Dental Entrepreneur Woman - Autumn 2020

Autumn 2020

Are Your Boots Made for Walking… Pivoting?

My Story About a Stroke of Luck JoAn Majors, RDA, CSP®

Ending the Silence Ronni Brown, DDS, MPH

Running My Own Whistle Stop Cafe: On Women Empowerment, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Times of COVID Cathy Hung, DDS, FAAOMS

Fired Up and Ready to Grow...

Embracing the Entrepreneurial Ride Lauren Gueits, BS, RDH

The Power Behind Your Calling Joanna Scott

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Autumn 2020 Editor and Publisher Anne M. Duffy, RDH Associate Publisher Rebecca Paciorek Assistant Editors Michael Duffy JoAnn Schutte Susan Beatty Creative Consultant Beth Linesch Design and Layout Brian Rummel Production [CURAtive] James B. Kennedy Reilly Williams Autumn Contributors Dr. Aaleeyah Alim Dr. Ronni Brown Jamie Dooley Beth Gaddis Lauren Gueits Dr. Cathy Hung JoAn Majors Joanna Scott Social Media Blue Dot Digital Marketing Web Management My Dental Agency Charter Sponsors A-dec Crest Mary Fisher-Day Editorial Office 12233 Pine Valley Club Dr Charlotte, NC 28277 704-953-0261 Fax 704-847-3315 anneduffy@dew.life Send materials to: DeW Life Magazine 8334 Pineville Matthews Rd Ste. 103-201 Charlotte, NC 28226 Guidelines go to dew.life

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Inspired Hygiene Patterson D5 Patterson Fuse Shofu Advisory Board Emeritus Linda Miles Advisors to the Board Victoria Peterson Katherine Eitel-Belt Board Dr. Meghna Dassani Cris Duval Vanessa Emerson Dr. Hazel Glasper Jasmin Haley Janice Hurley Suzanne Kump Tonya Lanthier Dr. Laura Mach JoAn Majors Rachel Mele Lorie Streeter Rachel Wall Junior Board Dr. Shakila Angadi Christie Bailey Dr. Erinne Kennedy Minal Sampat

Seriously, you all, how are you DeWing? I for one am coming out of the fetal position having made the hard decision to go 100-percent virtual for our second-annual DeW Life retreat. In our inaugural retreat, we gathered 100 brilliant women in dentistry in one room to listen, learn and connect. Fast-forward to today, and we’re going to find out how to capture that same spirit during the most trying pandemic of our lifetimes.

Ten months into this, we are still vulnerable to contracting and spreading the virus in large groups. After much reflection and meditation, I couldn’t bring myself to accept that even one person would come down with COVID-19 at this incredible event.

Here we are preparing for the most amazing virtual women’s retreat ever orchestrated. I’m confident we’ll accomplish our goal of highlighting, inspiring, empowering and connecting whoever attends. With your commitment and engagement, we will DeW it.

Our beloved wordsmith, JoAn Majors, will kick us off with her heartfelt story of coming back from a life-altering event. She is one of our keynote speakers, and I’m proud to feature her on the cover of this edition. As she mentions in her article, “ Man Plans, and God Laughs.” The last year has been so difficult for a lot of us, but we can overcome by working together.

You will see another theme in this edition thanks to our amazing authors: the theme of living your life on purpose for a greater purpose. How do you find your purpose... your calling? We’d like to help guide your way here in DeW Life. If you read it cover-to-cover, I’d recommend taking notes with a highlighter at the ready.

You are destined for great things to come. Remember that DeWs don’t retire.

Keep discovering who you are and what you are meant to DeW. But back to the retreat: It’s genuinely all about you... about your growth as a female professional in dentistry, looking to carve out your place in our challenging but rewarding business.

Joanna Scott is one DeW who described a few tools she used in finding her calling. She realized her unique strengths, her gifts, and leaned in hard to better inform how she deals with others and can find success. SO, we want you to find your strengths, too. It’s the cornerstone of our message and will help you get the most out of our retreat.

I’m offering a strength assessment with your RSVP to the retreat. If you do join us, you’ll get a pretty sweet swag box in return, and you can not only unpack it with your fellow women in dentistry, but you’ll also unpack your powers with the Gallup coaches (a.k.a. Strength Savvy pros) to really flourish.

The two-day DeW 2020 Retreat will be something you’ll never forget. With A-list speakers and countless networking opportunities, I hope you will join us on Nov. 12 and 13 to add to the voices we already have in our vast network. I can’t wait to see you there. Because even if we are connecting through our screens, the connection is still so real.

All the best,

Anne M. Duffy

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Contents

AUTUMN 2020 6

Are Your Boots Made For Walking… Pivoting?

My Story About a Stroke of Luck

26

JoAn Majors, RDA, CSP®

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Beth Gaddis

Ending the Silence: Can We DeW Better?

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The Power of One Thing

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Fired Up and Ready to Grow...

Embracing the Entrepreneurial Ride

Ronni Brown, DDS, MPH

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3 Ways to Wow Your Patients Before They Ever Enter Your practice

Please Meet Dr. Aaleeyah Alim Lucas Shapiro, dds

Jamie Dooley, RDH, BIS, CLBC

Lauren Gueits, BS, RDH

Running My Own Whistle Stop Cafe: On Women Empowerment, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Times of COVID

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The Power Behind Your Calling Joanna Scott

Cathy Hung, DDS, FAAOMS DeWers

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Success 22

WWW 10

Living Your Strengths 28

DeW Dish 12

DeWERS

ARE YOUR BOOTS MADE FOR WALKING… PIVOTING? MY STORY ABOUT A STROKE OF LUCK

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’m from Texas so I couldn’t resist the boots, and at one time, this was a keynote I offered (less the pivot), so it made sense. In fact, for years, my blogs, articles and communication have ended with the phrase “see you on the road.” The road has been rocky at times, but I learned this year not to take work so seriously. That keynote I mentioned was about the strength to walk away and seems ironic now. Maybe you’d walk away because whatever “it” is isn’t healthy (emotionally, physically, financially or spiritually) in the short or long term. It seems many of us get so caught up in what others will perceive. We often think it means “quit.” I challenge you to consider walking away from anything as a beginning or an opportunity for what’s next.

I was scheduled to speak at the DeW retreat last November. God had other plans. On Friday, November 1st, in the ER with the stroke team, I just kept repeating, “I have to get on a plane Monday. I have to speak in Phoenix on Tuesday. You don’t understand. I committed. I need to call the client as soon as possible. People are expecting me.” After all, I’m serious about the work I do. As my face drooped and my body had a total deficit on my right side, I was going to take control of this situation. That’s what a professional speaker does; we talk it out. I trained to control the situation, and everything happening in the seminar room becomes part of the program. We plan, God laughs! (Anne Duffy says this, and it’s true.) Long

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By JoAn Majors, RDA, CSP®

before COVID-19 would wreak havoc on the speaking business worldwide, I began to pivot.

My mother suffered a massive stroke at 30 and was told she would never walk, talk, write or speak again; a remarkable woman who battled for, and believed in, her future until the day God won the battle with cancer and showed her the road home. Told to terminate a pregnancy, she refused. My husband is thankful.

The youngest of 7, my older siblings shared stories.

They said she dressed to the nines, had beautiful penmanship, and loved to water ski and dance. I knew a mom who would sometimes struggle with simple tasks but had unshakeable faith. Partially paralyzed on her right side, my beautiful Mexican mother spoke in broken English and exuded love. She prepared three full meals a day, sewed our clothing, and regularly drove us to cheer, dance and church. A stroke broke her speech but not her spirit! She was an intentional and exceptional communicator. This inspired everyone who met her!

The stroke seems a significant setback and certainly enough to put a story around. For me, it’s been another rocky road. “It’s a long and winding road, that leads me back to you.” Hearing this Beatles tune, I think of God. When I’m in the trials and challenges of life, feeling sad or alone, whether business or personal, I work

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I was scheduled to speak at the DeW retreat last November. God had other plans.

to stay on the road that leads me back to Him. Even if it means I walk away or pivot to a different path. Consider how you’ve managed to pivot with everything happening.

Our budgets have been beaten to Hell! Some of you are home-schooling children and trying to keep your career going. Look deep inside at your strength because it’s there. He’s there too. Ancient men went to the mountain to meet God and pray. Well, ladies, listen up; God meets us right where we are, and He always has! He meets us in all our “labor,” whether in the kitchen, at the desk or on a drive.

peace and direction. Once you get past the storm, look in your rearview mirror, and you’ll see clearly what He wants you to see."

