A DeW(ds) Perspective Know Your Numbers So You Know Who You Can Be Compassionate With

This to Along estate private article the holdings, dental is way, based I on over twenty five years dedicated practice before earning a law degree. built several ventures, including real dental training companies, and a woodworking business while also maintaining a 30-year investment history in the stock market.

In my most active professional years, I owned and managed multistate dental practices, each with its own associate dentist. These experiences taught me that success in healthcare—and in any business—relies on knowing your numbers. Data doesn’t replace compassion, but it strengthens it. When you understand your metrics, you make decisions rooted in reality instead of emotion, which safeguards both profit and integrity.

As an older white male, I’m aware that society views me as someone who may benefit from privilege. However, the inequality I have personally observed in professional settings—particularly in dentistry—is rooted more in gender bias than racial bias.

I’ve seen countless examples of women in business who are overly trusting, often because of their natural empathy and the social expectation that they maintain harmony. Unfortunately, that compassion sometimes makes them targets for manipulation. People who seem friendly, who offer help freely, or who compliment you at every turn may not have your best interests at heart. It’s not always ill-intentioned, but the line between kindness and exploitation can be very thin.

In my experience, practices owned by women tend to demonstrate higher levels of compassion toward both staff and patients—an admirable trait, but also a potential liability. Compassionate leaders face higher turnover when their trust is broken and their expectations aren’t met. It’s harder to make tough staffing or financial decisions when your heart leads over your numbers. Knowing your metrics—your production, payroll percentages, and profit margins—creates a necessary layer of self-protection.

When I began practice management consulting, I quickly learned the value of tracking performance metrics. My key takeaway was simple: you can’t fix what you don’t know is broken.

By monitoring their numbers, practitioners ensured they met targets and aligned with the office’s financial goals. Today, standard Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for dental and medical practices include production per provider, case acceptance rate, collection ratio, and overhead percentage. Knowledge builds empowerment. Tracking production growth and revenue ratios makes it easier to be compassionate toward others because your

security no longer depends on blind trust—it stands on verified data.

Over decades of practice management consulting, I’ve helped many dentists improve their operations and profitability while retaining their core values. When I combined my law degree with my dental experience, my mission evolved into teaching practitioners how to balance empathy and efficiency.

On a personal level, this principle influenced how I raised my daughters. Two now work in dentistry—a dentist and a hygienist—and the third has entrepreneurial plans of her own. I made sure that all of them understood how to “know their numbers.” They inherited their mother’s compassion, but they also understand that compassion must be grounded in awareness.

I even gave them androgynous names when they were born to reduce gender bias on their résumés. They grew up around my practices and learned from an early age that no decision should ever depend solely on charm, flattery, or surface friendliness. They know to check the numbers first.

Suddenly, her own productivity and earnings declined. The DSO leaders promised “better management, stronger benefits, and improved efficiency”—but corporate structures often prioritize cost reduction over production growth. Measuring overall growth is more important than small pieces of the big picture.

Today, that same professional works within a DSO framework but on mutual terms. She now has a written contract that guarantees her performance minimums and earnings. The lesson here is universal: negotiate before you begin, not after. Expectations are binding only when they’re defined in writing—and grounded in measurable data. Now, she and the DSO are getting an ideal arrangement, and both are happy.

The Vendor Trap

Business owners, especially healthcare professionals, often fall into the vendor trap—trusting suppliers who promise effortless solutions. Overwhelmed with responsibilities, practitioners feel

relieved when someone “handles everything.” Yet those convenient offers can carry hidden costs.

Sales representatives often operate under quarterly sales quotas, not client loyalty. Owners sign contracts they believe lock in “exclusive discounts,” only to find later that fine-print clauses allow periodic price increases.

I learned this lesson firsthand. As a so-called “top-tier member,” I was assured I was receiving the industry’s best pricing. But after reviewing my accounts, I found that the discounted rates actually exceeded many competitors’ full retail prices.

The Friend Trap

Another common danger is mixing friendship with business. I’ve assisted countless dentists with everything from patient letters to understanding dental contracts and lease negotiations. One case stands out: a dentist client had already been charged over 30,000 by a “friend” attorney for minimal work on a lease negotiation.

When I stepped in to help, I realized the friend’s delays were costing precious time and leverage in negotiations with potential tenants. The client refused to reassign the work for fear of damaging their friendship. Eventually, I withdrew—because,

ironically, my continued effort to help was billable time wasted on an issue trapped in personal loyalty.

The same dynamic often repeats inside dental offices. Many owners hesitate to fire or discipline friends who underperform. One of my site visits exposed just how damaging this can be: a receptionist and close friend of the doctor was issuing free fluoride treatments and writing off balances as “adjustments.” Meanwhile, the hygienist still received production-based commissions on those unpaid services. This had gone unnoticed for months. In business, friendship should never override accountability. If it’s hard to fire a friend, then you probably shouldn’t have hired them in the first place.

Perhaps the most deceptive pitfall of all is what I call the hobby trap—reinvesting every penny back into your business as a form of gratification. I’ve seen owners upgrade equipment, remodel waiting rooms, and raise staff pay unnecessarily, believing these expenses are “investments.”

I advised one talented businesswoman who earned more than three million dollars annually but had no savings, high personal debt, and negative home equity. She had poured every dollar into building the “perfect” practice. Yet, profitability comes not from appearance but from discipline.

Stability starts with making the maximum IRA contributions available, especially those with employer matches. After that, invest what you can live without. Your money can—and should—work even when you’re off the clock. A profitable business should sustain your future, not just your passion. Yes, work should be enjoyable, but fulfillment doesn’t substitute for financial independence.

At a practice management seminar, the instructor asked attendees whether they viewed their business as a hobby. Shockingly, many—mostly female—participants raised their hands. The speaker responded, “That’s why you’re here. You run your business like a hobby instead of an enterprise.”

I often echo this point when mentoring professionals. Some simply “clock in and out,” seeing their role as a paycheck rather than a profession. But those who adopt

a leadership mindset—who study KPIs, negotiate fairly, and align goals with profitability—transform from employees into empowered professionals.

A business is meant to generate net income that fulfills both present and future needs. Profits are not a moral flaw—they are the foundation that enables long-term compassion, sustainability, and freedom.

Across all these stories—DSO structures, vendor traps, friendly staff, and reinvestment habits—the same truth emerges: success and compassion coexist only when grounded in awareness.

Your data is your defense. Numbers reveal whether you’re being embezzled, overpaying staff, or mismanaging costs. They show if generosity aligns with profitability or if kindness is eroding sustainability.

Running a business requires compassion, but also clarity. You cannot serve patients, support employees, or give freely if you lack the financial foundation to sustain it. A business run with empathy but no accountability will fail. A business run only by numbers will lack soul. The balance—compassion through competence—is where leadership resides.

And as I’ve often said to my students and clients, a penny saved isn’t just a penny earned; it’s evidence that compassion and professionalism can thrive side by side.