In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo sits down with Susan Daly, Head of Optical Products at IDOC, live from IDOC Connection to tackle a challenge every independent optometry practice faces: complexity in the optical.

From overloaded frame boards to overwhelming lens options, today’s opticals are often suffering from the “peanut butter problem”, too many choices leading to decision fatigue for both patients and staff. The result? Lower capture rates, walking scripts, and missed revenue.

Susan shares a practical path forward, showing how simplifying your frame selection, lens offerings, and conversations can increase capture, improve team performance, and create a better patient experience.

You will learn:

If you want a more efficient, profitable optical that feels easier to run, this episode gives you the blueprint.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo joins certified financial planner and 20/20 Money podcast host Adam Cmejla for a candid conversation about one of the most common — and costly — mindsets in independent optometry: the belief that the business model is broken and that adding new services is the only way out.

The conversation starts with a frustrated email from a real OD — one who feels stuck, undervalued by insurance, and convinced that the only path forward runs through dry eye spas and red light therapy. Steve and Adam unpack why that thinking is understandable, why it's also a little dangerous, and why the same communication gaps that are quietly killing capture rate will follow you right into your next revenue stream.

Steve challenges the profession's complicated relationship with selling, makes the case that better communication, not better services, is usually the first domino to knock over, and shares practical, low-risk ways to start improving patient conversations today.

Originally aired on 20/20 Money, hosted by Adam Cmejla, CFP.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo tackles a frustrating experience nearly every practice owner has lived through: a candidate who interviews beautifully, gets hired with confidence — and then quietly unravels six weeks later.

Why does this keep happening?

Drawing on research into hiring psychology and behavioral science, Steve makes the case that bad hires aren't bad luck — they're the predictable result of a broken process. The gut instinct we rely on in interviews turns out to be one of the weakest predictors of job performance. Meanwhile, the approaches that actually work are ones most independent practices have never been taught.

In this episode, Steve breaks down the most common places the hiring process goes sideways, why interviews are performance environments that reward the wrong things, and what a smarter — and surprisingly simple — approach looks like in a real-world practice setting.

In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo sits down with Kayla Ashlee for a fascinating conversation about one of the most misunderstood groups walking into today’s practices: Gen Z patients.

Why are so many doctors and opticians struggling to connect with this generation?

Steve and Kayla explore how Gen Z’s digital upbringing, constant access to information, and high sensitivity to inauthenticity are changing the way practices need to communicate. They unpack why traditional “doctor talk,” overexplaining, and product-heavy presentations often fall flat—and how these missteps can quietly lead to lower capture rates, weaker trust, and missed opportunities in the optical.

This conversation goes far beyond generational stereotypes. It’s about learning how to communicate more clearly, guide more effectively, and create an experience that feels personal rather than transactional. Kayla shares practical insights on simplifying language, improving handoffs, asking better questions, and creating more customized optical experiences that resonate not only with Gen Z, but with patients across the board.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo tackles a frustration nearly every practice owner has experienced: your patients like you, your patient surveys are positive—and yet referrals just aren’t happening.

Why is that?

Drawing on behavioral science and real-world experience, Steve challenges a common assumption in healthcare: that satisfied patients naturally become advocates. The research tells a different story. Patient satisfaction alone does not drive referrals—trust does. And more specifically, it’s the kind of trust that makes patients feel like you’re genuinely on their side.

Through a relatable story and practical insights, Steve unpacks what actually drives word-of-mouth in healthcare, including the powerful role of memory, emotional moments, and how visits end. He introduces key concepts like the “peak-end rule,” the intention–behavior gap, and why even well-intentioned patients often fail to follow through on referring others.

If you’ve ever wondered why happy patients don’t automatically translate into practice growth, this episode will shift your perspective—and give you a more intentional, human-centered approach to generating referrals that actually happen.

Not fully confident in what your practice's numbers are telling you? It's time for a financial health review.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo sits down with Cory Pinegar for a practical conversation about virtual assistants, remote staffing, and why more optometry practices are taking a serious look at hybrid teams.

Steve and Cory unpack some of the biggest misconceptions doctors still have about virtual assistants—from concerns about communication and quality to fears about accountability, culture, and whether remote team members can truly feel like part of the practice. They also explore why virtual staffing is not a “plug and play” solution, and what practice owners need to do on their end to make it successful.