He met me bedside, July 2019, as I prayed my son would recover. Talk about a pivot. I went from preparing for a 25th-anniversary celebration and beach trip to a ridiculously expensive ticket to Rapid City, SD. JC had become seriously ill on the road for work. He needed surgery, had a high fever and was septic when I arrived.

Talk about disappointing. We worked so hard, planned so well I even managed to get back into my wedding dress.

(I should probably mention that was before my COVID curves!) Somehow this didn’t seem fair. Truth is, we can take it; but mess with a momma’s kids, and she will go to her knees. Guess what; God will meet you there too!

Post-stroke, I’m told to eliminate the stress in my life. LUCK is an acronym for Laboring Under Correct Knowledge. My knowledge following the experience gave me a new vision. I could see that no job, person, perception or problem was worth the stress that could take my life. Only by God’s grace did I have an opportunity to learn this first hand and have the ability to share it in such a magnificent way. My voice is the same, but my message has changed. We never know how being brave about faith will matter, until it does. Thank God for Dr. Michael Spohn who saw our tears, understood our fears, took our hands and boldly asked, “Can I pray for you?"

As he prayed to the mighty physician, I began to release the need to control. Once again, God met me where I was.

Within an hour (without the clot-buster medication), I was fully functional besides a stutter. A second physician said, “The gift is not that you survived the stroke; the gift is that He allowed it to happen. You can’t take your work so seriously.” At that moment, I began the most significant pivot ever.

He recovered and followed up with a local surgeon. As I drove the 1200-mile trek home, I learned our downstairs AC was out, an unexpected $7600.00. Admittedly feeling some self-pity at this point. Some anniversary, why me?

Within no time, the road my mind was on led me back to God. Feeling thankful I wasn’t in Cozumel, unable to get to him. Grateful my business allows me to have a countrywide network, including a special mom who met my son at the ER that night. Our second AC went out the following week, $8600.00, blessed to beat the Texas heat and be able to pay for it. I’ve always said, "When you can’t see in the fog, put both hands on the wheel and pray for

Friends say, "That sounds like a documentary; it’s so unreal." My stoke prepared me for the pandemic and what would follow. Before this pivot, I’d panic to think my speaking schedule would be crushed. I’d collapse at the thought that my son would live in Utah and have two more surgeries this summer, knowing I couldn’t be with him even if I got there. I would’ve crumbled to learn my amazing and talented dentist husband has struggled with severe pain in his thumbs, has no cartilage; and now we navigate what’s next. Pre-stroke, I’d be anxious to think I’d do more behind the scenes than in front of the room. Yet, this pivot allowed me to license my content

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DeWERS

to others for resale or to augment their product, service or technology. It is someone else’s value-add now. Like many of you, I’ve had feelings of disappointment, concern and apprehension. However, I believe God will meet me on the road I am on. He will meet you too!

Creating dental content and connecting others when it is mutually beneficial has always come easy for me.

I have no pride of ownership nor the desire to be the hero. Truth is, I enjoy making “the other guy” look good.

It’s the reason I’m jazzed to emcee events: I’m giving people a glowing “personal” introduction, and they feel like a superstar when they hit the stage. Being behind the scenes watching a video or written content I create benefit another business (and ultimately a practice or patient) gives me genuine pleasure! It’s what I do. I’m still in the trenches weekly, so it’s not a stretch for me to try the content or system I create. Helping to give clarity or solving a pain point in the dental world is something I understand. Thanks to some special friends for seeing this long before I did.

Today, I work with companies that have a product or service and need their message to truly resonate with the dental buyer or end user; companies that need integrations, custom software or marketing services.

I’m also helping other speakers and trainers get their content online, which benefits them and doesn’t break their bank. I love my work again. The best part of being

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on the road less is time with Chuck, our kids and those six grandkids! All this helps me realize that God’s plans are more significant than mine and more likely to come true. Life changes, and these moments are a part of our path. Don’t miss an opportunity to be where He wants you because you’re waiting for an answer you think He should give you. Remember, the battle for your mind starts between your ears. Don’t be so hard on yourself or take your work so seriously. Time isn’t as long as it used to be, and isn’t as short as it’s going to be!

My PIVOT POINTS to share: Be PURPOSEFUL in your work and the path you choose.

Whatever it is for you, IT should bring you great joy most days, and then many won’t feel like work.

You will see it VIVIDLY when He reveals it, and not a moment before.

Don’t get so caught up in what someone might perceive is happening with your change that you miss the OPPORTUNITY it brings.

TAKE the time to smell the flowers, love your family and pray that love wins!

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DeWERS As I finish this story, we’re packing our RV to head for Utah to see our son and dental colleagues. Maybe, I’ll "see you on the road!"

About the author: JoAn Majors, RDA, CSP®,works with organizations that want to improve predictability, profitability, and PASSION! She earned the highest designation for a professional speaker, Certified Speaking Professional with the National Speakers Association, and is also a member of GSN, SCN, AADOM ASCA, DSI, and ADIA. Published in over 25 magazines and newsletters, she has also written four books. Her first book on implant dentistry has trained thousands of implant teams. Her platform voice and writing voice are unique to her storytelling style.

JoAn knows the dental industry because she comes from it, and her rich career spans over three decades in multiple positions and organizations.

PACE provider. Following COVID industry changes, she provides content and messaging that resonates with doctors and teams for multiple organizations as VP of Education for DrDDS. Besides licensing her content to companies that offer products, services, or technology for practices, she is the content curator for CAMBEO. Finally, JoAn still spends time weekly in her husband’s practice as the Comprehensive Care Coordinator and is the creator and co-host of SpouseTales podcast. To learn more, visit: www.joanmajors.com

She is a content creation specialist and co-founder of The Soft Skills Institute, a Nationally recognized AGD

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WHO, WEAR, WHEN

Good DeWs Find Good DeWs

DeW

DATES

Here are some upcoming events we will be attending.

Let's meet up, DeW Crew!

Dental Impact Summit Rescheduled for Spring 2021 Lake Rabon, GA dentalimpact@dentalpost.com

Smiles at Sea Rescheduled Miami, FL SmilesAtSea.com

DeW Retreat November 12-13, 2020 Charlotte, NC www.dew.life

DeW PJ Parties ... to be announced

DeW Dish

Cris Duval

www.crisduval.com

How do you measure your success?

I strive to be better every day than I was the day before.

If I can do that, I consider myself successful.

What obstacles have you overcome in your career?

Specifically, I overcame burnout! I grew out of burnout.

I don’t believe that I would be where is am today if I had not had the experience. When you hit rock bottom— the only way out is up! Also, I learned to stop being an “expectation whore:” that I was going to be upset or sad if events didn’t turn out the way I expected them to. I overcame the obstacle of thinking that I couldn’t change my approach to how I took care of patients. I shifted my thinking, my message and my clinical habits from repairing the damage to preparing patients for health.

What obstacles have you overcome in your life?

My attachment of meaning to events... nothing in life has any meaning except the meaning that I choose to attach to it.

What is the best part of your job?

Being of service to others, helping patients get what they want. We practice “wants” dentistry.

What ignites your sense of injustice?

Abuse of every kind!

Who has been the most influential woman in your life?

My mum! She has taught me the most about resilience, which is the ability to bounce back and continue with life in the midst of adversity and trauma. She was abandoned by her parents at age 2. They got a divorce and neither of them could stand the site of her because she reminded them of each other. Her mother adopted a little girl just the same age as my mom. She wanted a daughter, just not my mom. 2 of her sons died at age 9 and 13 in separate childhood accidents. My dad died at age 46. Geriatric physicians say that resilience is the main determining factor in how long you live. My mom just passed away December 2019 at age 100 +3 months. She had great abilities of understanding others and their challenges in life.

What do you do to turn around a bad day?

I turn around a bad day with gratitude. Realizing how blessed that I am makes the shift for me. And realizing, in most cases, things could be worse.

What advice do you have for the new person in your office?

Always put the patient first, team second and then yourself. Do not listen to gossip or subgrouping. With gossiping, it is the listener who is the problem. If no one listens, the gossiper has no one to talk to.

What “DeW” leaders do?

Lead their vision with their heart, with kindness and with a spirit of service.

What is your favorite place on earth?

I really enjoy Hawaii and have been there many times. I chose to work on staying in the moment and being conscious with my thinking. In doing that I find happiness wherever I am, and I don’t have a longing to be somewhere else.

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Vanessa emerson www.thedentalspeaker.com

to help find good homes for these cats. I am proud of my work as cat advocate. One of my lifetime goals is to help establish and run an outdoor cat sanctuary in the Phoenix area where we can help hundreds of cats at a time to find shelter and their furever homes.

What famous person living or dead would you like to have lunch with and what would you ask them?

