s just one of my favorite things to do

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I definitely could not have done this all on my own. In 2017 I made a friend who also became my executive coach. His name is Tom Telesco. Tom was someone who was always in my corner and believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself. We all need someone like that in our life. Someone who offers perspective and insight. Someone who treats you for who you can be and not just for who you are. Because of Tom, I was able to make friends with another mentor of mine, John Maxwell. John one of the most influencial leadership experts in the world and he has shaped the way I view people and business. Lastly (but not least), I have to give credit to my wife Sarah. She was the one who always listened to me and my crazy ideas and she was the one who finally said ‘just go do it!’ She gave me the encouragement and confidence to venture out on a crazy dream!

Website: https://www.lifetimevisionmiami.com

Instagram: @liftimevision_miami

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drbenthayil

Other: https://www.LeadOD.com