👉 Free training for dentists who want a "true sub-12% body fat abs", despite the stress and lack of time: https://youtu.be/cYhvSAeAbJs

Limited Spots - 6 per month

DM me RIP6 on IG - instagram.com/dr.richard.low/

OR

text (219) 245-7050 for availability

Most dentists secretly want what Dr. Shane has built:

Bought a 7‑op practice + building in a small town

Grew from $1.2M to $3.7M in 4 years

Expanded to 3 doctors & ~18 team members

Tripled new patients (25–30 → ~90/month)

And at the same time… fixed his body, stress, and leadership.

In this joint episode of Next Level Dentist, I sit down with Dr. Shane Wingler and Gary Bird to unpack both sides of that growth:

The practice systems, hiring, marketing, and AI that drove collections

The personal transformation that kept Shane from burning out or blowing up his team and family.

I’m Dr. Richard Low:

- Dentist & former CEO of 35 dental practices

- Founder of the #1 rated practice‑ownership podcast in dentistry

- Burned out, rebuilt my life around faith, family, and fitness

- Now coaching 50+ male practice‑owner dentists inside Next Level Fathers to lose weight, reconnect with God, and lead better at home

We cover:

1. The acquisition & growth path

- Buying a long‑standing 7‑op practice + real estate (all‑in around $2M).

- Why buying the whole building (and upstairs) created future growth instead of a trap.

- Going from 7 ops partially used → fully optimized ops & added doctor days.

2. Culture, turnover, and building a real team

- Going from 7 to ~18 team members (with 0 OGs left).

- Changing a “coast & complacent” culture into a growth‑minded, drama‑free one.

- Why Shane now protects culture at all costs and has the team, not him, judge new hires.

3. Masterminds, books, and learning leadership

- How 3D Dentists (Tarun & Sully) helped him realize he was a bad leader and fix it.

- Book stack that actually changed his ops:

Extreme Ownership

The Coaching Habit

Traction (EOS)

- Running a book club with other dentists and implementing the ideas (not just reading them).

4. Capacity → demand → capacity again

- The reality: most practices are supply constrained, not demand constrained.

- Hiring a second associate early, then a third, and using hygiene capacity as the real limiter.

- Tweaking hygiene scheduling, slowing down for better exams, and immediately seeing growth before paid marketing.

5. Marketing with Gary: from 25–30 to ~90 new patients/month

- Why Shane finally decided to spend real money on marketing.

- Using percentage of collections (not raw dollars) to make marketing math sane.

- Working with Gary’s team to:

Fix call answer and conversion

Shorten time‑to‑appointment

Shift focus based on constraints (hygiene full → pivot towards implants/emergencies).

6. AI & patient financing in the real world

- Hiring “Allie” – an AI phone agent to catch missed calls and book new patients (often after hours).

- How patients and team have actually reacted (not theory).

- Presenting patient financing to every patient, not just as a last‑ditch “save,” and seeing a 30%+ bump in collections.

7. Shane’s personal transformation: from sharp, stressed owner to 3:50 AM beast

- Carrying all the emotional weight of growth home and getting sharp with his team.

- His associate calling him out: “If you talked to me like that…”

- Joining Next Level Fathers not just for a six‑pack, but for:

Spiritual realignment

Journaling & reflection

Being present at home

Getting out of the numb‑out cycle

- Waking up at 3:50 AM daily, winning the morning with:

Workout

Nutrition planning

Spiritual work

Journaling

- How that became his identity and the foundation for everything else.

If you’re a successful, stressed or burned-out dentist,

🚀 Watch the full Next Level Fathers Framework:

https://youtu.be/cYhvSAeAbJs

Connect with me

📸 Instagram (daily content & behind the scenes): instagram.com/dr.richard.low/