When I was just a teenager, my mother told me, “Some of your life will be different from that of your father and me for simply one reason. You have choices.” I grew up in rural Iowa, the youngest of six children on a relatively modest farm. Luckily, like most medical/dental professionals, I excelled in school and had a hard work ethic. I was accepted to college, took the DAT and was accepted to attend Creighton University School of Dentistry.
I imagine a path like this is what most dentists have taken. So where lies our differences and what are our choices? Many new graduates leave school heavily indebted. All we have known is a lot of fear (mixed with a little fun for distraction). Practicals, labs, school requirements, board exams, etc. Some new grads leave school with nearly $300K in student loans. That debt is a heavy burden, so what choices do they have? More than you might think.
Once a new graduate gets up to speed on clinical skills and has the personality to present a treatment plan with confidence and from a patient benefit perspective, the sky is the limit. I have spoken to many young doctors who say they just cannot imagine more indebtedness or risks, so they accept things like associateships or corporate contracts, instead of pursuing practice ownership. I can genuinely see the fear in their eyes.
My question for these young doctors is this, “All you have ever known is risk. You have faced fears and unknowns over and over and again. Why wouldn’t you bet on yourself one more time?”
I know the majority of dental schools offer very little business training. But one of the wisest things my professor and mentor ever told me in dental school was, “We’re not teaching you to be tooth mechanics, we’re teaching you how to think.” Even if only armed with this tool in our bag, we have the ability to acquire and own a very successful dental practice, and live the independent life that so many of us dreamed of when pursuing our dream of becoming dentists in the first place.
The truth is that there are numerous reasons to own your own practice and very few, if any, good excuses why you should not own a practice. The lost income opportunity is tremendous. I could go on and on about how to work through this process, but this article is strictly speaking to those who have the desire but are currently paralyzed by the “fear.” With the help of professionals, you can bet on yourself one more time and have your independent dream.
Buyers do not have the monopoly on fear! It exists in virtually every transitional phase of a dental career, for both buyers and sellers. I’ve had the luck and fortune to have owned and sold several practices in my lifetime. And regardless, every time came with questions, insecurity and some degree of fear, even if it was just of the unknown.
So where does fear come into play? Fear is a good thing; it is our body’s awareness of a situation. And the more intelligent we are, the more aware we are of things of which to be afraid. But courage is action in the face of fear. As healthcare professionals, we have acted in the face of our fear the majority of our lives. The biggest fear we may have is change … change from the familiar to the unknown. I believe, as dentists, if we look at our lives we find that life has been one big evolution and change since we began this process. For those considering buying, believe in the next step of your learning path and take another chance with the help of intelligent advisors and professionals. You have a choice. Now be courageous.
Dr. David Schrad was born and raised in Lake City, Iowa. He attended dental school at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebr., where he received his D.D.S. in 1996. Dave has over 20 years of varying experiences as a dental practitioner and practice owner. In addition to personally owning, developing, and transitioning several dental practices, he has been a PARAGON consultant for over three years. Dr. Schrad covers the states of Nebraska and Western Iowa for PARAGON Dental Practice Transitions.