The Power of Core Values and Curiosity

Episode #378 with Katrina M. Sanders RDH, BSDH, M.Ed, RF, The Dental WINEgenist

Dental school teaches the bare minimum of what's possible. If you want to move dentistry and your practice forward, you need to stay curious! And today, Kirk Behrendt brings back Katrina M. Sanders, known in the dental community as The Dental WINEgenist, to share how core values and curiosity empowered her to move dentistry in her own unique and entertaining way. Don't keep doing the same old thing — explore and elevate your practice! For some of the best advice on developing core values, being a disruptor, and staying curious, listen to Episode 378 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Core values always begins with the leader.

Core values apply at all moments, good and bad.

Building core values should be a team activity.

When the team is involved, there is shared responsibility.

The work around core values never ends.

Always be curious and continue to explore.

Quotes:

“Core values isn't the oath that you set on graduation day. That's not for the day when everything is going well, and all the patients are showing up on time, and your scrubs are perfectly pressed, and you packed your lunch today. No, your core values, who you are, your “why,” that message is for the moments when “fit has hit the shan” and you've got a troll who’s messaging on social media.” (10:26—10:54)

“One of the challenges that I run into, particularly when I'm working with my clients, is although they have these core values — I've got one client in particular who’s got an amazing mission statement. I love it. I'm like, ‘This is amazing.’ And yet, just because we have a placard on the wall that says these are our core values, does that actually mean that those core values show up? And I think the cool thing about core values is the work around a core value never ends.”  (14:05—14:32)

“I'm a business owner, so I've had to build my own core values and then relay that to my team, ‘These are the core values of The Dental WINEgenist brand. Period. This is how we function. This is how we work. This is how we collaborate. This is how we communicate.’ And yet, when you run into challenges, when you run into a situation in clinical practice with a patient, we have to take a step back and go, ‘Did our core values show up in that moment? Did we practice with integrity? This patient showed up late and it totally disrupted our day. Were we able to adhere to our core values of high-level, world-class dentistry when we had to cut short the appointment?’” (14:33—15:15)

“The vast majority of us go to dental school, go to dental hygiene school, we become educated in dentistry because we actually do want to help people. And yet, our own core values, our own practice philosophy, oftentimes comes into question, whether that's a patient questioning, ‘Oh, I don't know. The doctor said I need a crown on that tooth. But can't I just get away with a filling over there?’ It’s not even about you're questioning my clinical savvy. It’s, ‘I'm telling you that the doctor is saying you need a full-coverage crown on this tooth because that is what's in the best interest of your tooth. They're not doing this because they need another car payment on their Mercedes.’ It’s when moments like that happen that we have to lean back on our core values.” (16:02—16:50)

“When we say to our employees, to our team members, ‘These are our core values. This is what we stand for. Let's do activities. Let's talk about this,’ if you're a dentist, if you're a practice owner, it begins with you. It begins with you. It begins with making sure that you are giving your team the tools and the resources to be able to follow through with those core values.” (20:25—20:47)

“If we’re going to talk about clinical...