The Dental Marketer

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How does a dedicated dentist navigate her way to owning her own practice while facing an array of personal and professional challenges? This episode provides a close look at the journey of Dr. Ana Santana Guerrero, a fiercely resilient dentist who left her home country, dealt with educational re-equivalence, braved high-stake exams, grappled with intense competition, and still managed to realize her dream of owning a dental clinic. We dissect Ana's transition from an associate to an owner in depth, illuminating her unwavering focus on goal setting and how an "unfortunate event" acted as a catalyst for her to leap into the world of self-owned practice, offering a relatable, deeply inspiring tale.

Navigating the nitty-gritty of running a practice isn't easy, even more so when it's in a foreign country. Learn the ropes as Dr. Ana Santana Guerrero shares her experiences on various aspects of managing a dental clinic - from selecting an optimal location to staff management, from dealing with financial nuances to creating a unique, patient-centered practice. We also delve into her marketing strategies and discuss how humanizing her approach and prioritizing personalized communication played a key role in patient retention.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How to balance bills, staff salaries, and personal compensation in the early stages of practice.
• Importance of goal setting for personal and professional growth.
• Effective strategies for creating a patient-centric experience.
• The power of word-of-mouth and real-world interactions in marketing.
• How to navigate ethical dilemmas in the dental industry.
• Insights on dealing with companies in the dental arena.

Don't miss out on this enlightening conversation packed with actionable insights and inspiration!

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Guest: Dr. Ana Santana GuerreroPractice Name: Astra DentalCheck out Ana's Media:

Website: https://www.astradental.ca/

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/astra.dental

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ASTRA.DENTAL.CLINIC

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Other Mentions and Links:

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Software/Services:

• Google Ads

Businesses/Vendors:

• Patterson Dental
• Henry Schein
• MGE
• Align Technology
• Nobel Biocare
• 3M

Products/Brands:

• Mac
• iTero
• Invisalign
• Naproxen
• McDonalds

TV/Publications:

• Wheel of Fortune

Establishments:

• Dalhousie University
• Central University of Venezuela

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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Ever been confounded by how to perfectly price your dental services? In this episode, our knowledgeable guest is Dr. Nathan Coughlin, an experienced dentist and entrepreneur, who unveils some of his best advice on pricing dental treatments. Nathan underscores the trap of racing to the bottom in pricing to compete, instead advocating for services' differentiation to significantly stand out in the crowded dental market.

Diving deeper, Nathan delves into some practical applications of his advice using orthodontics practices as a case in point—where the bare offering of braces can be supplemented by additional services like dental X-rays, impressions, retainers, and teeth whitening, to name a few. He sheds light on the crucial psychological factors at play, such as aura of scarcity and the urgency, that can be generated by strategizing a limited-time offering, which in turn significantly boosts the perceived value of your bundled services.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The pitfalls of low pricing as a means to attract patients.
• The value of differentiating dental services from competitors.
• How bundling services can add significant perceived value for patients.
• The power of scarcity and urgency in making your offering more appealing.
• The impact of quality guarantees in increasing conversion rates.
• The ways these strategies can be implemented within a variety of business models.

Give this episode a listen, and arm yourself with these game-changing strategies to set your dental practice apart and elevate your bottom line without discounting services.

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Created by dentists for dentists: For practice management software that seamlessly integrates patient engagement, clinical charting, and practice growth without compromise, check out our sponsor, Oryx. As a listener of this podcast, schedule a free demo today with Oryx! Visit their link here: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/oryx/

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You can reach out to Dr. Nathan Coughlin here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivedentist/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thrivedentist

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKVEL4Joonzyy5XBxFvXhKA

Pintrest: https://www.pinterest.com/thrivedentistry/

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Mentions and Links:

People/Public Figures:

• Alex Hormozi

Books/Publications:

• $100M Leads: How to Get Strangers to Want to Buy Your Stuff
• $100M Offers: How to Make Offers So Good People Feel Stupid Saying No

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey Nathan, so talk to us. What's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning?

Nathan: Michael, I got, I got a big one here, so you ready? This is gonna be, this is gonna be big. This is gonna hopefully change your viewers, um, or listeners attitudes towards selling treatment. So it's something that we are doing currently right now in our offices that has gained us over a hundred thousand dollars extra of production already, and we're halfway through the month.

So this is how it works. So how do most dentists, business people, pretty much anybody, how do they start by setting their, um, how much they're gonna charge for something? And this is really important because how we charge for anything is how our business is gonna be ran.

So what do most people do? They go, I. Okay, I'm a dentist. I just moved into a new area. Uh, I'm a brand new dentist. I wanna start making some money. I need to get some patience. So let me see. What am I gonna charge for A dental crown. And you look at the three next offices you go. Cool. This office is shoot, charging 1200.

The other one's 1100. This one's a thousand. I. Need to get some patience because I'm brand new. I'm a newbie. I need to get some patience in and how am I gonna do it? I'm gonna go slightly less than everybody else, and because I'm slightly less than everybody else, people are gonna flock me. My surface is great.

I'm a great dentist. My office is great. All these outstanding things and more people are gonna come in and that'll solve my problems. Next dentist comes in a couple months later, they're within a, you know, a couple mile radius. They go, Hmm, I'm a new dentist. I want to come in. I need to start charging for crowns.

How much do I charge for crowns? They look at everybody and they go, cool. Nathan's charging 900. Let me go a little bit less than him. I'm gonna charge eight 50 or 800. Essentially, this is how dentists and a lot of different companies charge their products. The problem obviously is it's a race to the bottom, right?

Mm-Hmm. You become mm-Hmm. The Walmarts of the world, which you become, if you become huge and massive and you have a thousand offices, you become these massive DSOs. You can actually do that 'cause you have buy power and you can get things for less and your, profits can still be there.

But essentially it's a race to the bottom, right? Mm-Hmm. So we are trying to avoid this as much as possible, and you can see this happening my. Father-in-law is a dentist in Koreatown in Los Angeles. And essentially this is what they're doing. Like they're doing implants and crowns for pennies. Yeah.

And so your profits get less. And I think this is almost, uh, not an unethical, but it becomes very, very difficult to deliver a great product because if your profit gets less, you can hire less quality people. You get less quality products, and everything essentially goes down. Right. But this is what the average dentist, the average business does.

contrary to that, what does the average patient or consumer do? And we're all guilty of this. Say you wanna get, um, a nice white T-shirt, you go, cool. There's five companies that have this nice white T-shirt, man. They're all pretty similar and none of them really brands or they're all pretty darn similar.

Let me just go with the cheapest option because I think it's gonna be. Pretty much the same, right? Mm-Hmm. And then this reinforces that same belief that we go, cool. We need to be the least expensive. We need to be the most cheap. Because look, everybody's buying from over there. The reason we do that, the reason they do that is because it's all the same.

A white T-shirt is a white T-shirt is a white T-shirt. Black scrubs or black scrubs or black scrubs. A dental crown. Although a dentist or whoever thinks their crown is the absolute end all be all, I'm sorry, it's not your dental crown is just like the dentist down the street. Your feeling is just like the dentist down the street.

Your cleaning is just like the dentist down the street. Yes. We do things to distinguish ourselves and make it. Better, but essentially you're the same. So how do we decommoditize what we're doing? How do we make it different so that what we are doing is not the exact same as everybody else? And I will tell you, this is what's making us a lot of money right now.

So, right. Hopefully your ears are perking up because if you wanna make money, this is how you do it. So you have to make your solution different than anybody else's. So if you read different various marketing books, they say you wanna have kind of this blue ocean theory where you are providing a product that is different than everybody else.

So Mrs. Smith, when she comes in the office, she can't go. Oh, but dentist down the street is doing the exact same thing as me. I can compare the two kind of like, you know, one-to-one. So they're both commoditized, so you have to do it. So it's not like that. So how do we do that on our end? I. So I will give you 90% of the tricks.

I can't go into all of them 'cause I don't have enough time, but this is 90% of the tricks. Okay? So, so now what you do is you, you unbundle what you're doing and show the patient everything you're doing, and then you want to add things in there that cost you very little. But the perceived value of it is huge.

So, in orthodontics, what do we do? What's the big thing that we do? We, you know, if somebody's coming in for braces, obviously they're gonna get braces. what they may also need, they may need molds so that we can make retainers, maybe we can make some X retainers. They're gonna need x-rays. They may need, you know, some equilibration of their teeth.

They may need some IPR, they may need, whitening at the end. They want, may want an upgrade to clear braces. They may. Need dental treatment if you're an office that's doing both of those, and so you have this list of items, right? Mm-Hmm. And if you, if you add them up and how you present it is very, very important.

But if you add all these things up, Mrs. Smith comes in, she wants braces. We say, okay, Mrs. Smith, you're gonna come in for braces. We we're really excited to treat you. I know you've been to five other consults where your we're your fifth consult. Come in here. How we do it at our office. We say, okay, yes, your braces are gonna be.

Say whatever, it's $6,000. Mm-Hmm. And then we go, and what you're also gonna need is maybe some dental X-rays and some impressions. And that costs us, you know, 300 bucks. What you're also gonna want is an extra, when you're gonna need retainers. Right. That's another 500. And you know what? Because most patients at the end of treatment, when they get done their treatment.

How the retainers, they'll keep those things for a year or two, lose and break and whatever. They don't get another one in. Mm-Hmm. So we like to add another set of retainers on that. Boom. That's another 500. Oh, you know what? Because you're an adult, you probably don't want those metal braces. You probably want to upgrade to clear.

That's another $500. You know what, what's even cooler is at the end of orthodontic treatment, most people want to have their teeth nice and white, even though they're straight. If they're yellow, it just doesn't look good. Mm-Hmm. So we wanna throw in some zoom in-office whitening. And you know, on top of that.

