Soft Bites Podcast

After four years, this is our final episode. And it feels fitting to close with a conversation about one of the most complex and emotional decisions a professional can make: selling your dental practice.

This episode is not about transactions. It’s about identity, timing, strategy, and perspective.

Selling a practice is rarely just a financial decision. It can be driven by lifestyle recalibration, strategic opportunity, succession planning challenges, or just the desire to build something new. Jorge André tells us about his experience and unpacks the emotional and economic drivers behind the decision. What makes someone shift from “I built this” to “It’s time to let it go”?

We break down the different models of selling and address the uncomfortable truth: what you think your practice is worth and what the market is willing to pay are often two very different numbers.

We talk about resilience and the reality behind the polished exterior of entrepreneurship. Your business will test your character, it forces maturity, it challenges ego, and it clarifies what truly matters.

And for now, we’ve decided to stop. This decision is about alignment: seasons change, energy shifts, and priorities evolve.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

If you’re considering selling your practice—or just beginning to build one—this, and all the other Soft Bites podcast episodes are for you.

All the best,

Manuela Rodrigues & Jorge André Cardoso

In this episode, we welcome back Professor António Mata to explore one of the most talked-about topics in modern healthcare: artificial intelligence.

AI is everywhere—but what does it really mean for healthcare, and more specifically, for dentistry? Is its impact going to be incremental or truly transformative? Will AI reshape dental practice profoundly?

The conversation also turns to Professor Mata’s personal experience with AI, both in teaching and in research, exploring where AI is already being used, where it adds real value, and where human expertise remains irreplaceable.

A thoughtful and grounded discussion on hype, reality, and the future of AI, not only in dentistry but in humankind.

About Prof Dr. António Mata:

Doctor in dental surgery by the IUEM in 1996

PhD from the University of Central Lancashire in 2003

PhD from the University of Oporto in 2004

Full professor at FMDUL

Coordinator of the research unit FCT- LibPHYS-UL

Chairman of the Evidence-Based Dentistry Center at the FMDUL

Over 100 publications

You can find Prof. Dr. António Mata on LinkedIn @prof-antonio-mata-16531a68 or on Instagram @profantoniomata

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media.

Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession a little better, so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

In this episode, we sit down with Hugo Madeira, a leading figure in Portuguese dentistry and an innovative force in healthcare. Hugo takes us through his personal and professional journey—reflecting on the early days of social media, the challenges he's faced, the milestones he's reached, and the vital importance of self-care in sustaining peak performance.

Hugo is the CEO of Clínica Hugo Madeira and GBT Clinic, as well as a respected healthcare entrepreneur. Known for combining cutting-edge technology with a profoundly human-centered approach, he leads a multidisciplinary team committed to delivering both clinical excellence and meaningful patient experiences. He’s also an international speaker on innovation, AI, and patient-centred care.

You can find Hugo Madeira here:

Instagram (Dr. Hugo), Facebook (Dr. Hugo), Website, Instagram (clinic), Facebook (clinic), TikTok, YouTube.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe! Follow Soft Bites on IG ⁠@softbitespodcast (  / softbitespodcast  ) and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry & ⁠⁠@andredolf

Why are so many dental offices toxic work environments? We are trained to fix teeth, yet when a dentist opens a practice, they must now possess the knowledge to manage staff, market, provide good customer service, etc. That’s a lot of extra responsibilities we were never trained in. Together with an already stressful profession, the result can be gossip, drama, a high staff rotation, and a very toxic environment to work in.

In this conversation, we try to answer the question: How to spot a toxic dental clinic in a work interview?

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

Take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/⁠

Follow Soft Bites on IG ⁠@softbitespodcast and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry & ⁠⁠@andredolf

Having a knowledgeable dental office manager is not only good for the dental practice but also helps the dental team succeed and grow. In this episode, Jorge Adré shares his experience, and we reflect on the benefits of having a dental office manager.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

Please take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/⁠

Follow Soft Bites on Instagram ⁠@softbitespodcast and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠@andredolf⁠⁠

Have you ever worked for a dental clinic where a ‘work-family' environment is promoted? Or are you a dental clinic owner who encourages the internal culture of "We’re a family here"?

In our Conscious Leadership Course in Dentistry, we always pointed out how this "family" culture is not the right one for a dental clinic.

It seems like something of little importance. However, colleagues usually say the "work family" environment in a dental clinic is used positively, so everyone feels valued and close.

However, this "work-family" culture can make it more difficult to set healthy boundaries and cause harm to both the company and employees.

One of our main focuses is creating healthy work environments in dental clinics ("drama-free" clinics, as Jorge André likes to call them). A big part of the work is shifting the mentality from ‘we’re all in this together’ to ‘we’re all working towards the same purpose’. We teach you how you can implement and achieve this mentality in a sustainable way at your dental clinic.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better, so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

Please take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/

⁠Follow Soft Bites on Instagram ⁠@softbitespodcast and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠@andredolf⁠⁠

We all have been there; as dentists, we all get to work with an alpha nurse at least once throughout our careers. In this conversation, we try to understand the dynamics of working with an alpha nurse from the perspective of a young dentist or a practice owner.We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe! Please take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/⁠Follow Soft Bites on IG ⁠@softbitespodcast and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry & ⁠⁠@andredolf⁠⁠

Dentistry has no shortcomings. A successful dental practice is a long-term game, and dentists must learn to play it if they want a long and fulfilling career. Surrounding yourself with good people is one of the many secrets to playing the long game, but there are many more.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

Please take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/⁠

Follow Soft Bites on IG ⁠@softbitespodcast and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry & ⁠⁠@andredolf

It’s still easy for dental clinics to offer minimum to low wages and salaries – especially if the applicants have no differentiated education or are new to dentistry. However, not every employee will comply and accept the offered payment, especially when they know how much money your clinic makes. When that happens, consequences will affect all dental practice, and can include low loyalty, high employee turnover, poor performance, low morale, or/and poor company culture.

We know while it may seem straightforward to increase wages, a combination of economic, market, and social factors also complicates the situation. However, addressing these issues should be a priority if you want to build and maintain a strong team.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Leave a comment or connect with us on social media. Your comments and messages will help us know you and our profession better so we can offer real value in return. And, if you like it, please subscribe!

Please take a look at our Conscious Leadership Course here: ⁠⁠https://softbites.online/

⁠Follow Soft Bites on Instagram ⁠@softbitespodcast⁠ and follow us ⁠⁠@mindful.dentistry⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠@andredolf⁠⁠

In this episode, we talk to António Roma Torres, a Portuguese endodontist with a private practice focused on advanced endodontics, utilizing surgical microscopes for precision treatment. António is a graduate of the University Fernando Pessoa in Porto (DDS, 2010) and a Specialty Training at Faculty of Dental Medicine, University of Lisbon (2013-2016) in endodontics, and has been training dental professionals in endodontics and clinical microscope use since 2015.

Topics:

- How António got into dentistry;

- Why endodontics?

- Biggest career challenges until;

- Exploring new paths in dentistry as a part of the Portuguese Dental Association;

- How music shapes and reflects in António's everyday dentistry practice.

Connect with António on Instagram at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/antonio_roma_torres/⁠ and on LinkedIn at ⁠https://pt.linkedin.com/in/artendo⁠

You can listen to Art Talks podcast here ⁠http://bit.ly/4e2TUZ8