I’d love to spend time with Jason Mraz and Sara Bareilles.

I love their music and their vibes. It would be delicious to sit in their presence with no expectations and allow what will unfold to “be."

What is the best gift you ever received?

When my children were small, we read a book before bed each night. We had many favorite stories and authors. My son, Mike, was an avid reader. After he was grown and gone, he gave me a hardback copy of "Love You Forever" for my birthday with a special inscription inside. To this day, the thought of it takes me back to those very special moments reading a bedtime story to my two most favorite little people. I’ll love them forever. I’ll like them for always.

Forever and ever, their mother I’ll be.

What is the best part of your job?

My favorite work-related activity is providing business advisory services to dental speakers who want to grow their businesses. Helping a dental speaker develop a diverse, robust, business back-end and achieve greater career success as a result of our advisory sessions brings me great satisfaction and personal joy.

What do you do to turn around a bad day?

What is your motto?

My motto is: “Life is Good. All is well.” I am a glass half-full person. I can see that my life gets better and better the more I focus on gratitude, giving and what I want (vs. what I don’t want).

Obstacle or opportunity? I believe that everything that happens in life can serve our growth. And there is always a silver lining.

Share something about you that someone would never guess?

Meditate! Or call my daughter, Jen, on Facebook Instant Messenger and play with the filters while we talk. It always About 20 years ago, I earned a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. makes us giggle. I love spending time with her!

My husband and children also earned their black belts at that time. It was a wonderful experience and a powerful What is your guilty pleasure? bond builder for our family.

My guilty pleasure is collecting cats! Well, cat rescue, actually. In 2011, we brought our first community cat home. He was 5 months old and living on his own. Since that time, my husband, Jeff, and I have trap/neuter/returned, adopted out, and (my personal favorite) foster-failed 55 cats from our community. We operate a cat sanctuary in our home and also work with a few Phoenix area rescues

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What is your favorite indoor/outdoor activity?

I rise before dawn every morning to take in the sunrise as I walk for several miles. The solitude with nature (both foliage and animals) sets the tone for my day and always feels like a blessing.

karen thomas

www.holisticdigestivesolutions.com

through it all.

What really blew my mind was being diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, Hashimoto’s, Major Depressive Disorder, Adrenal Fatigue and more, all at the same time. Pills were being thrown at me from all directions, yet, deep inside I knew there was a way out which did not include a list of prescription medications.

In my darkest moment, I realized, “God has a purpose and a plan for me, and it isn’t a life of illness.”

This is when I took over my own care. I fired everyone, started reading and began my journey back to health.

Using food as medicine and a new education in nutrition, I’ve now regained my life, 100%.

Now eight years after taking back responsibility for my health, I am a Functional Medicine Nutritionist, Dental Hygienist and the CEO and Founder of Holistic Digestive Solutions. I now help others find their root causes of illness.

What is your guilty pleasure?

My training has honed and sharpened my detective skills. Nothing makes me happier than when I receive Mint chocolate chip ice cream and frozen lime margarita. the blessing of finding the puzzle pieces others have Yes, even nutritionists cheat once in a while. overlooked. This is what I was born to do.

What is the best gift you ever received? Who has been the most influential woman in your life?

The best gift I ever received is my husband. Truly, I don’t deserve him. He is the best thing to ever happen to me. He rarely complains and has supported me throughout my 10-year battle with illness and into my newfound love for functional medicine. I’m grateful for all his support. Left to my own, I could have never picked someone as kind, loving and supportive as he is. My mom says she prayed him in.

What obstacles have you overcome in your life?

The past 10 years have been the most difficult—the last 6 years focused on recovering. Losing my stepfather, my house fire and rebuilding, my husband fighting to survive in ICU for 3 months, the death of my mother-in-law and then changes in my own health; it all took the breath out of my sails.

The most influential woman in my life is my mom. My mom is an incredible woman with a fighting spirit I have inherited. When my dad died, he had forgotten to pay the life insurance policy and the mortgage on our house. In 13 days, my mom pulled it together and saved our house and changed our future forever. I don’t know how she did it. Her perseverance taught me essential life skills.

What is your favorite place on earth?

My favorite place on earth is Aruba. For over 30 years, my dad and mom owned a timeshare in Aruba. I’ve had the pleasure of going since I was in my early 20s. I wrote my first book there because it’s the place where I can completely rest and think—without a phone or computer distracting me.

Those first two years of tremendous stress left me lifeless The beach there is the most beautiful I have ever seen. with no will to live—the darkest days of my entire life. This is the place I go to unwind and reconnect with my Wanting to commit suicide due to my own failing health, husband and my mom.

I realized only I could make the changes needed to get

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DeWERS

ENDING THE SILENCE: CAN WE DEW BETTER? By Ronni Brown, DDS, MPH

H

ave you ever heard that gentle whisper in your head, when you walk into the operatory and realize that your patient is high? Maybe it’s the alcohol that you smell on your patient’s breath or the constricted pupils suggestive of opioid abuse or even the sweaty forehead and jerky movements that occur with methamphetamine abuse. Despite these tell-tale clues and even despite the oath to which we all vowed to adhere, “Do no harm," that gentle voice whispers us into submission. It might be the whisper that tells us “You’re reading the clues wrong” or “It probably was just a little bit of alcohol” or “Just treat him quickly and get him out of the office” or even “He’ll be OK if you use an anesthetic without epinephrine.” These gentle whispers convince us, even coax us, to proceed with care, ignore the clues and avoid, at all costs, discussing substance abuse with our patients. What is it about addiction that creates silence? Can we DeW better for our patients?

The silence of addiction stems from general misconceptions about what addiction is, who addiction affects and whether we have patients in our practices who are addicted. Addiction is a chronic, relapsing brain disorder affecting more than 23.5 million Americans or roughly 1 out of every 10 of us! It is a disease with genetic, environmental and biologic factors that creates permanent neurochemical changes. These changes alter the individual’s responses to rewards, stress, judgment and self-control.1 Addiction is not a “bad choice” or a “character flaw” but is instead a disease that is more common than cancer.2 Anyone can become addicted regardless of their age, gender, race, culture, income, educational attainment or family status! This means that we all have a shared vulnerability for addiction. Any one of us can become addicted, which is a disturbing reality. Equally disturbing is the reality that we all know

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someone who is addicted (remember, 1 out of every 10 Americans are addicted). It might be a family member, a friend, a colleague or one of our patients. It is this vulnerability and even connection to addiction that creates silence when we encounter it in our practices.

It might be silence due to the pain of having a loved one addicted, which has created emotional exhaustion and a desire to deny its existence in our practices. It might be silence due to disappointments experienced when a friend relapses, making it a disappointment we wish to avoid at work. It might even be silence due to feelings of helplessness and not knowing how to help a patient who is addicted. These emotional reactions create silence when an addicted patient walks into our practice. Can we DeW better for our patients?

What further strengthens the silence is our uncertainty about how our patients will react if we discuss the smell of alcohol on their breath, the track marks on their arms or the “meth mouth” on their teeth. Will they get angry, feel judged or even leave a negative Yelp review? Can we DeW better for our patients? The answer is "Yes!" Talking to your patients about addiction does not need to be difficult. It just takes a bit of practice, a few tips and clear goals. The goals of these discussions are to obtain information that allows you to “do no harm,” “do good” and “be ethical.” The principle of non-maleficence means abstaining from doing harm.3 We want to dispel those gentle whispers in our head so that we do not ignore the clues of addiction in our patients and possibly create harmful and lifethreatening situations. Discussing our concerns allows us to re-schedule a patient who is intoxicated, avoid a fatal anesthetic/drug interaction and prescribe

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non-addictive medications to these patients. The principle of beneficence means that these conversations can assist us in developing treatment plans that can be successful for patients with substance use disorders.

We can incorporate into our treatment plans topical fluorides, glass ionomer restoratives, salivary substitutes and frequent recall visits to combat the high caries rates, xerostomia, salivary acidity and poor oral hygiene that occurs with substance abuse. These conversations can interrupt the cycle of poor oral health and help us deliver high-quality and sustainable oral care to our patients.

Finally, these conversations allow us to uphold our ethical responsibility of directing our patients to recovery and rehabilitative resources in our communities. Having these goals in mind allows us to DeW better for our patients.

The challenge, of course, is to know what to say and how to say it! We do not want our emotions of denial, shame or helplessness to hinder our conversations; and we also do not want our patients to feel judged, accused or even criticized. This requires that we first manage our own emotional reactions to addiction and address addiction with objectivity and neutrality. I imagine that when you ask a patient if he has high blood pressure that this conversation does not create any angst for you.