Because we believe that teeth that are clean, move better teeth that are cleaner, healthier, and we want everybody to have healthier, teeth. We're gonna throw in x amount of dollars for your dental treatment. So you start adding all this up, right? So you, the patient looks, their, their eyes are getting big.

They, they're like, eyes just came in for an ortho consult, like, what is going on here? Yeah. And so, you know, you say, Hey, it's 6,000 plus 500, plus 500 plus 700, whatever it is. And then the total price is 10,000. If you're familiar with marketing and psychology, there's something called an anchor, right? So people get anchored to certain prices.

So whenever anybody's trying to sell you anything, if they're good, they're gonna anchor your price at something high. So they're gonna say, this is the high, high price. You're like, whoa, that's high. And then when they show you their real price, you're just like, oh, that's cheap. That's easy. Yeah. You add all these things up and boom, boom, boom.

It adds up to like, say it's gonna be $10,000, and then you go, but. Today, and you have to create some scarcity and urgency, which are different. You say, today we're gonna throw this all in for. 5,000, 5,500, something like that. Mm-Hmm. you have this massive perceived value, huge perceived value that in reality does not cost you much for us.

We do, you know, retainers in office office, which costs us like a couple bucks. It's not, not expensive. Mm-Hmm. Yeah. Up upgrade to clear braces. Not that that expensive. if somebody's coming in for dental cleaning, really that's doesn't cost us much. We're not utilizing products. There's so much stuff that we throw in there that creates this huge perceived value on by the patient.

And so they're just like, whoa, this is crazy. And the beauty of this is now I. This patient can't go to another dental office. They can't go, well, no. Dr. Nate down the street is offering this 'cause that dentist is like, we don't do that. I don't, I don't know. We don't, that's not something we do and we can't do it 'cause we don't have dentists in orthodontics or we don't have whatever.

And there's such a, a wide variety of combos you can do with this. depending on your dental office. What you also have to do is you have to make sure that. You are pairing that, with something that makes it scarce. And we actually do this at our office. We say, Hey, there's this product we're giving and this is crazy.

Like we don't do this. Typically, we just say, braces are 6,000 bucks. And take it or leave it. You have some payment plans if you want, but whatever. Mm-Hmm. But we're doing this crazy deal that we never do and it's actually only offered for the next 15 patients. So you can take this deal right now, and we, it's here.

We know it's here. Or, um, if you're worried about everything and it's like, Hey, there's no chance I'm gonna start today. We say, cool. That's, I understand that. I get that. it is only for the next 15 patients. So if you call in, I can't guarantee, which is true 'cause we do switch up our, our specials so may not be there.

Hmm. So if, if you call in again, this may not be available. This is the best deal we've ever had, which is true. It is the best deal we've ever had. Yeah. And it's only good for today. So there's, there's these other ways to kind of entice patients as well to make that decision. You know, you wanna make things, I know in the dental world this is gonna be controversial, but you want things to be guaranteed.

And I feel like I've seen tons of posts on this, like, don't guarantee your dentistry, this is so bad. Like, no medical people don't guarantee your dentistry. I'm like, yeah, that's, that's cool. But like we're in the real world and if you guarantee things. People are more likely to act. Yeah. So how we, how we do it, we say, I know you don't wanna make that decision right now.

I know you need to talk to your husband, your spouse, your whatever you wanna do. but we have this guarantee and you want to name it something dumb, like the super smile guarantee, like something that's kind of catchy and funny and whatever you want to do it. You say, you know, if you start today and if you pay your down payment or you pay you whatever, and within 30 days you don't like your braces, you don't like your, whatever it is, come back in.

We will take everything off and we are gonna give you a full, either you can do a refund or you can do a credit, or whatever you want to do, so that the barrier to entry is low. 'cause people are scared that they're gonna start treatment and then they're gonna regret it or that their husband or their wife or their significant other.

Gets upset with them. And so this takes all barriers away. You create that massive value. We call it value stack. You're valuing, stacking, stacking, stacking. You cut it so that they can see the actual real price that they're gonna pay. There's a scarcity urgency. There's not that many that are gonna happen.

We end this deal on. So maybe we're gonna give it to 15 people, or we're gonna end it in January 31st, or whatever it is. And then you create this guarantee and there's a couple different ways you can, you can help with the payment plans, but if you're doing that properly and you're selling each value stack at a correct method, it changes the game and.

Invite your listeners to think about this. Mm-Hmm. And if you don't know, if they don't know this stat, they should think about this real hard and they should look for it. 'cause it's very easy to find if you're selling big ticket items, if you're selling ortho implants, all in fours. All in fours would be a big one.

Yeah. Anything that is expensive. What is your conversion ratio, right? So say you have 10 patients that come in, 10 consults. How many of those start? And for us, it was very eye-opening, very eye-opening because we weren't tracking that. And I started looking at that and I was like. Oh my gosh, our conversion percentage is really low.

Like Mm-Hmm. if we went from, say we went from 40% to 80%, the difference in our production would be hundreds of thousands of dollars. Like it's a huge difference. And so you go, cool, what do we need to do to make it so our conversion percentage is higher? And that implementing this technique has ha has done that.

And so we had the patience there. The problems not, was not. Marketing for us, not, was not advertising, it was conversions. You know? So some people go, oh, I need more patients. I just need to get more patients. Yeah. It's like, do you need more patients? Or it is like, do you suck at selling? Like if you're, if your patients aren't converting, like, I'm sorry doc, you suck.

Like you suck at selling. Mm-Hmm. Like it's, or your front staff, somebody's not doing, not doing good. So it's not the patients coming in that you can't convert and they don't believe you. so this technique has helped us already. I think it's like we're at like 130,000 extra this month than previous. Um, we, we obviously have multiple offices in a decent volume, but, um, yeah, this has made a massive, massive difference to our office,

Michael: man.

Okay. So I like a, a lot of it is amazing. Now, could this work in your father-In-law's in Koreatown? Yeah. Mm-Hmm. Could this work in his, let's just say someone like that is listening and he's like, you know what, I'm gonna do this. could it

Nathan: work? So I think this can work in virtually every single office.

This is not my idea number one. This is somebody called Alex Hermosy. If anybody's in the, gym space, in the business space, she's a big person on, on social media. Mm-Hmm. And this is his book. If you have to look at some books, it's called a hundred million Dollar Leads or a hundred Million Dollar, um, offer.

This works. Everywhere. So in his case, in my father-in-law's case, he does implants. implants are big ticket items. So you'd offer an implant, maybe combined with something else, combined with whitening, maybe combined with a night guard this stuff is cheap. Like a night guard.

You can make in office, you can make a retainer in office. And these are like a couple bucks. Like this is not expensive. Mm-Hmm. So the, the important thing is to create this massive perceived value. 'cause every person in the world. I don't care if you have a billion dollars or if you have 10 bucks to your name, you want value for your money.

Mm-Hmm. If you feel like you're getting value, you will stay. The moment you do not feel like you're having value, people will leave. And that's why people leave dental offices 'cause they don't feel like their money is being valued there. But if you're doing stuff that is so unique, so different, and you're creating this massive value, they cannot go anywhere else with that same value.

So yes, I believe this can be done I'm sure I feel like it can be done in every office, but maybe there's an exception that I haven't haven't seen. Awesome.

Michael: Awesome. Nathan, I appreciate your time and if anyone has further questions, where can they reach out to you?

Nathan: Yeah, you can just look at my, uh, it's Dr. Nate on IG TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest. We're else we're at, we're everywhere. So if you guys just look up my name, you'll, you'll find me.

Michael: Awesome. So that's gonna be in the show notes below. And at the same time, Nate, thank you so much for being with me on this Monday morning episode.

Thanks, Michael.

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What if there was a way to optimize your work hours, boost morale, and increase productivity, all while making your employees happier than ever before? In this eye-opening episode, I sit down with Dr. Paul Yoo, who's managed to shatter the conventions of the traditional 9-5 workday in his dental practice. Based in the beautiful Kauai, Paul attributes much of his practice's success to the unique "lifestyle hours" he has instituted, proving that when it comes to business, sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

Starting off as a treatment coordinator with little knowledge of the industry, Paul's journey of building his successful practice hasn't been devoid of struggles. Yet, through sheer determination and a strong objection to unethical practices, he's not only built a thriving business but also fostered a work culture that champions trust, honesty, and independence. Stay tuned as we delve into how Paul encourages higher performance without resorting to micromanaging, cleverly implementing incentive programs and bonus structures. If you're on the lookout for groundbreaking tips on striking the perfect work-life balance in a business setting, this podcast episode is a must-listen!

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Dr. Paul's unique approach to work hours and how it benefits his practice
• The importance of trust and honesty in building a successful business
• How to motivate a team to achieve higher performance without micromanaging
• The advantages of implementing incentive programs and bonus structures
• The significant role of a balanced work-life structure in increased productivity and morale

Don't miss out on this unique insight into how breaking traditional work norms can propel your business to greater heights. Tune in now!

(This episode originally aired 12/27/2021)

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Created by dentists for dentists: For practice management software that seamlessly integrates patient engagement, clinical charting, and practice growth without compromise, check out our sponsor, Oryx. As a listener of this podcast, schedule a free demo today with Oryx! Visit their link here: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/oryx/

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Guest: Dr. Paul YooPractice Name: KAUAI DENTAL STUDIOCheck out Paul's Media:

Website: https://kauaidentalstudio.com/

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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Can focusing on just ONE aspect of your life or practice truly enhance your overall fulfillment and success? Join me as I delve into a fascinating conversation with my return guest Dr. Avi Patel, an expert in the concept of singular focus. Avi eloquently unpacks the transformative power of honing your energy on one dimension of your life or practice. From personal anecdotes of bettering his marriage through therapy to using this single-minded approach in his dental practice, Avi provides a fresh perspective on achieving unparalleled results through the art of simplification.

