"I've been a Sterling client since March of 1999, when I went out for the training in Glendale. What got me thinking about Sterling in the first place was staffing problems, by far my biggest concern. I had a lot of questions about how to hire staff, and hire the appropriate staff. We weren't having a high turnover but I had kept some employees that weren't very good employees for too long. We had some inter-office bickering going on - that type of thing. I was trying to settle that out, figure out who to keep and who to let go. What piqued my interest in Sterling was this very magazine, which came across my desk. There were some articles that were of interest to me and so I called them.

"The training was applicable and the consulting I had when I was there was very good, and they helped me resolve my staffing issues right then on the spot. They did a profile on everyone who was working here, including me, which revealed a lot about the employees I had. Sterling had everyone take a couple of tests and Sterling explained the results to me. I learned a lot about my employees and how to approach them based on the tests. That was very helpful. I wound up letting two employees go - the same ones that were doing the bickering. We've replaced them and Sterling has helped us in the hiring of the two new employees. They have turned out to be really good employees.

"I think the biggest difference Sterling has made is that we're getting some appropriate employees around here who are capable of doing their jobs. That has helped a lot, stress-wise and organizational-wise.

"The hardest part of the personnel problems I was having was learning how to address them. That's what I learned from Sterling: how to address those staff issues and become a better manager. What I've gained, more than anything, is how to hire the right employees and manage them once I get them here. And how to let go of the ones I don't want. That's all gone smoothly, and Sterling has helped a lot in that.

"It's a lot less stressful here than it was before. And we're more organized than we were then.

"I didn't know anything about Sterling when I went out there. I had read an interview of Dr. Bixby in this magazine and I called him and asked him about it - he recommended it, so I really didn't have any reservations. I just told them what I wanted to handle, and they helped me to handle it.

"I've read through some of Mr. Hubbard's books now, and the principles in the Hubbard management technology are really sound. They make a lot of sense.

"My Sterling consultant is excellent. She's an easy person to talk to. She understands a dental practice very well. She's had a lot of experience, and I look forward to my calls with her about every other week.

"I quickly made back what I spent on Sterling. It was a very quick turnaround in this practice. Sterling's idea of success is, obviously, increasing your production. My idea of success is the same. More production with less stress is my idea of success in a dental office."