When you talk to a patient about addiction, you need to maintain that same level of objectivity because addiction, like hypertension, is a disease. Remembering the disease model of addiction allows you to approach the conversation with objectivity and concern and not dread and denial. The next step is to manage your patient’s perception of why you are asking these questions. It is

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important to share with your patient your goals of doing no harm, doing good and being helpful. This can reassure the patient and re-frame the conversation from one that could be viewed as accusatory to one that is viewed as helpful as you share your desire to help your patient achieve a beautiful and healthy smile. Some phrases that I have found helpful are: “You indicated on the health history form that you have had a history of substance abuse. Can you tell me a little more about that?”

“I am concerned about you, and I smell alcohol on your breath. Are you OK? Can you tell me what is going on?”

Can you tell me about your methamphetamine use this week?

In what ways are you concerned about your drug use?

What changes, if any, have you noticed in your mouth since using drugs?

These questions are open-ended and require that the patient respond with an explanation or narrative. Openended questions allow you to understand the patient’s motivations, actions and challenges and allow the patient to feel understood and heard. Closed-ended questions, on the other hand, should be avoided. They force the patient to reply with a yes or no response and can make the patient feel judged, accused and defensive.

Having neutral and positive conversations with our patients allow us to DeW better.

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DeWERS

We're Going Digital!

As a member of The DeW Life Crew you have so many benefits: • Receive and download the magazines before anyone else gets to see them.

• Complimentary subscription to the “Dental Entrepreneur” digital magazine.

• Connect through the digital magazine via links and videos INSIDE the digital magazine.

• Opportunities to write and be published via our blog or magazines.

• Invitations to members-only events...

INCLUDING OUR RETREAT. • The private Facebook group for meeting, connecting and learning.

• The chance to be a part of an amazing group of women (and men) working to RAISE WOMEN in the dental industry.

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Talking to my patients about substance abuse has ended my own silence about the topic. It has stopped those gentle whispers in my head and prevented me from ignoring important clues or proceeding with careless and potentially fatal treatment. These conversations also gave my patients the opportunity to share their challenges, hopes and dreams with me. What they shared with me at times was heartbreaking and at other times inspiring. I remember when a patient told me that he had been addicted to methamphetamine since the age of 5 as well as the patient who cried in the dental chair realizing her parents’ worries and anguish. But I also remember the time when I high-fived my patient who was celebrating her 30th day of sobriety. Stopping the silence has allowed me to be a better dentist to my patients and fully realize my professional responsibilities of nonmaleficence, beneficence and referral. I also realized that when I stopped my silence, I also stopped my patients' silence! Let’s all start DeWing Better!

References: 1. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drugs, brains, and behavior: The science of addiction. www.drugabuse. gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-scienceaddiction. Updated September 2018. Accessed: 2020-06-09.

2. Smith F. How science is unlocking the secrets of addiction. National Geographic 2017: 232(3).

3. Wikipedia contributors. Primum non nocere. https:// en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Primum_non_ nocere&oldid=953382803. Updated April 2020.

Accessed: 2020-06-09.

About the author: Dr. Ronni Brown is a dentist, researcher, speaker and author who bridges the gap between dentistry, public health and substance abuse. Her work treating patients with “meth mouth” at a medium-security jail, research on the oral effects of methamphetamine and courses at the world’s top dental conferences position her as a leading expert on “meth mouth.” She is the best-selling author of "A State of Decay: Your Dental Guide to Understanding and Treating 'Meth Mouth.'” When not treating, speaking or writing, Ronni can be found hiking, baking and visiting zoos across the world.

To book Dr. Brown for your next speaking event, visit www.DrRonniBrown.com Her #1 Best-selling book, "A State of Decay, Your Dental Guide to Understanding and Treating 'Meth Mouth'" can be purchased on Amazon. Follow Dr. Brown at #astateofdecaybook

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DeWERS

PLEASE MEET DR. AALEEYAH ALIM Interviewed by Luke Shapiro, DDS

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he is the creator of Tooth Tuesdays on IGTV that gets thousands of views each week. She’s from Miami, attended University of North Florida for college and then Midwestern University in Illinois for dental school.

She graduated this year and will start work August 1st in Chicago through the National Health Service Core.

So how does one become a dental influencer? It’s not an easy task by any means – requiring hours upon hours of hard work and dedication. For Dr. Alim, known as @smile.leey, it wasn’t her goal at the beginning. She started Instagram as a personal account, initially posting about food and life. She was then accepted into dental school and started posting about that. “I then slowly started to see a rise in followers, and it was interesting because I wasn’t trying to be a dental influencer in any shape or form,” she said. But then around the third year of dental school, when things started to slow down (relatively, because it was after having finished boards), she started spending more time on Instagram to build something and saw what it could become. Dr. Alim believed it could be a real source of inspiration, especially for people who could identify with her – anyone who is Black, a woman or a visibly religious minority. She said, “There would be moments when I would think about not posting on Instagram, but then I would get inspiring messages. That’s what kept me going.”

Her account now has over 13.5K followers. She has worked with major players in the industry, such as Pronamel and FIGs. Her most popular content is Tooth Tuesdays, which started in February 2019. It started from a conversation with a friend – a bright, educated, grown woman who doesn’t floss, let alone even own floss. After that conversation, it dawned on her that there are so

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many intelligent people that don’t know key things about oral health. From there, she started a weekly video about flossing, mouthwash, Invisalign vs. braces, etc. Most recently, she had a Tooth Tuesday video entitled “We Need You.” It garnered over 27,000 views, as she recounted her experience with racism while also stressing the importance of having Black providers in medicine. “It’s very important that as providers we check our biases – like why don’t you believe a patient when they say something?” she said. “That extra step can help you discover and see where those feelings come from.”

Dr. Alim is very excited to enter public health dentistry and help a community that needs it the most. Unlike Instagram, public health doesn’t get a lot of glitz and glamour. A lot of it is the bare bones of dentistry. She encourages providers to give a day or week or whatever possible to help these communities.

About the author: Luke Shapiro, DDS, received his undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis with a major in Spanish. He then went to dental school at Stony Brook and graduated in May 2018. He is now an orthodontics resident at Tufts in Boston.

In dental school, Luke did research, focusing on 3D imaging, with his most recent project on the application of iPad 3D imaging technology. He was also very involved in the aesthetics club and ASDA. Luke is the leader of the dental student section of IgniteDDS. He is also the founder of @futuredentists Lucas.shapiro@ignitedds.com

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“There would be moments when I would think about not posting on Instagram, but then I would get inspiring messages. That’s what kept me going.”

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SUCCESS

RUNNING MY OWN WHISTLE STOP CAFE: ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN THE TIMES OF COVID

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his morning I picked several green tomatoes from my backyard. They were firm and drenched in morning dew. I would later slice them, soak them in buttermilk, season them with salt, pepper and paprika, coat them in a cornmeal-flour mix, and deep fry them. I would imagine sinking my teeth slowly into these tomato slices at dinner and sighing in satisfaction much like Ninny did in the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes.”

The year the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes” was aired was the year I came to the US as a foreign student attending freshman year in college. Still learning English, I was intrigued by this dish unknown to me. I was also fascinated by the southern accents, the juxtaposed plots of past and present stories describing domestic abuse, motherhood, racism and love shared between the samesex lifelong friends, and women empowerment. I didn’t quite comprehend everything in the movie with my thenlimited English, but as I gradually learned how to cook over a span of the next thirty years, there was an onagain, off-again nagging itch to learn how to make fried green tomatoes. My wishes were fulfilled when my firstgeneration Italian husband decided to grow tomatoes in the backyard. For the first time, I attempted making fried green tomatoes in my own kitchen. My husband questioned me why I picked them green, gave me a bizarre look and said, “We don’t eat tomatoes this way.”

After all, neither of us was from the south.

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By Cathy Hung, DDS, FAAOMS

Just a few weeks ago, the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes” came on TV. I solemnly watched and wept quietly as I soaked myself in like the green tomato slices in buttermilk. I was completely overtaken by the power of womanhood portrayed in this movie. It was at that moment that I understood why I was hung up on the fried green tomatoes.