As we explore this captivating topic further, Avi demystifies the age-old conundrum of juggling multiple goals. His advice? Shift the lens from defining a myriad of large objectives to establishing non-negotiable standards. By laser-focusing on mastering one skill at a time and leveraging consultants or mentors who've tread the same path, we can optimize our efforts and enhance our personal and professional lives. Avi shares his current focus which involves expanding his scope beyond the clutches of conventional dentistry and into the intriguing realm of content creation in the dental industry.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How channelizing your energy and resources into one facet of your life can reap more fulfillment and success.
• The power of simplifying your goals into non-negotiable standards.
• The benefits of seeking advice from consultants or coaches who have experienced similar situations.
• The importance of focusing on one KPI at a time and allowing your brain to problem solve and improve other areas organically.
• Avi's current career pivot - stepping away from clinical dentistry and moving towards content creation.

Ready to dive in and discover the untapped potential of singular focus? Tune in now!

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For DSO integrations, startup solutions, and all your dental IT needs, let our sponsors, Darkhorse Tech, help out so you can focus on providing the amazing care that you do. For 1 month of FREE service, visit their link today! https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/darkhorse-deal/

You can reach out to Dr. Avi Patel here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doctor.avi/

Avi's Clear Aligner Course: https://www.clearaligneradvisor.co/launchpad

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Mentions and Links:

Podcasts/Publications:

• 438: DR. AVI PATEL | CLEAR ALIGNER ADVISOR

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey Avi. So talk to us. What's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning?

Avi: So I, my piece of advice would be to kind of simplify, I. Everything you're doing and focus on one thing. And I think a good place to start is with yourself. So, and then even with yourself, right? There's different aspects.

There's your mental self, your physical self, your emotional self. And I think if you first focus on your mental self and you do what you can to get that in order and get that into a place where. You have more control. Uh, I'm not talking about mind control, but something, something close to that. But if you, if you focus on your mental self, everything from that point I believe flows.

So, um, for example, myself, about two and a half years ago, I started doing therapy. I was doing it because I wanted to improve. Um. My relationship with my wife. Mm-Hmm. And I just wanted to be a better person. I wanted to be able to support her better, but then also myself, just be better. I think that was like the goal.

Mm-Hmm. And what I noticed from that point on was I started creating these habits because my focus was on improving. Essentially my mental health or myself. I started creating a morning routine. And so that morning routine was journaling, meditating, stretching. That then led to me being more organized, more focused during the day, uh, less stressed.

so that's kind of how it went into the business way of how it helped me in life. But then physically, um, I got into the best shape of my life. I started being more intentional about what I was eating, what I was kinda spending my time on in terms of working out movement, stuff like that.

And so just by starting on focusing on one thing by myself or on my mental health rather, all this stuff flowed. And I think you can translate this to other aspects of your life, your business, and everything. Because whenever you're focusing on too many things, right, and I think especially this time of year in January, everyone's got a million goals going on.

Probably by the time this thing airs, most people won't have any of their resolutions continuing. But, ' cause I made the same mistake, right? And everyone hears it. Mm-Hmm. And I think I, I felt. So much relief when I looked at the multiple goals that I wanted to basically achieve this year personally and business-wise.

And, uh, I felt so good when I eliminated like 90% of them because. I think people get confused on like, having a goal and then actually having something to do, right? So when you have too many goals, then there's so many things to do to achieve all of those goals. You're never gonna get it done. Mm-Hmm.

And I kinda just went back to my roots of like, when was there a time in my life where I was growing rapidly, feeling good about myself, achieving a lot of success, and it's back when I was just doing, or focusing rather on like one thing. and so. I kind of remembered that and then I went back to it. Uh, simplified the morning routine again, these days to we're not trying to do 10 things before I start.

It's more so just keeping it very simple, very efficient, because what happens is when you start getting those wins, those wins start to stack, and then next thing you know, when you look at it, you know, a year in review, you've achieved so much more just because you were focusing on one thing at a time and kind of chipping away at it.

Michael: Gotcha, man. So right now you're kind of mentioning or you're letting us know that have one thing to focus on. Mm-Hmm. so in a specific aspect, we have to have one thing to focus on or like just in general, like, I want a better life,

Avi: I would say. So if you are someone who is trying to, like, if you feel lost and you actually don't have a sense of direction or whatnot.

Yes, only one thing because what's gonna happen is you're gonna pour, you know you're gonna pour more resources, more time into that one thing, your one big thing, and then from that other things will flow. Right. So if you wanna have a better love life, if you are spending a lot of your free time, you know, focusing on your business, focusing on your health, and like having all these diets working out and all that stuff, and then you're then trying to find time to like do things that would help your love life, you are, it's gonna take you longer to achieve that.

Where is, if you say okay. The priority for right now is my love life. That doesn't mean don't do anything for the rest of your, you know, the other aspects of your life. Yeah. But that should be the thing. That should be the main thing. And then once you have that, you, I. We'll find that when, if that is truly what you want to accomplish and like improve your happiness, and there's almost gonna be like a spillover effect, right?

Because we're human beings, we're dynamic. It's things are not just, you know, in solitude, but when you're able to focus on one thing, you're able to see, um. More results in that area. And then from that there will be an overflow. Because if you feel more fulfilled in your love life, you are gonna probably have higher energy levels.

When you have higher energy levels, you're going to be able to probably do more things, whether it's in your business or for your own health. but it all flows from that one thing where if you're trying to take your limited resource, which is energy, and then spread it out all over the place, a lot of things are just not gonna really move.

Yeah.

Michael: Could I ask this this year? Like what is it? You're, the thing you're focusing on.

Avi: So it's, right now it is, I'm doing it kind of in, in chapters or phases. So we're expecting our first kid in two months. Oh, nice. Okay. Yeah. So I know that's gonna be a huge change.

Um, yeah, so basically I was like, cool, well, since life is gonna look different after that, what do, what do I need to do now to be in a place to where I can, 'cause my big thing is all about optionality. I love having optionality. I love, you know, not having to be limited by things. And so the biggest thing that I hear from parents is, you know, the biggest thing that.

They get a a, there's a big crunch in time and your energy because now you are kind of giving to this human being. and, and you, you also, and everyone also says it's the most rewarding thing and it's, they always wish they had more time when their kid was younger and they could be there. So I'm like, cool.

I need to simplify. Other things in my life to create that space so that way when the baby is here, I can receive that. So for me, from a business standpoint, I have, or I'm trying to currently simplify all the processes in the business. So right now, um. My business is the online ClearLiner Education Program.

and a big arm of that is supporting the doctors in the program, but then also creating content on social media to provide free value for people. So I am working on simplifying the content creation part and also simplifying, um. The program itself, so that way it provides the most value for doctors in it.

but then also doesn't take up, an extraordinary amount of my time to deliver that support and that value. Gotcha. Okay.

Michael: So this, are you only doing now the online Uh, course, yeah. Or are you also working at a practice still?

Avi: Nope. So I, I stepped away from clinical dentistry back in September. I was doing it full-time and then slowly went down to part-time, and then with the growth of the program and I.

Content creation, social media and all that. I decided to go all in on it because it's just, it's the passion of mine and it's, I feel like it's my calling to help innovate and, um, help move the industry forward And, mm-Hmm. I feel like a quote that kind of stuck with me, or I don't know if it was a quote, but basically someone told me it's like you're either working in an industry or you're working on an industry.

Mm-Hmm. And it's hard to work on an industry when a lot of your time is kind of. While you're working in it, right? Mm-Hmm. I think there's kind of like a balance. So I'm kind of using this chapter in my career to kind of step away from the chair and, and dedicate more time and resources into ways that I can help kind of work on the industry.

Michael: Yeah. Okay. Man. I like that though. I like that. Um, part of simplifying goals because I feel like goals is like a, sometimes like a shiny, fast, cool word, right? Like, Hey man, I wanna have these goals when it's more, um. Non-negotiable standards. Right? That's what it is. Like I wanna have a non-negotiable standard.

This is it. And then I gotta reverse engineering on how to make it happen. And it's easier to do that if you have one, right? Mm-Hmm. One specific one. Boom. Did it next. Right? But if you have all these big, shiny goals and you're like, man, I wanna lose a ton of weight, and you don't know how to do it kind of thing, right?

Avi: Correct. Correct. And even just like. Relating it to dentists, right? Like if you've got a practice and you, you have a goal if you want to increase the revenue, right? Mm-Hmm. Where then it's, everyone always tells you, okay, well cool, you pick a number, then you reverse engineer it. How are you gonna get there?

Um, from my personal experience, when it came to just like leveling up as a clinician, I found that when I was trying to learn how to do multiple procedures clinically at once, like when I wanted to become a better clinician, I wasn't like. Immersing myself in it, so I wasn't actually able to get as good as I wanted to.

The example here is when I started with like implants and aligners, I pretty much learned them both at the same time. and so I was splitting my time between it. Implants. It was a little bit longer for me to kind of get going just because it is surgery and it just, you know, it's very, I mean, it's surgery, so it's, it's, it's pretty crazy.

Mm-Hmm. Yeah. Um, but then with aligners I also just started to see, um, more success with it. And then I slowly started to like, immerse myself in that. And so when I was focusing on that one procedure, it wasn't just about moving teeth. It's how do you talk to the patient? How do you get the team on board?

How do you schedule them? What do you do? So I was able to like work through all that by being focused. Where if I was trying to like iron out implants, learn it, implement it, and do aligners and like, you know. Do other procedures and, and work with the team and all that, it would be too much. And I know a lot of dentists probably feel that way, but I think the answer is, is like until you're like proficient in something, you should pick like one skill, whether it's business right, or clinical, and focus on that for the year to grow.

You will know when you get to a point where you can kind of now choose a different area to focus on. So that's why it's like. I think a lot of dentists, right? Stress comes into play. There's always a lot of hats to wear. but I think kind of taking the pressure off yourself by just wanting to focus on one thing, knowing that other people are going to tell you, oh, you need to look at the KPIs.

