What if I told you your side hustle could teach you more about systems than your main practice ever did?

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Darin Ward, an orthodontist with an unconventional journey—from growing a $2.5M practice in Canada, to downsizing into a lifestyle practice in rural Michigan, to roasting thousands of pounds of organic coffee out of his garage. Darin’s story is a masterclass in knowing what you want, building it intentionally, and embracing entrepreneurship in and out of the operatory.

We talk about the real cost of rapid growth (spoiler: it’s not just financial), why he walked away from a thriving practice to prioritize family, and how that shift led him to discover his passion for coffee roasting. If you’ve ever wrestled with burnout, wondered how much growth is enough, or dreamed of turning a hobby into something more—this episode is going to resonate hard.

Oh, and did I mention he owns six vintage wooden rowing shells and was once an Aztec rower at SDSU? Yeah… this one’s got range.

QUOTES

"I was doing dentistry to support my orthodontic habit. That’s when I knew I had to sell my practice and go all in."

— Dr. Darin Ward

"You don't really own a business until you can get yourself out of it. Until then? You own a job."

— Dr. Darin Ward

Key Takeaways

• Intro (00:00)
• From general dentist to ortho: Darin’s winding path (01:00)
• How he built a $2.5M ortho practice in just 3 years (02:56)
• The power (and price) of aggressive grassroots marketing (06:31)
• Scaling quickly vs. profiting slowly—what’s the tradeoff? (07:27)
• Why Darin pivoted to a lifestyle practice in rural Michigan (08:42)
• From 25–40 patients a day: how lean can you go? (09:01)
• Why all new patients get a custom-roasted pound of coffee (18:16)
• Turning a garage into a full-blown roastery (19:39)
• The logistics wall: when passion meets scale (21:26)
• White-labeling beans for dentists and ortho friends? (23:26)
• The E-Myth and owning your systems, not just your hustle (25:45)
• Rowing, racing shells, and a rowing club in the Upper Peninsula (28:50)

Additional Resources

Tune in and get inspired to build a practice—and a life—that fits you.

If you've ever dreamed of doing something outside of ortho—whether it's roasting coffee, starting a business, or simply working less and living more—this episode will hit home. Darin's story reminds us that growth doesn't always mean bigger... sometimes it just means better.

☕️ Oh, and grab a bag of his beans at upwardcoffee.net

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OrthoPreneurs