Throughout my life, I’ve been uprooted and replanted several times across continents either by choice or chance. As life progressed, I went from being a student to a resident to an associate and eventually a practice owner. I also became a mother of two boys. In the long process of becoming assimilated as becoming “American,” I’ve experienced racism and sexism choosing a career path that is “less traveled by”: oral and maxillofacial surgery. Stereotyping and marginalization happened more than I would ever wish for as an immigrant: I’ve been yelled at by an immigration official to go back to my country; I’ve been called “Chink” by patients from the ‘hood of South Bronx, New York during my surgical residency; I’ve been assumed as a passive Geisha type that has no voice of my own while I was still languagedeficient; I’ve been ridiculed and excluded from the “guys” during my surgical training; I’ve been told many times by my patients that I look too young; I probably have lost many patients to my male oral surgeon

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Success

"I was completely overtaken by the power of womanhood portrayed in this movie. It was at that moment that I understood why I was hung up on the fried green tomatoes."

in communication and the need for translation. Then, I envision myself being the owner of Whistle Stop Cafe, offering them a piece of my best pie. In my town, there are also many very old elderlies who would need medical clearances before their oral surgery procedures. Many elderly patients are appreciative, knowing that my office will take care of everything for them so that they don’t have to hop offices. I’d like to think that we could possibly offer the best BBQ in town in our own Whistle Stop Cafe.

colleagues because I don’t look the part. There were many moments where I felt like Evelyn in that parking lot scene of the movie where she was provoked for no reason, her grocery bags broke and everything fell out on the ground.

My current oral surgery practice is in a diverse area of New Jersey. The state of New Jersey is one of the most diverse states in America, with a large number of first-generation immigrants from all over the world. In my daily practice, I see patients with family members accompanying them to aid in translation of different languages. The most common second language spoken in the state of New Jersey other than English and Spanish is Gujarati, an Indian language. In my area, I find Southeast Asians, Middleasterners, Asians, Italians, Egyptians, Russians and Polish. When someone whose English is not proficient comes through my door, I somehow see my younger self. I see how they can be brushed off and possibly ridiculed because of their accent or the way they dress or act. I see how one could talk over them, leaving them defenseless. The lack of sophisticated English language skills can easily put these patients at a disadvantage while they navigate through a less-familar American healthcare system. I see how these patients could be turned away because of the inconvenience posed to providers with longer time

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During the first month of COVID shutdown, I went into a local supermarket to get some groceries. I accidentally walked into an aisle against the one-way arrow. An older woman stopped me and immediately cussed me out with the "F" word, shouting, “I don’t know if you are infected!”

Since the beginning of the COVID outbreak, many Asian Americans have experienced verbal or physical attacks due to the unfortunate birth of the term “China Virus.”

Many Asian Americans were told to “Go back to China,” whether they are from China or not. Recently, a British tech CEO, Michal Lofthouse, was caught on camera berating an Asian family celebrating a birthday in a restaurant. Although he apologized after the fact and resigned, he later openly expressed on social media that he was forced to apologize and that his opinions stayed the same towards Asians. Biases and racial discrimination clearly still exist. For us who serve in a healthcare profession, what can we do in these sensitive times to bridge the gaps and play the roles of facilitators to promote more inclusion? Can our practices be like Whistle Stop Cafe: a safe harbor for people of different races and origin, different income level (or the lack of), different sexual orientation or even ones with difficult personality to coexist in peace? How can I ease their pain that I once experienced?

Dental and medical professions are becoming femaletrending. Our nation is becoming more racially diverse

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Success by the day, with more interracial marriages and an aging population; it has never been a more important time for healthcare professionals to educate ourselves about diversity and inclusion. Our children and grandchildren will grow up in an evermore colorful world where knowledge about others different from your own would no longer be an option but a necessity. There are a few ways to embrace other cultures on a personal and professional level: read up about other cultures, experience cultural fairs and extend friendships to some outside of your comfort zone.

I hope that when travel becomes more permissible in the near future, we can once again experience the world firsthand by learning about other cultural customs.

In the Facebook group that I moderate, “The Talented Dentists,” we have members from all over the world.

Regardless of culture or religion, food blogs remain to be most popular. Food always seems to bond people together and generate conversations. Compared to thirty years ago, America has become more tolerant and educated about cultures other than the mainstream. For example, sushi has come a long way. When the concept of sushi first landed in America in the 1960s, many people scorned

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the idea of eating raw fish as being unsanitary, barbaric or just gross. After years of permeating American culture and the success of certain adaptations of Americanized versions of sushi such as California roll or spicy tuna roll, America has welcomed sushi into its food emporium next to its Italian cousin, pizza. Now, eating sushi has become a chic and hip choice. As cultural holidays are being celebrated, ethnic food is brought to the table.

Many times, I encourage office staff members to bring different types of food as we celebrate our different holidays. It is as fun as it is educational. Other times, I would also try to break the ice with my patients by generating conversations about their culture based on what I know. If I don’t, I ask questions instead of making comments that could potentially be offensive.

Of course, creating inclusion is not as simple as talking about food. Inclusion takes effort to make everyone feel welcome and comfortable. By creating an organically friendly working environment, work efficiency thrives. By training your team members about how to be culturally sensitive to other team members and patients, you will then enjoy a more positive, non-threatening working environment. As the nation’s racial tension is alarmingly high right now, constant, open communication is key to avoid unnecessary conflicts that may stem from communication fallouts.

Fried green tomatoes no doubt represent women empowerment, whether it is defeating racism, sexism, dealing with relationship issues or finding you “umph.” To each our own, we are all unknowingly running our Whistle Stop Cafes because, after all, we are Dental entrepreneur Women.

About the author: Dr. Cathy Hung is a native of Taipei, Taiwan. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from University of California at Berkeley and a Doctor of Dental Surgery from Columbia University.

She received her oral and maxillofacial surgery training from Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the Bronx, New York. She is a board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon and a solo practice owner in New Jersey. She founded Morning Glory Women Network of New Jersey and the Facebook group “The Talented Dentists.” Dr. Hung is an author, speaker and coach on cultural competency for healthcare professionals. Her first book, “Pulling Wisdom: Filling the Gaps in Crosscultural Communications for Healthcare Professionals” is available on Amazon.com. She is currently part of American Dental Association’s Institute for Diversity in Leadership program as a participant, class 2019-2020.

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The DeW Life 2020 Retreat November 12 & 13, 2020

Invite your besties #Goodewsfindgoodews

We are so thrilled to be able to present these amazing and accomplished DeW Extraordinaires as our speakers this year:

Anne Duffy JoAn Majors Valerie Menzel Leanne Burnett Stephanie Baker Dr. Sharon Parsons Dr. Joy Void-Holmes Jennifer Green Lennie Cox Anita Siriani This year our retreat is going all-virtual and those who register for 2020 will have first dibs on our 2021 live event. For info and registration go to www.dewliferetreats.com.

A HUGE Thank you to our sponsors. We couldn't DeW it without you.

SUCCESS

3 WAYS TO WOW YOUR PATIENTS BEFORE THEY EVER ENTER YOUR PRACTICE

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eople are funny. They know they should go to the dentist regularly, yet more than half of Americans don’t take care of their oral health.

That’s why it’s so important to make a great impression when a potential patient finally decides that it’s time to find a dentist. There are three ways you can wow your patients before they ever enter your practice. These are all free, and they are designed to (1) generate the phone call to your practice; (2) generate a booked appointment; and (3) reassure the patient so he or she actually shows up and accepts treatment.

I can tell you that many practice managers groaned when they saw this. It felt like extra work, and weren’t they doing enough by just emailing or texting a link to patients after their appointments?

Here’s the secret: You get better reviews when you ask for them while the patient is still in the office.

Here are the steps:

1.

Teach every member of your team how to review a business. It’s against Google’s policy to review your own place of work, but your team can practice by leaving reviews for their favorite restaurant, hair stylist or local store. Once your team sees how easy it is, they’ll feel more comfortable asking your patients to take the time to write a review.

2.

Only ask happy patients to review your office.

When a patient is beaming because you got them out of pain, restored their smile or removed their braces, that’s the time to ask for a review.

Simply say, “I am so glad that you’re happy!

Would you take a minute to write a Google review for us before you leave? I can show you how to do it right from your phone, and it will only take about a minute. It would mean a lot to us.”

3.

Have the patient take out their phone, and verbally walk the patient through the buttons to push. First, go to Google maps and have the patient type in the name of your practice in the search bar at the top. Google will display a list of companies. Tap the correct one. Have the patient use their finger to scroll up a few times until they see the "Reviews" section.

They’ll see your Google rating, and then they’ll see an area that says "Rate & Review" with five empty stars. They click the fifth star (on the far

Wow Patients with Excellent Google Reviews How do new patients find you? They typically start by Googling “dentist near me.” What commenters say on your Google My Business listing may influence whether they choose to call you or your competitor.

Google reviews can be a double-edged sword for marketing. It seems unhappy people are much more likely to leave a review than happy ones. That’s been especially true during the pandemic. Many service industries are reporting an increase in the number of bad reviews they’re receiving.