You need to look at this. You need to look at that. Yes, you do. But what you have to do in the beginning of anything new is focus on one thing. Get good at it and then move on to the next Mm-Hmm. Gotcha.

Michael: So then how does that kind of play a role in, for example, software? Right? They're like, Hey, all these features and everything like that, and you're gonna be able to look at your dashboard and your analytics and then you're like, cool.

'cause that contributes to the goal that I wanna make more collections. I wanna make a million dollars this this year, right? Like I wanna be Mm-Hmm. A million dollar in collections this year. And then you look at it. I feel like there's too many features of everything. You know what I mean? To just be like, uh oh, we'll focus on this one thing.

'cause then like, what if your new patients drop 'cause of the time, or you know what I mean? And all this other stuff. How do we, I guess, keep our blinders

Avi: on? So I would say the best thing to do in that situation is talk to someone who's done it before. Right? Talk to the, there's a bunch of dentists, coaches, consultants, people out there who already know what these like successful practices look like.

Talk to them, ask them, Hey, if you were to start over again, or if you had to go back, what is one area that you would focus on for 90 days? What is one KPI metric that you would focus on that you feel like has the highest leverage? Right. When you say that, now you're able to lock in for 90 days, you're able to see that metric.

And the thing, what's gonna happen is once you go down that rabbit hole, you're gonna find all these other things along the way. So it's not that other things are gonna drop off, you're just, you're shooting your shot. To get better at one KPI, but then when you're doing that, your brain will start to problem solve for ways to improve that KPI.

And when you're doing that, you're gonna touch other parts of your practice. Does that make sense? Yeah, that makes

Michael: a lot of sense. I like that question. What's the one thing you, you know what I mean? Like for, for you looking back, right? Starting out? Yeah. Because I think you told me one time we in one, a previous episode, and I'm gonna put a link to it in the show.

It's below, but. You were looking to do practice ownership, right? But then you're like, uh, I don't know. Or kind of thing, right. Or an acquisition, I wanna say

Avi: no. I don't know if I went that route. I think it was more my, my story kind of high levels. I was always an associate, but I'd worked in a bunch of practices and so it was like I was looking at okay, like what can practice ownership give me that I don't currently have?

Mm-Hmm. And also like. Is it worth for me to go down that route with all the resources, time and everything like that? And I think, I don't have a knock on practice ownership. I think it's great if you're, you know, doing it the right way. But for me, this route of going into like education and like uplifting other doctors to learn this procedure was like the bigger kind of pull for me in terms of my career story.

Yeah. So

Michael: looking back. What's one metric you focus on for 90 days? If you had to start over,

Avi: uh, as a dentist wanting to like do aligners or just as like a dentist in general,

Michael: as a dentist wanting to do aligners, like what you're doing, education. Going down that route. I

Avi: would, yeah, if I knew, if I started back and knew nothing, I would get with somebody that knows how to do it.

Pick their brain to know what cases are easy to treat, what should you not do, right? And then, um, how to get patients to do it. I would focus on those three strategies. And then the actual, like metric, I would hold myself accountable to the point where every week I would start tracking how many patients did I talk to about it, and how many patients said yes.

Like very simple. And then. I guess over time I would see like how many patients on average am I talking to a week? How many you're saying? Yes. And then from there, try to figure out, okay, why aren't they saying yes or how can we get more patients to say yes, or how can I talk to more patients, you know?

Mm-Hmm. Like that's how I would do it, but how many people I talk to and how many people said yes would probably be the two metrics I'd focus on.

Michael: Nice. Okay. Awesome. I mean, thank you so much for being with us on this Monday morning episode. If anybody had any questions or concerns, where can they reach

Avi: out to you?

Uh, Instagram is the easiest. My handle is doctor.avi and uh, yeah, just shoot me a DM and I'd be happy to chat.

Michael: Awesome. So that's gonna be in the show notes below. And Avi, thank you for being with me on this Monday morning episode.

Avi: Thanks Michael.

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Have you been searching for a consistent flow of patients to your practice? Ground marketing to local grocery stores may be just what you need. Dive into this episode where I share a detailed guideline on how you can approach Trader Joe's for a ground-breaking opportunity. I stress the significance of integrating dental services with Trader Joe's core values, advocating for staff well-being, and championing community engagement.

Learn how to engage with Trader Joe's staff - from store managers to frontline workers - with confidence, and pitch exclusive dental care benefits that are sure to capture their interest. I unveil the importance of preparing effective phone scripts and in-person pitches that are straight to the point yet personable. Admittedly, you may encounter some tough questions and objections along the way, but fear not, with the right preparation, you'll be equipped to counter them with ease and gain the traction you seek. This episode not only stresses the art of conversation, but also the essence of internal team alignment, ensuring that your dental practice is primed for success. By the end of the episode, you'll appreciate the immense benefits this unique partnership with Trader Joe's can bring to your practice and the community at large.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How to approach Trader Joe's for a unique partnership opportunity
• Crafting effective phone and in-person scripts
• Preparation to anticipate potential objections or questions
• The importance of internal team alignment
• The benefits your dental practice and community could reap from this innovative venture

Join us in this episode as we explore the exciting realm of innovative partnerships and deliberate on how your dental practice can leverage such opportunities with establishments like Trader Joe's.

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Learn More About the Ground Marketing Course Here:

Website: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/the-ground-marketing-course-open-enrollment/

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Other Mentions and Links:

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Software/Services:

• Zoom

Establishments/Brands:

• Amazon
• Trader Joe’s
• LA Fitness
• Orangetheory Fitness
• Cold Stone Creamery
• Baskin-Robbins

Organizations:

• YMCA

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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Ever wonder how leading your dental practice with a positive culture and strong financial awareness can result in enhanced patient care and increased profitability? In this episode, I engage in a thought-provoking conversation with seasoned dentist, Dr. Paul Goodman. We delve into Paul's extraordinary journey, highlighting how engaging a people coach early in his career spurred the creation of a positive work environment and nurtured accountability among his team. However, Paul candidly admits to an overlooked aspect – a keen focus on the numbers – and stresses the value of having a professional guide the financial trajectory of the dental practice.

As the conversation deepens, we examine the boundaries of third-party software and its ability to interpret data, advocating the need for an unbiased coach or consultant. Dr. Goodman clearly illustrates the pivotal role of a balanced approach towards managing both the people and profit aspects of your dental practice. And how, as an incredible ripple effect, this can significantly transform the patient-care experience while amplifying profits. He concludes by sharing practical advice on maintaining consistency with essential practices like morning huddles and team meetings, and the importance of reverting back to basic principles to deliver excellent patient care.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The significant role of a people coach in creating a positive work environment.
• The importance of understanding and managing financial aspects of your dental practice.
• The power and limitations of third-party software in data interpretation.
• The magic of finding balance in managing both the people and profit parts of your practice.
• Practical tips on maintaining consistency in practice and the relevance of fundamental principles in delivering excellent patient care.

Tune into this episode now and learn how to lead your dental practice to its utmost potential!

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Created by dentists for dentists: For practice management software that seamlessly integrates patient engagement, clinical charting, and practice growth without compromise, check out our sponsor, Oryx. As a listener of this podcast, schedule a free demo today with Oryx! Visit their link here: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/oryx/

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You can reach out to Dr. Paul Goodman here:

Dental Nachos Website: https://www.dentalnachos.com/

Dentist Job Connect Website: https://www.dentistjobconnect.com/

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Mentions and Links:

Podcasts/Publications:

• Entrepreneur On Fire

People/Public Figures:

• Dr. Mark Costes
• Dr. Jeffrey Goodman
• Marc Dorio
• Andy Reid
• Carol Kivler

Brands/Businesses:

• Kansas City Chiefs
• Kivler Communications
• Philadelphia Eagles
• Thom McAn

Tools/Applications:

• Zoom

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey Paul, so talk to us. What's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning?

Paul: Thanks for asking me that. It's really such a great question. As a medium aged dentist, so I'm going to graduate in 2002. One thing I, I, there's this list my coach taught me, Michael, keep doing, start doing and stop doing.

So one thing that I am glad I did early in my career earlier than most dentists was I hired a people coach. I hired a team management coach. I was very into creating a culture. that I knew how to run it. I knew how to manage people. I knew how to develop accountability, and I will forever be grateful for both that coach and myself.

I'll give myself credit for paying attention to the morale of the people that work in our dental office. The piece of advice that I wish I did that I did not do was I did not hire someone to take a hard look at the numbers inside of my dental practice. I was much more into feelings. I worked with my amazing dad.

Uh, who is a fantastic mentor and friend, passed away in 2016, um, another person I'll forever be grateful to. But his generation of dentists, they're kind of like, ah, we take some insurance, keeps us busy, you know, and we were, I was not paying attention to the write offs, the adjustments. We were making excuses and I wish, Michael, that I paid more attention to the numbers earlier in my career.

So that I could have been more patient centered, more profitable, been able to have a better work life balance. So that is my advice. it might not be me who said this, Michael, but when you pay, you pay attention, right? So pay someone to help you look at how numbers and money works inside of your practice.

I'm now friends with the amazing Dr. Mark Kostas, he's sponsored my group. I wish I'd cross paths with someone like that back in 2007. These things did not exist. I miss so many of these dentists. I sound like the media mage guy. Michael, but you're so lucky to have this. I had to walk uphill both ways to school in the snow back in my early dental days, but there were no Facebook groups, no podcasts, no Instagram, no amazing things like this.

So that's my advice. Pay someone to help you pay attention to your numbers as early as possible in your practice ownership journey.

Michael: What about when you see these, I guess, like third party software companies, right? That they're like, yeah, we can take your analytics. We figure everything out. Is that good enough?

