March 6, 2007
Fear of the unknown can cripple even the best of us. It can’t create physical disability, but it can keep us from moving forward with our lives and careers.
Nearly every day, I meet fourth-year dental students and residents who have been overtaken by fear. They have invested so much time, financial resources, energy and hard work – not to mention all those sleepless nights spent studying – only to wonder where it will take them once they’ve graduated and passed the state boards. They’re left with feelings of disquiet, apprehension, agitation and anxiety over what the future will bring.
Dental school is meant to teach people how to become dentists. There is no meaningful amount of time spent showing dental students how to open, operate or manage a business. Yes, some schools have professors who will teach a short management course at some point during the third or fourth year, but these techniques are often outdated and based on the professor’s personal experience in private practice – no matter how long ago that might have been.
Many dental students actually dread graduation because they don’t know what path they are going to take after school. They fear failure in their future endeavors, whatever those may be. Too many recent graduates and residents think the only reasonable option is to find an associate’s position, hopefully in private practice rather than a corporate practice. Some feel ill-equipped to practice dentistry on their own after graduation – and rightly so, considering all the negative feedback they received while in dental school.
There indeed are a few recent graduates who should not practice dentistry without a mentor close at hand. Most, though, are well prepared to enter into private practice – but fear prevents them from realizing their potential as dentists in their early years.
At Athena Consulting, our goal is to educate you and walk you through your new-start project. Our many years of experience and hands-on project management help us lessen your apprehension about opening your own practice.
Knowledge is power, and power overcomes fear.
A lot of research and due diligence must be done in the planning phase of your new practice. Proper demographics are the key to the beginning of a fail-proof plan. Basic demographics calculate the percentage of Caucasians, African-Americans, Hispanics and other ethnic groups in your targeted area, the population as of the last census, the median value of homes and the median household income. Although those facts play a role, the real meat of the demographic study is information such as the future plans for growth of the area and the existing “competition.” Rather than our client picking a particular geographical area to start the practice, we often do in-depth research to locate the “hot spots.”
Other tasks include:
Proper timing of the project is very important to avoid costly delays.
Finally comes the day you open for business. We don’t want you watching the door in hopes that a new patient will walk through the threshold, or jumping each time the telephone rings. Instead, you’ll need the right marketing for your target clientele. The proper timing and development of your marketing plan is crucial. It’s the difference between being busy from Day One or trying to keep yourself busy with office tasks until the end of the day.
How many staff members do you need when you first open? How do you interview and hire the right people? What systems will you implement in your practice? When do you hire the second person? When is the proper time to hire a hygienist? How many treatment rooms do you equip prior to opening? When do you add another room of equipment?
Fear can be destructive. It can keep you from achieving your goals and dreams. It can rob you of your high-income-producing years, the time when socking money into your retirement fund is most important.
A fraction of the money you will save in avoiding costly mistakes and wasted time in your first year of practice will pay our consulting fee. The decision to hire our firm is not one involving thousands of dollars; it’s a decision that can mean millions over the life of your career in dentistry.
Don’t let fear keep you from realizing your potential and dreams!
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