Fortunately, there’s an easy way to beat back bad reviews. The key is to bury them by consistently adding a few good reviews from happy patients each week.

When I was the marketing director at a DSO with almost 300 practices, we created a company-wide initiative to increase the number of positive Google reviews.

The goal: add two 5-star reviews for each practice each week.

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By Beth Gaddis

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success right) and that will take them to the next area where they can add their comment. This is important! Have them write a sentence or two about their experience and then click "Post."

That’s it! The key is to make sure the happy patient leaves a comment and not just the star rating. Google’s algorithm shows reviews with comments higher than reviews without comments. Plus, the comments are what will attract potential patients who are researching your practice before making the decision to call.

Google’s algorithm also rewards the slow and steady addition of new reviews, which is why you want to add a few each week. It’s more likely to show your practice higher in search results, which can help with new patient acquisition.

There are more benefits to having positive Google reviews each week. First, it makes your team feel good.

We used to share the reviews during morning huddle, and it was a great way to start the day. Second, it helps with hiring. Potential team members are more likely to want to work for a practice with great reviews; and in a tight job market, having great reviews will help you attract highly qualified employees.

Wow Patients on the Phone Your phone is the lifeline for your practice, yet almost 50% of new patient calls don’t end with a scheduled appointment.

Patient Prism has analyzed more than 4 million dental practice phone calls to find out why. It often comes down to a few simple tweaks that can make a big difference in your call conversion success.

First, build rapport with the caller by asking for the caller’s name and using it frequently throughout the conversation. This helps the caller feel like a person and not a number.

Second, keep the focus on the clinical reason for the call.

Many callers jump right into questions about pricing.

Redirect the conversation by saying, “I’d be happy to answer all your questions. Could I get a little more information first? Can you tell me about the problem that you’re having? Is it causing any pain or sensitivity?”

By keeping the patient focused on the clinical need and not on money, you have the opportunity to build value and establish the urgency level. Does the caller have a specific timeline in mind? Has the caller already seen a dentist and is seeking a second opinion? Since the caller has chosen to call you, your team has the chance to wow the patient with your customer service and compassion.

insurance coverage, scheduling and the other obstacles that can stop a potential patient from receiving the care he or she needs. It all comes down to effective phrasing.

Patient Prism offers free resources to help dental practices know what to say on the phone.

Wow Patients with this 2-Minute Technique There’s still one more step on the patient journey before you can impress them with your clinical skills. You need to have them show up for the appointment.

One effective way to reduce no-shows is to have the dentist place a quick two-minute phone call the night before the appointment. By simply saying, “Hi, Mrs. Jones, this is Dr. Smith. I just wanted to take a moment to introduce myself and let you know that I’m looking forward to meeting you tomorrow. We take a lot of pride in providing excellent customer service, and that’s why I wanted to give you a quick call tonight.”

It’s an easy way to wow the patient and start building the relationship. When people like you and trust you, they are more likely to want to do business with you. That not only reduces no-shows but increases case acceptance.

In this crazy time, it’s more important than ever to create a bond with potential patients. People remember how you make them feel. When you make them feel special, when you treat them as a valued guest, when they’ve read the reviews left by other patients who had a great experience with you, then they’re much more likely to choose you over your competitor. And when they’ve come in and been wowed by your in-office patient experience, then they’ll write a new Google review for you too. It becomes a cycle of excellence that will keep your chair full.

About the author: Beth Gaddis is the Vice President of Marketing for Patient Prism, an award-winning call tracking and call coaching company designed to help dental practices turn more callers into booked appointments. It has many free resources for dental practices available at www.

PatientPrism.com. Previously, Beth was the Marketing Director at a DSO with 276 locations and at another DSO with 173 locations. She focused on messaging for new patient acquisition, patient retention, doctor and employee recruiting and team retention. Prior to joining dentistry, Beth was a journalist for 16 years in a variety of roles, including as a TV news producer at the CBS affiliate in Boston.

There are many ways to overcome concerns about cost,

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27

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS

THE POWER OF ONE THING

By Jamie Dooley, RDH, BIS, CLBC

A

s female entrepreneurs, we wear multiple hats.

However, as oral health providers, our brains are wired for biology and dental terminology, not KPI and marketing lingo! If you are anything like me, you’ve got sticky notes and to-do lists a mile high, plus another set of lists that haven’t made it out of your brain yet. We are constantly forced to expand our knowledge and ability to multitask, yet I have found great fulfillment in my ability to focus fully on one thing at a time.

neuroscience and quantum physics.

Turns out we can actually get addicted to emotions the same way we get addicted to seemingly innocent social media and red wine. We aren’t overwhelmed because we have so much to do; we are addicted to the stress hormones that make us feel overwhelmed to the point that we look for more to do when we don’t feel overwhelmed. It was a HUGE, eye-opening moment in my life!

I’m guilty of having a YouTube video playing on my TV about building the perfect pipeline while writing a blog on my laptop, alternating between checking one of my six emails on my phone and toggling over to Facebook to catch up on my notifications... all while drinking my first cup of coffee and doing a few yoga poses first thing in the morning. No wonder I feel stressed and overwhelmed!

The world hadn’t done this to me; I had become accustomed to stress early on as a way to numb the emotions I didn’t want to feel: mine and others. I am intuitive and empathetic, which is sometimes referred to as emotional intelligence, or EQ. Many female healthcare professionals have a high EQ. I was praised for being “helpful” when I was young and knowing what others needed often before they did. I built an identity around I used to call myself a “Multi-tasking Queen.” I was proud doing as a way of feeling worth. that I could manage my daughter with spina bifida’s 13 different providers, run my home, go back to school for a The cool thing about self-coaching is that once you know bachelor degree and teach Zumba, all while working full- what thought is programming an emotion and outcome time a week as a clinical hygienist. I was 33 and had built you don’t want, it’s pretty easy to flip it and program what my worth around what I did, instead of who I was at the you do want. I call that "The Reverse Principle." heart level. Looking back with a love language of Acts of Service, it makes sense that my worth was wrapped into So if my thought has been “I need to keep pushing so I acts of doing, and that the more I did, the more value I don’t let people down,” I can flip that to the opposite to get believed I had. a new outcome: “I am already enough, so whatever I get done today is enough, and the people who are meant to be Once I started life and business coaching, I was able to in my life will give me grace.” see another side of myself in my clients. They came to me frazzled, confused and burnt out, and they were nearly all Did you feel your shoulders drop when you read that? programmed like me: Type A, people-pleasers fueled by Doesn’t that feel better? Kicking my addiction to caffeine and stress. I wanted to really help them get to the overwhelm has not been easy, but each day I ask myself core of their dissatisfaction with their lives, so I studied a few questions.

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Actually, as I talk about in my book, "Self-Coaching Mastery," my higher self (whom I’ve named Michelle), asks me these questions. Now, when my cells are yelling for that familiar hit of stress, I drop my energy down into my heart and I connect with my higher self. She always calms me and helps me focus. I believe she is the part of me that is directly connected to God.

Increase my revenue

Level up my skill set

Automate my systems

Clarify my message

Three self-coaching questions that can help you identify Target my ideal audience your one thing each day: When you focus on just one thing, you create space for 1) What one thing can I do to better organize myself and a higher level of creativity and efficiency. You may even my space today? have a new flood of ideas that surprises you!

We live in a time of constant information flowing toward us, but all your best answers are within. Take a moment to close your eyes, drop into your heart, and allow your higher self to speak. When you ask this question, the first thing that comes to your mind is correct. It may be outward, “Go to Staples and get color coordinated,” or inward, “Meditate.” Messy surroundings are an outward manifestation of a cluttered mind. Sometimes just closing your eyes and focusing on your breath is enough to recenter you and connect with where to start.

3) What one thing is my priority?

Choosing one big goal to work toward at a time helps us achieve a sense of growth and fulfillment. Big goals take more focus. Don’t try to accomplish more than one at a time; choose a priority.

I am a written goal setter, so I always know what my priority is. In my course on manifesto writing, I teach women my heart dump and STAMP methods to help them hear the whispers of their heart and turn them into tangible action plans with dates and celebrations programmed in. What you want first moves to the top of the list. The bulk of your time, money and energy goes there; and when you achieve it, you know exactly how you are going to celebrate it! You also have a benchmark for decisions.

When I did this exercise recently, I saw a dry erase board that was separated into three sections in my mind.

Since I work in three very different businesses, staying productive means keeping each egg in its own basket to stay organized. Would you believe I found it waiting for me at Home Goods? It was like it was calling to me! Trust your heart to guide you. Your brain is always playing tricks Why bother setting goals if you’ve already moved on to to keep you safe and small, which is the opposite of your new ones and never feel immense pride and joy for them? natural state of constant expansion.