Well,

Paul: I would say it's a, it's a start, but two things. You have these fancy watches, right? It could tell you how you sleep. It could tell you you're drinking enough water, but you need someone to interpret it. You need someone to guide you. So I think by It is. It is a step in the right direction. Like when people use my fitness pal and track what they eat each day, it's a step in the right direction to track.

But the end part to that is you just need someone who's not part of your business, not emotionally invest in your business, who can come in and help you with the reality of what happens. Maybe you're doing better in an area than you thought. Maybe you're doing, more profit than one section of, I don't know, your implant dentistry, but your hygiene, there's too many write offs because you take too many PPO.

So I like software that helps you track, my group, and I would just put the and part and get a coach or consultant who can help you interpret it. Gotcha. And

Michael: now rewind a little bit. You mentioned about you hired a people's coach. for what, for like the team or what is that all about?

Paul: Yeah, well, when I joined my dad and his partner, they were two awesome guys, but they went to dental school, they did the Air Force and Army. My dad was, worked at Tom McCann's, the shoe store. They had no training on how to manage people. So there were no systems with even how people showed up, what people wore to work.

There was a lot of friction, a lot of drama in the office. I do want to give a shout out to teams. I now have four businesses, two dental practices, dental nachos, dentists, job connect, and. You are literally shoulder to shoulder with your team like I am all day, and there's a lot of stress with that.

There's a lot of friction in a dental office, and it's normal, right? People go, you know, I treat my office like family, like family. I go, Oh, you fight three days into your vacation like my family does too? Because You've got to honor the team in this. We are like so close to each other all day long playing this game physically, dental nachos.

I've got people on zoom over here. So I want to share that if you don't master or at least learn how to manage the people part of your team, you know, just as simple as this, like if four people show up on time and two people don't. The four people go, why should I show up on time? So I met the amazing Carol Kivler, Kivler Communications.

She's still someone I know today. And I said, I said to her as a kid, I would ask a question. I go, what do you do, Mrs. Kivler? And she goes, I teach people how to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And I said, I'll never forget when she said that to me as a seventh grader. I said, what does that mean?

She basically went to a community college and she would teach people about communications. And she would have bread and peanut butter and jelly. And she said, teach me how to make this sandwich. And they'd say, open the bread and she'd rip it open and half would fall on the floor. She goes, what next? She goes, put on some peanut butter.

She'd take her whole hand in the peanut butter and slap. She goes like this. And it just showed how it's easy to not be able to communicate your message to people. So she did a whole year training for us, with the team. And what was really magical about that, Michael, it gives me chills to this day, is when I, you know, this was invest a lot of time and money, right?

This is 2010. So this is not 2024. So we. took a day off a week. We paid our team. We paid her. And I got these amazing messages from the team at that time that said, thank you so much, Dr. Paul, for bringing in Carol Kivler. Not only did this help me in my profession here at the office as a hygienist, it helped me with my relationships with my family.

It helped me with my sister because the same skills are used and made people like, you know what? I am kind of a jerk to people. I didn't even know it. I do. I'm too reactive. We talk about putting deposits in people's emotional bank account. Recognize behavior is repeated. People don't argue with their own decisions.

You know, people say, Michael, about coaching. Sometimes people say, I don't need a coach. It's just common sense, right? All coaches do teach common sense, right? people have apps in their phone to remind them to drink water, right? you can't remember to drink water. Maybe it's common sense, but having accountability for these things in a group.

So that was the people coach and I'm, I would encourage both pay attention to the people part. And the profit part, because these are private practices and when your profitability, patient centered care is always the most important, profitability one egg. The more money you make, the more freedom you have.

You can give your team raises, you can invest in new equipment. There's so many things more profit can give you. It doesn't mean so the owner of the dentist can buy their third beach house. It can mean so many things that are amazing to everyone in the office, patient's team and the practice owner.

Michael: Gotcha. Okay. So then real quick, how do you stay consistent with these two practices and teachings? Because I feel like you can, you know, you go to a CE course, you take some of your team members, they're on a high, they're like, yeah, we're going to do this. And then like a month, two months later, you're just, they're like, let's be real guys.

Stuff is happening. We can't do that right now. How do you go

Paul: back to that? So really good is one is, It's expecting perfection is just a way to be miserable in anything that you do, whether you're a parent, whether you're working out, whether you're a practice owner, but being consistent and always trying to return to fundamentals.

So one thing we have, we have morning huddles, it's a non negotiable morning huddles, team meetings. I give my brother, Jeff Goodman, Dr. Jeff, I'm going to a ton of credit. We have, um, checklist that we use each day and we strive our best. I tell people to say, don't try, say strive, right? Sounds better. So we strive our best and listen, when we go off script or something happens, you know, that is not the way we expected.

How do we get back on track? So we have. Accountability measures like actual checklists, morning huddles, consistent team meetings. I will share in the most authentic way I've been a dentist like this. Most things that dentists think are a waste of money, like having their team sit down for a team meeting, is what's costing them money.

When dentists don't think I can take a day out of my office because I can't cancel hygiene to go and learn something new at a CE course, that's costing them money. And it's normal to get stuck. In your own habits rut so negative michael just normally get stuck in your own bubble I mean i'm in my office today.

We have we literally have like five dentists here today. It's still lonely It's I mean, we have five dentists. We have a prosthodontist. We have uh, no four dentists, you know Me two other gps. It's like we're in our own little caves, right? Get out of your cave learn from other people So i'm always saying, you know, it's a it's a mark costas quote He says, uh, the number of uncomfortable conversations willing to have Determines your success in life.

I don't know if he made it up or not. And that you gotta have some uncomfortable conversations with people We went out of network with insurance two years ago. That was a big uncomfortable conversation I'm, not saying people should do that tomorrow But pay attention to what some of these plans are paying you so you can maximize your own happiness Yeah,

Michael: man, that's so tough though paul sometimes like to get out of your own You know, I mean to say we're gonna not do two days of work, which is money coming in Instead we're gonna have a team meeting and sit down and then I feel like if you are debating that How much faith do you have in your team, then?

You know what I mean? It kind of And also

Paul: I'll share, I love, you're right, it is hard. But here's the thing the pandemic has shown us. If I think of my office day, in this moment, I'm in my dental office. I'd say 20 percent of the people worked here before the pandemic, just 20%. That means there's like 80 percent new people.

So you need these team meetings and accountability measures because somebody moves to freaking Napa Valley and quits dentistry. Hygienist decides to stay home with their children. Somebody's not the right fit for your office. So for you to be able to deliver awesome patient care, always number one. And be productive as possible, one a, you need to put the pieces in place and you need these training things.

I don't, Oh, this is one thing I want to share if I have time. So I had this awesome coach, Mark Dorio, who's also one of my implant patients. He signed all the HIPAA releases. I'm not going to get in trouble. And he talked about this. Um, Andy Reed used to be the coach of the Eagles. He's now the Kansas city chiefs coach.

And he came and give a lecture to my study club years ago. And he says, during the week, Andy Reed trains the players. On Sunday, he coaches them. There's a difference between coaching and training. And too often, dentists just do the coaching during the day. And the team meetings and the morning huddles, that's the training you need to perform well during these dental days.

So many times, dental offices just show up and play the game, try to fix their problems during the game. And we've seen this, whether it's the NFL or your dental office, you need these outside the game training days. Man,

Michael: that's good. That's really brilliant,

Paul: Paul. Awesome. Awesome. Well, they give Mark Doyo credit.

He's the one who came up with it, but I, I, I copy, uh, smart people's ideas. And I really think about that. If you're listening, coaching and training are two different things. You cannot train during the game. You can only coach. So make sure you make time for training. Nice.

Michael: Awesome. I appreciate your time, Paul.

If anyone has further questions or concerns, where can they reach out

Paul: to you? Well, first I want to say to you, uh, Guac Grateful is the highest level of thanks for doing things like this. I learned so much from podcasts every day on the treadmill, at the gym, walking around and listening to things like Entrepreneur on Fire, dental podcasts.

So just creating this, Michael, you should be very proud of yourself for doing this because it's awesome. And people can reach out to me at dental nachos. com or Dennis job connect. com. I would love to connect with you. Always say the mission of dental nachos is ABC to FLA. Always be connecting to feel less alone.

So I'd love to make a new friend with your audience.

Michael: Awesome. So guys, that's going to be in the show notes below and Paul, thank you so much for being with me on this Monday morning episode. My

Paul: pleasure.

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Ever wondered what it takes to leap from the corporate dental sector into creating your own independent practice? This episode of The Dental Marketer dives deep into this brave transition through the enlightening journey of none other than Dr. Milca Mendez-Ceballos, founder of Pawsitive Pediatric Dentistry. Dr. Milca candidly unravels her fascinating tale of disappointment in the corporate environment, and how it led her to prioritize quality care above all in her own practice.

How did Dr. Milca seamlessly set up her practice, and which outreach methods worked wonders in attracting her target demographic? Listen in as she shares her unique strategies, from leveraging her community to engaging potential clients through platforms like YouTube and Instagram. You'll also hear about the various vendors and services that she incorporated along the way, including her commendable experience with Dark Horse Tech and Bank of America. Despite grappling with self-doubt and the steep balance between her roles as a dentist, business owner, and boss, Dr. Milca’s resilient spirit powerfully shines through, inspiring all who are teetering on the edge of making a significant career transition.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How to transition from the corporate dental sector to starting your own practice.
• The power of community and social media in establishing a dental practice.
• The role of various vendors in setting up a profitable dental practice.
• How to overcome self-doubt while making a significant career transition.
• Balancing the demanding roles of being a dentist, a business owner, and a boss.

Don't miss out on Dr. Milca's inspiring journey and insightful lessons drawn from setting up her own ultra-successful dental practice – hit play now!