This conversation goes beyond outsourcing as a cost-saving tactic. It’s about building a smarter workforce for the future—one that blends in-office staff, remote team members, and AI in a way that reduces overload, protects team culture, and creates more space for meaningful patient connection. Corey shares practical insights on hiring, onboarding, training, setting clear expectations, and helping virtual assistants become real members of the team rather than just invisible support in the background.

Not fully confident in what your practice's numbers are telling you? It's time for a financial health review.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo sits down with optometrist and consultant Dr. Larry Golson for a practical conversation about leadership, delegation, and one of the biggest hidden barriers to growth in private practice: the owner who can’t let go.

Building on an earlier discussion about EOS—the Entrepreneurial Operating System introduced in Traction—Steve and Larry focus on one of its most powerful and misunderstood tools: the Accountability Chart. Together, they explore how a clear structure for roles, reporting, and ownership can reduce chaos, improve trust, and help practice owners stop being the bottleneck in their own business.

Larry shares how implementing EOS in his own practice changed everything—from team alignment to sustainable growth—and why many owners unknowingly create stress, confusion, and frustration by leading from control rather than clarity. They also unpack the emotional side of delegation: why trusting your team feels so difficult, how to avoid creating more conflict during organizational change, and why empowering others often leads to better outcomes than trying to hold everything together yourself.

This conversation goes beyond org charts or management tactics. It’s about rethinking leadership, creating structure that gives people confidence, and building a practice that grows because more people are taking ownership—not because the owner is carrying more.

Listen to Episode 24: Transition From Patient Care to Practice Development

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo sits down with financial planner and repeat guest Adam Cmejla for a timely conversation about taxes, costly filing mistakes, and why practice owners need more than just a CPA who “gets it done.”

Steve and Adam unpack a real-world example that started with a social media post: a doctor’s tax return included an $83,000 qualified business income deduction they likely didn’t qualify for—an error that could have created more than $30,000 in back taxes, plus penalties and interest. From there, the conversation expands into the broader issues practice owners need to understand during tax season: the difference between tax preparation and tax planning, why a second set of eyes matters, and how seemingly small errors can turn into expensive problems years later.

This conversation isn’t about fear. It’s about clarity. It’s about helping doctors understand their numbers, ask better questions, and take a more intentional approach to taxes as part of a complete financial plan.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo explores a frustrating experience nearly every doctor has faced: explaining a treatment plan clearly, receiving agreement from the patient—and then watching them never follow through.

Why does this happen?

Drawing on recent research he conducted on patient behavior and adherence, Steve unpacks the uncomfortable reality that patient “non-compliance” is rarely about patients simply not caring or not listening. In fact, the World Health Organization and behavioral science research suggest something very different: many adherence failures are predictable outcomes of human behavior—and often influenced by how treatment plans are communicated and implemented.

If you’ve ever wondered why patients nod in the exam room but don’t act afterward, this episode will challenge the way you think about compliance—and offer a smarter approach to designing care that patients actually follow.

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In this episode, Dr. Steve Vargo is joined by repeat guest Ankit Patel—AI and remote staffing expert and founder of My Business Care Team—for a practical conversation about one word that matters more than ever right now: scalability.

Steve and Ankit unpack why so many optometry practices feel stuck in a staffing trap—constant turnover, missed calls, overwhelmed teams, and owners carrying far more operational weight than they should. And they connect the dots to a hidden consequence most doctors don’t think about until it’s too late: if your practice is still “key-person dependent,” it becomes harder to scale… and less attractive to buy.

You’ll hear how Ankit has built a hybrid model using remote teams and AI to strip away administrative noise—phones, confirmations, insurance verification, recalls—so in-office staff can focus on the patient experience. They explore what changes when remote staffing is done right: fewer distractions, higher capture rates, stronger patient flow, improved profitability, and a business that feels less like a job and more like an asset.

This isn’t a conversation about outsourcing to save a few dollars. It’s about building a modern practice that can grow without compounding chaos—and creating the kind of structure that can increase valuation and help you sell faster, and at a higher price, when the time comes.

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