I carve out a full 24 hours each time I check one of my “Ideals” off my manifesto. It has brought so much joy into 2) What is one thing you can do today that will make my life. When other women ask me how I get so much everything else easier or unnecessary? done in a week, the three questions above are the answer.

In his book "The One Thing," Gary Keller (founder of the world’s largest real estate company, Keller Williams) suggests that “Extraordinary focus on One Thing each day is what leads to extraordinary success.”

It can be easy to get lost in daily duties and repetitive tasks, so when I need extraordinary focus, I have a onehour sand timer that my sister gave me for my birthday.

It is bronze and sits on my desk. When I turn that thing upside down it reminds my brain that I am only doing one thing right now, NO DISTRACTIONS!

What is your higher self’s name? Take yourself out on a date and ask her to speak to you. Have a pen and notebook in case she has a message, and grab a pretty sand timer next time you are at Home Goods. Now {Boss Up} and get to work manifesting all you dream of!

About the author:

Jamie Dooley is a certified life and business coach and trusted private coach to some of dentistry’s biggest names. She is the CEO and Head Coach of The Expansion Group (http://bossupandexpand.com), the Curriculum I don’t allow myself to peek at a text that came in, get up Director at Driven Dental Implant Marketing (http:// for food or click on a notification, which is hard when you drivendentalmarketing.com), and the Founding Director work from home and are your own boss. of the National Network of Healthcare Hygienists (http:// healthcarehygienists.org). Connect with her on social That one hour is dedicated to one thing that is helping me media or via her website, http://jamiedooley.com. either:

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29

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS

FIRED UP AND READY TO GROW...

EMBRACING THE ENTREPRENEURIAL RIDE I

s there anything worse than being let go from a job, especially if you didn’t see it coming? If you had this experience, would you say it is equivalent to a sucker punch in the gut, followed by an upper cut to the ego?

In fact, does it even have lingering aftershocks on your self-esteem and sense of judgment? As I am writing this, I am still questioning myself, over two years later, “Am I ready to expose this healed wound to my colleagues?” As if in some way, it is like removing an emotional scab and potentially reopening a Pandora's box of hurt and doubt.

In true DeW-like fashion... here I go. I’m diving in! Don’t worry, this will not be a personal therapy session, rather a triumphal testimonial to the power of intention, perseverance and necessary tools to help you turn an idea, your passion, into a viable business. My goal is for just one person, maybe you, to be inspired by my story and then pay it forward. Are you ready? I SAID ARE YOU READY?! Let’s get FIRED UP!

The first weeks after being “let go” (I still hesitate to say the “F” word. fff... fired) from my corporate job, I decided to take time for self-care. After having 60–80-hour work weeks and traveling 2-3 times per month, I adjusted to a new “time zone,” which was actually having time for myself and my family. I joined a gym to shed both physical and emotional pounds, sculpting the inevitable “corporate butt” gained from sitting at the computer 8-10 hours a day! I highly recommend incorporating a daily exercise routine for two reasons: Not only is it good for the body, mind and soul, it is also visually appealing to have a daily standing appointment in a newly scarce calendar.

A monumental benefit of working out was the ability to listen to podcasts while doing cardio. Whether walking outside, on the treadmill or on the elliptical, I gained

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By Lauren Gueits, BS, RDH

tremendous insights from various thought leaders such as Wayne Dyer, Sara Blakely, Oprah Winfrey and her Super Soul Sunday interviewees. They all had a similar message, an equation if you would: Power of Intention + Perseverance = Abundance. Sounds simple right? It’s like the simple equation of losing weight: reduced calories + exercise = weight loss. Easypeasy, right?

WARNING: Entrepreneurship is not for the lighthearted, though well worth the effort.

Below are 7 Steps that I used firsthand on my journey. I hope this article will help you uncover and execute your inner entrepreneur!

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2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Find Your Passion Practice Blind Faith Be Resourceful Network Persevere/Be Resilient Practice Patience Be Grateful

FIND YOUR PASSION

“Doing what you love is the cornerstone of having abundance in your life.”

- Wayne Dyer dew.life

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS he was a blind old man who had a lot of fortitude. He would keep walking with his trusty cane into dangerous situations and magically be OK. For example, he could walk into a construction site and things would be falling all around him, but he kept walking; it looked like he would fall off a cliff, but beams would appear, preventing him from falling, and he kept walking. He was fearless and triumphant in every episode.

Be like Mr. Magoo. Have “blind faith” – just keep walking.

Many times, we doubt our abilities and ask these internal questions: “Am I capable?” Am I worthy?” “ Am I good enough?” Let’s continue to combat fear with self-affirmations.

Dr. Dyer starts with the challenge of recognizing what we love and then offering the result of abundance. I asked myself the following questions: What do I love? What is my passion? For me, this was the easy part. I love helping dental professionals help their patients improve their airway health. This was the foundation to form my company, Airway Health Solutions.

If you are not sure what your passion is, here are some follow-up questions that may help you uncover your purpose:

1.

2.

What would you do if you couldn’t fail?

What would you do if you won the lottery?

Okay, so now you may have an idea of what your calling is, but how do you get from finding your purpose to having abundance? This is the juicy part! It seems inevitable that fear and doubt may creep in after finding your purpose.

PRACTICE BLIND FAITH “How am I going to do this?” “Why am I even considering this... especially at my age?” “Who do I think I am?” These are common internal questions. Here are two followup questions to help address the source of inevitable entrepreneurial jitters:

1.

2.

What is holding you back?

What can you do to overcome?

The answers to both questions ultimately come down to conquering fear. Fear of the unknown, the unchartered waters. Let’s turn that fear into empowerment. This is where faith comes in to play. A quote that I added as my screen saver from day one of entrepreneurship, still serves as a daily reminder: “You Attract What you are Ready For”- Dau Voire Sometimes I see myself like Mr. Magoo. For my millennial readers who may not be aware of this cartoon figure,

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Here’s an impactful mental exercise: Simply switch “Am I” to “ I Am.” Go ahead and give it a try... start with “I am” and go from there... “ I am capable.” “ I am worthy.” “ I am good enough.” “I am making a difference.”

BE RESOURCEFUL

“Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can.” – Arthur Ashe Let’s assume you realize your passion. You are “all in,” ready to jump on the “entrepreneurial roller coaster.”

Where do you start?

My suggestion is start where you are. No need for a significant financial investment. There are plenty of free and low-budget resources, software and services.

Please refer to my “ 12-Step Entrepreneurial Toolbox” *

NETWORK - NETWORK - NETWORK!

“If you want to go somewhere, it is best to find someone who has already been there.”

- Robert T. Kiyosaki My network consists of three circles: My inner circle = most trusted friends and confidants.

My secondary circle = friends, colleagues and work acquaintances.

My third circle = support groups like DeWs, Social

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Media Groups and contacts via Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

All three circles are integral for the health of your psyche and your business. Reach out, and develop your networking circles. Remember, networking is a verb.

This is not the time to be shy. Embrace your unique gifts and contributions. I find that one of the most rewarding parts of networking is in paying it forward and being part of another’s creative process. It is in the giving that we truly receive; you feel like part of a karmic cycle, something bigger than you.

PERSEVERE

“I’m convinced that about half of what separates successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.”

- Steve Jobs This is arguably the most important quality of any successful entrepreneur. The year 2020 and the Global Covid-19 Pandemic is an ongoing threat to most businesses. The words pivot, unprecedented and the term “the new normal” have been used ad nauseum for a reason. To be considered relevant you must pivot in this unprecedented time to find a new normal for your business. Heck, I can assume that we DeWers have pivoted so much we are dizzy!

The truth is without perseverance and resilience, you will break under pressure. A favorite quote of mine is from Albert Einstein - “When there’s a will there’s a way.” It reminds me that “pivoting," although a modern term, is an old concept. Another timeless phrase such as “When the going gets tough, the tough get going,” also serves as a reminder that we are not immune nor unique to turbulent times. After all, it’s “survival of the fittest!”

Pre-COVID, my business, Airway Health Solutions, was based on live events, teaching doctors how to implement airway health. My last live event was March 1st. Here comes the pivot... our events are now online course offerings, my “new normal.”

One thing that has helped me is tying patience into blind faith. You’ve heard the adage “Be careful what you wish for, it may come true.” I have found over these two years that if my initial wishes came true, I wouldn’t be a successful entrepreneur! By referring to my trusty screen saver, “You attract what you are ready for,” I remind myself to take a deep breath and practice patience (I am still practicing this.)