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Guest: Dr. Milca Mendez-CeballosPractice Name: Pawsitive Pedatric DentistryCheck out Milca's Media:

Website: https://www.pawsitivepediatricdentistry.com/

Milca's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.milca/

Practice Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pawsitivepediatricdentistry/

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I'm excited to announce that the Pediatric Dental Marketing Course is officially open for enrollment!

This comprehensive course, developed by Minal Sampat and myself, is tailored specifically for pediatric practice owners and their teams. It is designed to turn your pain points into stepping stones for success, and to help you become the trusted dental home for countless children in your community. Head over to our site to enroll now! https://pediatricdentalmarketingcourse.com/

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Other Mentions and Links:

‍

Software/Services:

• Ideal Practices
• Smart Training
• HR for Health
• Kleer

Movies/Shows/Characters: 

• Sweet Magnolias
• Gilmore Girls
• Princess Poppy - Trolls

Establishments/Brands:

• Bank of America
• Target

Organizations:

• OSHA
• HIPAA

‍

Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

‍
Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

‍

p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

‍

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‍

‍

Are you frustrated that your efforts don't always produce the results you desire? Have you ever pondered why some people appear to effortlessly achieve success while others struggle? This insightful episode with entrepreneur Daniel Johnson is a must-listen! Daniel dives deep into the power of starting with your desired end in mind. He argues convincingly that visualizing your end goal before embarking on any venture will enable you to purposefully plan your actions, providing you with a roadmap to success.

But having a clear goal isn't enough, Daniel warns; you need to be adaptable. Sharing struggles and victories from his own business experience, he emphasizes that your end goal may shift along your path, and that's completely normal. The key is your willingness to accept change and probe new opportunities that align with your remodeled objectives. It's not about sticking firmly to the original plan, but continuously evolving it as you learn and grow.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How having a crystal clear end goal can pave the road to your success
• Why being adaptable and open to change determines your capability to achieve your evolving objectives
• That setbacks and adversities aren't roadblocks, but are opportunities for growth and realignment with your goals
• The significance of investing in real estate and diversified investment for long-term financial stability and additional income
• How taking calculated risks could gain your financial freedom and achieve personal goals

Seize the moment, tune in now, and unlock the winning strategies of starting with the end in mind!

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For DSO integrations, startup solutions, and all your dental IT needs, let our sponsors, Darkhorse Tech, help out so you can focus on providing the amazing care that you do. For 1 month of FREE service, visit their link today! https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/darkhorse-deal/

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You can reach out to Daniel Johnson here:

Website: https://drkylestanley.com/

Phone: 254-652-5717 (Cell)

Email: [email protected]

Email: [email protected]

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Mentions and Links:

Events:

• Disney Marathon

Useful Terms:

• Cryptocurrency

‍

If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

‍

Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey, Daniel. So talk to us. What's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning.

Daniel: So my advice that I've always lived in is, to start with the end in mind, I think a lot, what I've done in business and personal, and I know it was a lot of help. People have done this, but what I, what I mean by that is when you can visualize what you want at the end of what you're doing.

So let's say it's a race school or starting your dental office, whatever it is, is what do you want to end up with? So do you want to end up with? Five offices or you want to be a single practice owner. Um, and you want to just be a small little office and make, be a 2, 000, 000 office. But start with that 2, 000, 000 in mind instead of saying, I'm going to start here because then what you do, you can plan out to it.

So it's like I do with my goals. All my goals is, is what do I want to accomplish at the end? And then I work my way backwards. And so I say, okay, if I'm going to run, so like I was talking a little bit, we ran the Disney half marathon. So I start with my time. I know I have to run 13. 1 miles. I want my time to be this.

And then I work backwards. How do I get my time through workouts and training to get my end goal? Does that make sense? Same with the practice. So if I want to be a 2 million practice, what does that look like? Can I do it with one op, or do I need five ops? Do I need one hygienist? Do I need three hygienists?

And then plan it backwards and go backwards. So if it's a 2 million office or a 5 million office, how does that look? I'm going to have to hire an associate sometime. So you have to plan that and get that all planned out. willing to be flexible. You know, I think the thing with when you start with Indian mind is you have to be very, very flexible knowing things are going to come.

We all know life goes ups and downs. And so when you, but, but when you have your end goal, it gives you something to shoot for. And my thing is I always shoot for bold. So like my Indian mind might be a bold goal because I know a lot of us will set goals or, or, or, and it'll just be something we know we can hit.

And I like to do it a little bit harder. So like Going back to the race, if I'm going to set a goal of, I usually run about an eight, 30 minute pace for, um, a half marathon. So if I set a goal for eight minutes, um, it's a bold goal, but then I have to push myself. So it gives me a reason to push knowing that I'm a little bit out of my comfort zone.

So that's really my, thing that the one piece of advice I'd give you is start with the end of mind and then work And that's You can go for personal, you can go for school if you're still in school, it can go for where you just start your business and even go if you're at the end of your career and you're looking to sell.

So your end goal would be sell my practice. So let's say you're 50 years old or 55 and you want to get out in five years. so what does that look like? I want to sell it. Okay. What'd you have to do to get to your, I want to sell my practice for X amount of dollars. So don't just have it as a, I want to sell my practice.

Be specific, you know, we've all heard of SMART goals, but be specific about it and then, work your way backwards. Okay, well I need to build up my patient base because I know my equipment and my building might not be worth as much as my patients. So that would be my advice. And there's lots of ways to do it.

So, lots of people have talked about this, it's in lots of books, but for me it's always been the one thing that I've done with my goals. And it's helped me achieve the majority of my goals. Yeah.

Michael: Like the reverse engineering part. Has it ever happened, Daniel, where halfway through the end kind of changes your end goal, you're like, Oh, and then it, it kind of just derails you from everything else right

Daniel: now.

No, not derails for me when it changes like that, what happens is usually it changes where I, that end goal might switch to something else. So let me give you this is, um, something in business, you know, I started a business, eight, nine years ago, it started one way. And as that business started to grow, I realized there was another product that we were doing that was actually going to be better than what I started out with.

So my end goal was to get this one, part of the business growing. And I realized probably a third of the way to know it, my business is going to go this other way. So all I did was readjust. I moved my goal saying, okay, this business is still viable, but I'm going to move it to what's really working so I just readjusted the end goal.

So I don't think end goals need to be a, uh, like a rock saying, I, I'm going to put my stake here and that's the only way I'm going to go. You have to be flexible knowing that you might have that in mind, but it can change. And if you're willing to be flexible with the change, usually it's even works even better because, in a dental practice, you might have an end goal of 5 million.

You know, like you want to be a 5, 000, 000 practice, but you realize, wait a second, you know, maybe it's not going to work in traditional dentistry, maybe I'm going to end up bringing on an or somebody else like that, where it's going to go a different direction, but it's going to bring me to my, my final goal.

That's why if you. On your end goal, if you can, uh, be specific about it, you'd be willing to be flexible. it helps. So things do change. I mean, welcome. We all know life. I mean, I have four kids. I thought it was gonna be easy. All my kids are gonna be the same. Yeah, right. You know, they all have different personalities.

They do different things. They like different things. And so you just have to be willing to, uh, be flexible. But my own goal with my kids is. Get an education, grow up in a happy home, things like that. And so the main part of it didn't change, but their personalities and what they want to do has all changed.

Michael: Gotcha. Do you have like specific, like big, big, so for example, you said you own businesses, right? And I'm sure the end goal for that was like, cause I want to have like freedom, right? I want to be, I don't want to have to clock in, clock out. I want to be able to do all that. Right. So that would be like the main, main goal.

Right. And then you're kind of reverse engineering. Okay. I need to own my own businesses. I need to do that. And this, has it ever been to a point where you're like, um, I'm not that you lose the vision of the end goal, but you're, you're stuck in a part of the goal for so long and you're like, should I just give up?

Should I change it? Should I do it's been years and I haven't even hit this yet. And it's another associate quit or another associate quit or something like that.

Daniel: yeah, I don't think, uh, the quit part of it is not something I would ever do, but adjusting. Absolutely, because I think, um, if you're not willing to adjust, like you said, associates, I mean.

If you're in a practice, we have five associates in our practices. So we have three practices. We just opened a fourth one. And so we have associates and you have team members quit. And so they derailed, but that doesn't mean the goal needs to change. It just might put it out longer. Right? So if you had a five year goal and all of a sudden something happened, let's say you get divorced.

And your, your spouse takes half your stuff, that goal doesn't need to change. You just might have to adjust it to a longer timeline, right? Or you know, I was talking about businesses. My end goal was, was I call it beach time. where can I get to where I'm making money where I can chill on the beach?

So I'm on the beach and I'm still making money. It's just kind of a broad perspective. And so I realized in dentistry, we can make good money in dentistry, but really where we make the money in dentistry is doing other things, investing in other products, you know, and crypto was big a couple of years ago, I did a bunch of stuff into crypto worked out very, very well for me, and I did it early enough on, but it's the same thing with stocks and investments, real estate, you know, those things that are long lasting investments, dentistry is going to be bread and butter.

So for my goal, the end goal of, beach time or, or making beach money. Was what do I have to do to surround myself other than dentistry that will help me get there? Because dentistry makes a great living. You're never going to get super wealthy being a dentist. Some people do. You hear people like I, I sold a DSL and I had 10, 15, 20 practices.

Great. That's really, really good. But majority of dentists are not like that. Right. They go to work like everybody else. They make a good living, but they don't become wealthy off of it. The ones that become wealthy are the ones that are willing to take a little risk in investing in other businesses or looking outside the box saying, okay, dentistry is my main bread and butter.

But what can I do? So if your end goal was to, let's say, retire at 50 with, 20 million dollars, whatever it is, okay, the industry is not going to get you that. So what other things you have to pull in, real estate might be one, and, uh, you might want to invest in another company. Maybe somebody's coming out with a new, um, intraoral camera, It's like, Hey, you should invest in this.

