My #1 piece of advice for dentists? Read a book.
You know that old bear analogy? “I don’t have to run faster than a bear, just faster than my buddy.” Being a dental practice owner is a bit like that.
Most dentists are terrible business owners. And that’s understandable! You didn’t spend the better part of a decade in classes and residency learning all about staff management, accounting, and advertising. You worked on your clinical skills.
Those clinical skills are your bread and butter. But (to strain a different analogy) if you want to turn your basic meal into a feast, you need to learn to be a good business owner.
You don’t need to be a great business owner. Just a good one.
Why? Because almost every other dentist around you won’t bother. They’ll be good clinicians, just like you. But they won’t bother learning how to run their business.
That gives you an advantage. If you just do a bare minimum of research and implement a few best practices, you’ll be miles ahead of the competition. Your practice will be the envy of your area.
If you only read one business book, I recommend The Effective Manager by Mark Horstman. It will give you the tools you need to run the people side of your business, to work well with your hygienists and office staff.
Just do that and you’ll have a great advantage. And then if you want to go the extra mile, pick up a book on financial or marketing basics. Use them to become a good business owner, and your bottom line will thank you.