Things like that. Where do you find little niches where you can invest in that can make more money? But with that, you have to be willing. I've done that a bunch in different things and you lose money too. And so you do go up. It's like, like you go up and then you have step backs. But it doesn't mean it changes that end goal, So those setbacks should actually just firm your resolution of, okay, what else do I need to do? don't be stupid and keep investing in stupid things, be smart, do your research. but the key is is you always have dentistry to fall back on. Like dentistry is going to be bread and butter.

So I tell people like, if you have extra money, you have to be willing to lose it. Money will help you make more money. I think that's where a lot of wealthy people become wealthy is because they use their money that they've made to make more money. And they don't sit on it. I mean, some are maybe be frivolous with it, but most of them are pretty smart with what they have and they invest in other things.

And they, counting on maybe two or two out of 10 things are going to work, but those two out of 10 things really do very well and it can help them expound on, um, their end goal.

Michael: Yeah. No, that's good. Can I ask? Daniel, what were the like two out of 10 things at the beginning for you where you're like, wait, I recommend you should invest in this.

If somebody were to show you like their options.

Daniel: So for me, number one would be real estate. If you have a chance getting real estate, it can be a pain in the butt in the beginning, it's not a get rich tomorrow thing. It is a get rich long term thing. You know, so buy your practice, buy your property for your practice, pay yourself.

Uh, uh, lease, you know, if you can buy other properties where maybe you, maybe it's in a strip mall, maybe it's, so it can be both commercial and residential, and then in the beginning, build it where you, if enough to where you can manage it, but eventually hand it off to somebody else to do it.

It's the same thing with your team in your office. You know, you're not answering the phones, doing hygiene, you hire people to do those things for you. And it's the same thing with real estate. You get to a certain point where you're like, all right, I need somebody to manage my buildings. They manage all my stuff for me.

I'm going to pay them. A percentage. It still works out for you very, very well in the long run. And then the second part is do the investing, you know, stocks, all that stuff, whatever you want to find. That's another good way where it's a longterm short term. It's just, you got to find things that maybe, are new into the market.

It doesn't have to be dentistry. Um, it can be really anything. And so find groups or people that you can, uh, trust and. Be willing to lose money. So those investments those the ones are going to make you the most money the ones that are risky so like for example, I talked about crypto.

I invested a bunch of money into crypto. Um, man Five years ago into crypto farms where they actually made do and I even built my own Crypto machines because I want to know how it all works. I built yeah, so if you looked in my office, I have a pet in our back one of our back rooms I probably have a hundred crypto mining machines that are just chilling there now because crypto is just doing okay.

So it's either break even, but when it started, I just took a chance. And it made me very, very good money. I got, I got lucky. that's really what it was. It, it was up and coming thing, COVID happened. It, and so crypto prices just, skyrocketed. but it's those types of things that can help you.

Now, not everybody's going to do those things, but the best thing about that is I was, when I invested into those things, I realized like if I lost it all, I still had my, my job and I still have my brain. And I think that's where people forget, like get so worried about. Either you or a spouse or, or somebody you're with get worried about losing everything and they don't want to start over.

cause all of us get comfortable, but the ones that can make real good money are willing to lose it knowing that if I lost everything today, tomorrow I'd start over and I know that I can make it all back by working hard and just doing what I know. Right. It's not like, it's not like when we were starting over, think people would think like, Oh, you're not gonna have any money.

You're not gonna have any food. No, that's not how that works. if you, if you have a practice and you're working, you're still Making money, you can still put food on the table. You just lost everything you invested in. So let's say if it's 300, 000 or 500, 000 or a million dollars, you lose all that.

It's gone. It sucks. It does suck, but you can start over again. and I think that's where a lot of people get a little nervous cause they're like, I just, I can't risk this 50, 000 really like 50, 000 for a chance to maybe make a quarter million dollars. It's risky, but would you really be that worse off if you lost that 50, 000?

I mean, yeah, it sucks, but it's not going to kill you. Like you're not gonna lose your house. You're not losing your family. You're not gonna have not have food on your table. I mean, we live in America we've done mission trips in different parts of the country for dentistry and you see the way other people live and you're like, man, dirt floors.

Buckets in the corner for the bathrooms, we would never have to worry about that. And so it's just a kind of a different mindset. So a lot of it, all this deals down to mindset, like knowing, starting with the end in mind, having a mindset of moving forward, no matter what, being able to adjust as needed and then be willing to take risks.

Nice.

Michael: Awesome, Daniel. Thank you so much for this. And I appreciate it. And if anyone has further questions, where can they reach out to you?

Daniel: we put a link up or something like that. They can just reach out to me if they want to call me or send me an email, either, either one.

Like I have no issue talking to people, what we've done, me and my brother, to build our practices and also invest into other things. Like it's. I'm not a financial advisor. So this is just would be just what we've done. everybody's gonna have their own thing, but that would be the best thing.

I'll give you that information. They can just reach out to me.

Michael: Awesome. So guys, that's going to be in the show notes below. So definitely check that out. And at the same time, Daniel, thank you so much for being with me on this Monday morning episode. Yeah. Thanks for having me.

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Ever wondered what it takes for a dental practice to thrive in a highly competitive market? Today's episode of The Dental Marketer gives you a golden opportunity to learn the nuts and bolts of exactly that. Our special guest, Dr. Liel Allon, uncovers how the strategic location of her practice, along with a personalized and patient-centred approach, propelled her dental office to success in Houston, Texas. The engaging discussion opens up avenues to understand how walking the extra mile in patient care - such as explicit signage inviting walk-ins and personalized follow-up calls - can remarkably resonate with the public and help attract new patients.

However, it's not just about grabbing the attention of potential patients; the culture we cultivate within our practice plays a critical role in our success. Dr. Allon reveals the underpinnings of their practice's culture, firmly rooted in an ego-free environment. A space where it doesn't matter who you are or what your official role is, everyone pitches in where they're needed, making for a resilient, versatile team. Trudging through unchartered territory while setting up her practice, she shares the hurdles faced, articulating that there are no mistakes, only lessons in the journey of entrepreneurship.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The influence of strategic location and visibility in dental practice success
• The impact of personalized follow-up calls on patient retention
• The necessity of a cohesive and ego-free culture within the practice
• Combatting challenges in setting up a practice
• Learning valuable lessons from seemingly "mistakes"

So, take a step back, listen, and let Dr. Allon's wisdom and story help drive your dental practice to the next level!

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Guest: Dr. Liel AllonPractice Name: DentAllon DentistryCheck out Liel's Media:

Website: https://www.dentallondentistry.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dentallon_dentistry/

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Other Mentions and Links:

‍

Software/Services:

• Vistaprint

Establishments/Brands:

• NASA
• University of Texas (UT)

Products/Equipment:

• iTero
• Autoclave

‍

Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

‍
Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

‍

p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

‍

‍

‍

‍

Want to move beyond just coping and instead thrive in your dentistry career? Tune into this episode as I dive into an enriching conversation with Dr. Kyle Stanley, addressing the silent struggle of mental and relational health amongst dentists. Discover how setting clear boundaries, understanding personal sleep patterns, and creating a mental health supportive clinic are key. Get a glimpse into Kyle's "DREAMS Sequence" - a routine promoting success and well-being!
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What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The importance of prioritizing mental and interpersonal health in a dentistry career
• The implementation and benefits of the "DREAMS Sequence"
• Understanding individual sleep patterns and adjusting practice hours appropriately
• The significance of setting clear boundaries and managing expectations with patients
• Insights into effectively running a dental practice that supports mental health
• Information about Kyle's Light Side Academy and his mission to help dentists
  

Tune in today to learn from Dr. Kyle Stanley, a dentist who overcame personal struggles to prioritize his mental and relational health, and how you can implement his key insights into your own practice!

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Created by dentists for dentists: For practice management software that seamlessly integrates patient engagement, clinical charting, and practice growth without compromise, check out our sponsor, Oryx. As a listener of this podcast, schedule a free demo today with Oryx! Visit their link here: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/oryx/

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You can reach out to Dr. Kyle Stanley here:

Website: https://drkylestanley.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkylestanley/

Dr. Kyle Stanley's Light Side Academy: https://lightsidedentistry.com/

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Mentions and Links:

People/Public Figures:

• Dr. Matt Nejad

‍

Useful Terms:

• DREAMS Sequence - diet, relationships, exercise, appreciation, meditation, and sleep

‍

If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

‍

Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey Kyle, so talk to us, what's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning?

Kyle: Yeah, I think, uh, the biggest advice that I have really for any dentist is to focus on mastering your mental and relational health because I think that's the most effective way to ensure sustainable success in dentistry.

I think so many of us focus on our clinical abilities way too much when I talk to dentists from all over the world, that's not really what they struggle with. They struggle with their mental health, their relational health, with their team, with their patients. So, so that would be my advice.

Michael: Can you kind of elaborate a little bit more on that because how can we, I guess, How did you, sharpen your mental

Kyle: health?

Yeah, number one, I put effort into it. , I had never even thought about it. I was at a very deep, you know, dark point in my career where I wanted to quit dentistry. And so I really had to make it a priority. And what I'm trying to get across in so much of my, my lectures and my research and my courses is that don't get to the point where I was right.

Don't, uh, you know, like in dentistry we always say. Preventative medicine is the best medicine, right? And we talk about coming in for cleanings regularly, and getting radiographs regularly, so we can catch lesions that are very small, and do minimally invasive dentistry. However, with our own mental and physical health, most of us wait until it's a full mouth rehabilitation with orthognathic surgery and sinus lifts and zygomas.

So, don't wait for your own mental well being to be this full mouth rehabilitation. Do the daily habits and make, make it a priority.

Michael: So then right now to not get to the deep dark point and stop before there, what's like, I guess, one exercise we can implement. Or a couple exercises that you recommend you start implementing like

Kyle: today.

Yeah, so like with my, um, you know, the people that I mentor, I, we have something called the dream sequence, which is diet, relationships, exercise, appreciation, meditation, and sleep. And so you can pick any of those, but if we just want to make it very simple, get at least seven hours of sleep a night. I mean, that sounds so simple, but when I was at my very dark point, I wasn't doing that.

I was staying up late, reading articles, I was, you know, working super late, waking up super early, being at the practice, trying to organize, trying to get cases ready, and I thought that I was Being more efficient that way. And what I realized was that even though I was working longer, my efficiency was down.

So, and there's research on this, that when you're, when you don't have enough sleep, your efficiency is only 80 percent of what you're actually think you're doing. So you're spending 10 hours to do eight hours of work. And so, um, you know, just getting good sleep and making that a priority.

Michael: Yeah. Has it ever been the case, Kyle, where you're like, or maybe a member or, you know, somebody, uh, you're mentoring is like, Hey man, I go to bed, but I just can't fall asleep.

Like my mind is racing. I'm thinking of stuff and I'm like, I could have just been up this whole time doing stuff instead of just laying in bed with my eyes open. Yeah,

Kyle: yeah, I mean, there, there, there is research to show that different people have different sleep patterns, right? And I know a lot of people, especially dentists, that are like, Oh, I'm totally good on five hours.

And there is research to show that there's some people that are like that, but it's like 0. 0000001%. Like, very few people can focus with that little amount of sleep. So, You know, there's people that need to sleep later and need to wake up later naturally, you know Like my wife is one of these people she could put her phone down do nothing, but she's not gonna fall asleep until 12 Right these type of people may have to rethink the hours of their practice like don't start seeing patients at 8 a.

m If you're not going to be fresh then, so because most of the people listening to this are practice owners or maybe they're lead doctors in, you know, a DSO or something like this, we have the autonomy to change our hours based on our health. I think so many times we bend over backwards for patients and in the process we lose ourselves.

Michael: Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. Because a lot of the times we kind of adjust the hours to. Where you're not getting enough patience, so work Saturdays, right? Do e mails, do all these things. And so, do you think there's like a form of like your fear? You're like, I'm scared to do the other thing where I want to adjust it to my life, my sleep patterns, my Totally.

Kyle: Yeah, I mean, there's this big misconception in dentistry that the answer is having more patients. I'm here to tell you the answer is not to have more patients. The answer is to have the right patients in your practice. Because so many times we're saying more patients, more patients, more patients, that's the answer.

And sometimes these are the patients that are driving you nuts. These are the patients that don't want to take radiographs, they um, you know, are late to your appointments, they're rude to your team members, they're driving the whole team crazy. These are the patients that actually need to be dismissed from your practice.

We don't make money on these people and we can't do good treatment on them. So I'm a very big proponent of dismissing patients.

Michael: Gotcha. Okay. So right now, right now you're running your own practice, right? I do. Yeah. Mm-Hmm, . Okay. When you dismiss patients, how does that look like then when it comes to like, for your own mental health, like Yeah.

You guys

Kyle: are headaches. Yeah, so we have, we have scripts and forms and we've done this so much that we're fairly comfortable with it. But, you know, usually it's a patient that, like I said, doesn't go through with treatment, um, is late all the time. No shows.

Um, and so we just don't need them in the practice, you know, we have other people that would rather be there and are paying, are doing exams, are doing radiographs, you know, are on time, are just lovely to work with. And so it's not worth our mental stress and, you know, the financial aspect to have them in the practice.

Michael: Gotcha. Okay. Have you come to realize Because I'm sure you get this a lot too where they're like, oh my mental health is good. I'm good. Like but they've lived this way with this stress like chronic stress for so long. They think it's Yeah,

Kyle: so I call them coping dentists. It's really three dentists.

There's, there's thriving dentists, there's coping dentists, and there's despairing dentists. And I was a despairing dentist at one time. Uh, now I think I'm a thriving dentist. But, uh, these coping dentists are just like, well, this is how it is. And this is how dentistry works and you know, yeah, I know it's, it's hard and it's difficult and patients suck and insurance is a pain in the ass and all this stuff, but I'm just going to deal with it for the next 30 years of my practice, you know, and that's not the case.

It doesn't have to be like that. Like dentistry can be amazing, but you have to take the steps to do it and you have to make yourself a priority. You see, as, as dentists, we're always giving, we're giving to our patients, we're giving to our team members, we're giving to our families. And we forget about us.

I always say you have to put on your own oxygen mask first when the plane's going down, right? You can't help others. And we always try to help others and lose ourselves. And many times our health is in a poor place. Exercising, we're not eating well, we're not sleeping well. Our relationships are poor. You know, we're not making good money.

And that's because we haven't made ourselves a priority.

Michael: So the first steps to making yourself a priority, we should look into is, like you said, our sleep, right? And then yeah, I mean

Kyle: that's an easy way it's a very easy way of doing it

Michael: and then from that point on Where does the, cause I feel like fires will come up, right?

Like, all right, I'm starting to sleep and then, oh my gosh, the hours. And then there's a patient that, you know, you kind of throw all out the window, that stuff seems easy to throw out the window. Well,

Kyle: you have the daily habits, right? So that's the diet relationships, exercise, appreciation, meditation, sleep.

Those are daily habits that we should be doing. For anybody, not just dentists, right? That's, that's for anybody. Then you also have ways of managing the practice for your mental health. Like, there's ways of scheduling that is better for mental health. There's ways of, you know, um, setting expectations, setting boundaries with patients that is for your mental health.

There's ways of talking to team members. I think so many times practice management is taught strictly just for money. And what I found, you know, when I was at my darkest point, I was making a shit ton of money, and I was miserable. So, what I've tried to do is figure out ways to the practice, patient, and the practitioner, and what happens as like a, side effect, is you end up making more money.

So you're happier, and because of that, you end up making more money.

Michael: So, are you like, subtracting more? Are you doing less now, or? Or how does that look?

Kyle: Yeah, I mean, my practice is a little different in the sense of like we're out of network, we're very high end, you know, we only see one patient at a time.

So my practice that I practice with Matt and Najad probably isn't the average practice, but you know, when I'm, when I'm helping other doctors with their practice, they tend to be more, you know, general dental practices that take insurance and are more normal. But our practice is definitely. Do less, charge more, better experience.

And that's a very, you know, niche market.

Michael: Hmm. So would you say like you kind of took in that concept into your life, like do less and you're like being energized more, you know what I mean? Like kind of

Kyle: thing? Oh, totally. Yeah. I mean, I was completely overwhelmed with doing everything in my practice, in my life and I've had to simplify for sure.

Michael: Gotcha. Gotcha. Okay. Yeah. I just, sometimes I know that's like. You know how when you're at that and you I'm sure you stop talk to startups right who are like, hey, man I'm not even breaking even I got to throw everything out there I got a grind and I got to put in this grit. Is that warranted at the beginning?

Kyle: I think some of that is needed at the beginning, but you have to you know I love cars. You have to think about it like a car. You can only redline the car for so long before there's Irreversible damage. And so I think so many times we do that with ourselves. We're just like, well, I'll sleep when my practice is making a million dollars, or I'll sleep in my practice making 5 million, or I'll sleep when I have a thousand patients or when I have a huge, you know, all this stuff.

And like, you're not going to last. It's not sustainable. You may be able to do that for a year. You may be able to do that for two years, but you can't do that for 40 years of practice. asked me how I know because that's what I was doing. And there's this connection with your health that a lot of people don't realize.

It's like, I thought that my health and my business were two separate things. And what I found is that once I got my health, In the right place all of a sudden my business grew all of a sudden, you know We got more patients all of a sudden. I was selling bigger cases. All of a sudden. I was being better at surgery Simply because I was taking care of myself

Michael: Yeah, and I think that's um that takes a lot of like, um, I guess that's where the meditation comes in Huh, like it takes a lot of like inner look because you can tell if someone's unhealthy physically, right?

Well, most majority you're like, yeah, you're pretty unhealthy, right? but when it comes to mental I feel like You can tell yourself, like, I've always been this way. What are you talking about, right? I think since I was a child or something like that, but yeah, is that what you do? Are you helping practice owners and doctors now like kind of?

Transition out of that, or?

Kyle: I'm helping people master their mental and relational health in general, um, you know, that are, that are dentists. So, that has to do with realizing you have a problem, right? Realizing something is different. That has to do with then the next step is identifying all of those triggers.

So we go through, you know, like 18 different triggers, and you can't manage your triggers unless you know what they are. And then our step three is we do our purpose and our perspective, where we find out what our purpose in life is outside of dentistry. So many dentists think that it's to be a dentist, and I'm telling you, that's not your purpose in life.

That's not what you want your grandkids to remember you as. Next thing we do is learn those daily habits that I told you about, the dream sequence. And then the last step is to elevate above all this, and a lot of that has to do with managing your practice so that it works for you and you don't work for your practice.

Michael: I like that, man. That's really good. This is a course of yours or like, uh, what is it? Yeah,

Kyle: yeah, I have an online course and a, um, like a mastermind support group as well.

Michael: Nice. Awesome, man. All right. So Kyle, thank you so much for being with us. If anybody has further questions or concerns, where can they reach out to you?

Yeah, you can

Kyle: find me on Instagram at drkylestanley, d r kylestanley. Or you can go to my website, drkylestanley. com. And, uh, yeah, look forward to hearing from people. My course is called light side Academy, and we've had over a thousand dentists from over 50 countries take the course. So super, super cool community.

And it's been the most rewarding thing I've done in dentistry for sure.

Michael: Wow, man, that's exciting. That's amazing. Awesome. So that's going to be the show notes below if anybody wants to check it out. At the same time, Kyle, thank you so much for being with me on this Monday morning episode.

Kyle: Thanks for having me.

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