BE GRATEFUL Okay, let’s get real. If I were to write “Fired Up” two years ago it would have inevitably turned into a revenge piece coming from a victim’s perspective. Since I have taken the steps shared with you, I truly am grateful for ALL the events that have transpired, including being fired (yes, I can say it now, fired). Gratitude can take time after a traumatic event. I believe it is the last step of any healing process and an important part of being a successful entrepreneur. Be grateful not only for each accomplishment and triumph but also for each lesson learned. Be grateful for the gift of wisdom, your health, your family and loved ones. If you set aside time every day to focus on the things you are grateful for, it will help you embrace each day in all its glory, uncertainty and opportunity.

IN CONCLUSION My journey of becoming a successful entrepreneur was based on passion, faith, resourcefulness, networking, perseverance, patience and being grateful. You, too, can find your passion and experience abundance. My hope is that you can use this article as a blueprint to start that business you were thinking of and embrace your entrepreneurial spirit. There are many others waiting to be inspired by you, yes, you! What are you waiting for... ?

Just DeW it!

*12-Step Entrepreneurial Toolbox 1.

Invest in a quality laptop and strong Wi-Fi! This is your portable office!

2.

Establish a Limited Liability Company LLC, and then open a separate business checking account. I found it worth the small investment to use Legal Zoom. www. legalzoom.com. There are many tax benefits of owning your own LLC. It is a good conversation to have with your accountant.

3.

Establish a company name and logo. I used Vistaprint for both logos for a nominal fee along with marketing materials. I am pleased with their services and value. www.vistaprint.com

4.

Get a domain @ www.godaddy.com and create your own website. It is easy! I use www.Wix.com. Check out my website

PRACTICE PATIENCE Personally, being patient is my biggest challenge. After all, who doesn’t love instant gratification?

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS at www.airwayhealthsolutions.com.

5.

6.

Get a business credit card. I personally like Amex.

It helps keep track of your business expenses and has useful accounting reports available.

Take advantage of points/cash back. American Express Business Card has no annual fee.

Get a company email from G-Suite. It is important to have a strong first impression.

Try to avoid using personal emails like Gmail or Hotmail and have your own company email. IE: info@airwayhealthsolutions.com – You can also share calendars and google documents with future team members.

7.

Use a calendar software program to schedule your appointments. This is key! I use www.youcanbookme.com, but I have also heard Calendly is a good option too.

They have free services available. This is not only a great first impression but saves you countless emails going back and forth when scheduling conference calls.

8.

Establish a billing/accounting service. I use Wave www.waveapps.com and find it user friendly and a must-have to keep my billing/accounting in check.

Another option is Quick Books.

9.

Invest in software for proposals/agreements. I use Bidsketch. www.bidsketch.com. It has templates and helps you keep track of your proposals, when they are viewed and most importantly when they are accepted!

10.

Invest in a professional Zoom account. www.zoom.com It is worth the small monthly, tax-deductible fee.

11.

Create a business social media presence via Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. Utilize fellow DeW, Minal Simpat, and her marketing strategies in her book, "Why Your Marketing is Killing Your Business and What to Do About It."

12.

Utilize free services offered by the Small Business Administration. http://www.sba.gov/ They offer free webinars. I was even able to meet with a coach who helped me develop a business plan for FREE! (free, free, free)

State University of New York at Farmingdale in 1991 and post graduate training in Myofunctional Therapy through the AOMT in 2013. Lauren is guest faculty at New York University, an industry key opinion leader, a published author and has appeared on WNBC, WABC and the Colgate Oral Health Network raising awareness about oral/systemic health and expansive orthodontics. She is passionate about the integral role of dental professionals as health care advocates, preventing disease vs. treating symptoms, and is enjoying her role as Founder/President, www.airwayhealthsolutions.com.

Airway Health Solutions Airway Health Solutions is a unique “airway focused” dental consultancy and CE platform helping dental practices implement treatment modalities to intercept Sleep Disordered Breathing via growth & development of the jaws. This includes utilizing clear aligner therapy, myofunctional/expansion appliances along with interdisciplinary collaboration for patients of all ages.

Airway Health Solutions services include: live and online CE courses featuring their sought-after 2-Day MiniResidency with Dr. Ben Miraglia and their newly added “Whole Health Integration” courses featuring guest faculty, Dr. Felix Liao.

Airway Health Solutions' mission is to help dental professionals help their patients breathe, sleep and thrive, providing a healthy ROI for both patient and practice health.

Contact: Email: lauren@laurengueits.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ airwayhealthsolutions/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ airwayhealthsolutions/ YouTube: YouTube_AirwayHealthSolutions LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurengueits/

Don’t forget to become a DeW! It is invaluable to be part of this incredible network of women who are dental entrepreneurs. www.dew.life

About the author: Lauren Gueits, BS, RDH, is a dental hygienist of 25+ years, a recipient of the 2010 RDH Sunstar Award of Distinction and lectures and trains dental professionals on airway health solutions, comprehensive care and oral/systemic links. Lauren received her degree from the

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS

THE POWER BEHIND YOUR CALLING By Joanna Scott

I

was raised as a preacher’s kid in a growing area of Columbus, Ohio. Being the oldest of four, I quickly learned to take the lead. It also helped that our home was a nurturing environment for a young woman with big dreams. At a young age, my dad took over a small organization which provided food and clothing to people trapped in poverty. Forty years later, this food pantry has expanded into a multifaceted family-resource center providing critically needed services across central Ohio.

The best part? It inspires hope. My upbringing shaped a strong desire in me to want to help people. For nearly two decades, I threw myself into vocational pastoral ministry and investing in people, especially students, was one of the greatest joys of my early years.

Working with students and families provided hundreds of opportunities to listen to stories. Without fail, each story would lead to a conversation around their search for purpose, met with big eyes wondering what it could be. Regardless of gender or age, we all have one thing in common: We are searching for that spark. A purpose that lights your heart on fire. It fuels your adrenaline, helps you jump out of bed excited in the morning, but at the same time makes it hard to switch off your brain at night.

Your heart rate increases thinking of it even now. This is your “why.” It’s a huge part of who you are and what you’re meant to do with your life. It is your calling.

Recently, I spoke with a dear friend who has the most beautiful brown eyes and the kind of smile that pulls you in for endearing conversation (we’ll call her Samantha for this article). On this occasion, something felt different.

There was no smiling behind the mask, and she seemed numb to the commotion around us. I listened as she talked about feeling stuck - trapped even - as her

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full-time mom role came to an end. Dropping her youngest off to an out-of-state university officially made her an empty nester. Samantha’s internal dialogue began to seep out as she shared deep sadness for negating most opportunities to explore her own purpose and dreams. Her time had expired.

My why behind this article is simply this: Too many people live life believing that finding their true purpose has an expiration date. Countless women fall prey to false belief systems attached to their age, when life doesn’t go as planned or when Mt. Everest stands in the way. These perspectives lead to thousands living life in a way that feels invisible.

Living the life of a ghost, with a story never realized.

On the reverse lives the leading lady who finds it.

There is nothing more extraordinary than when a woman finds clarity around her unique, gifting and “why.”

DeW friends, I am honored to begin a conversation with you centered around why we must pursue the calling in our lives and the significance behind discovering it.

“What you seek is seeking you.” - Rumi Career versus Calling After the birth of my daughter, I worked for a nonprofit organization dear to my heart. The job provided me flexibility to work at the office and from home, giving

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS me time to be with my baby. After a few years, I started to feel this deep longing for more. The passion I felt for the work I was doing was waning, and my heart was telling me my journey of working with students and families wasn’t finished. A lot of soul searching led me to a story about the founder of The Dream Center in Los Angeles, Matthew Barnett. He talked about his walk toward finding the cause within and said it this way: “A transforming cause is never about you promoting yourself, achieving greater fame or fortune, experiencing more pleasure or comfort, amassing greater power.

It is always about using the resources you’ve been given - skills, relationships, experiences, time, money, intelligence and all the rest to make a positive impact in the lives of others.”

After realizing that my current role was not fully maximizing the gifts inside of me, I resigned. Within weeks of this decision, my phone rang and I was offered a new, exciting role which led to one of the most challenging and yet rewarding seasons of my professional life. From this moment forward, I decided to only invest my time, talents and resources in places where my deep gladness meets the world’s deepest need.

What if we started pursuing vocations and opportunities that fuel the spark inside us? Living life in pursuit of what lights your soul on fire will change everything.

“Finding your calling is like finding your why; the reason you exist, your purpose for living.” - John Maxwell Check out this one minute video with a Pro Tip called the Ten Year Test.

Discovery A couple of weeks ago, I worked on a collaborative project with dentistry’s story-driven marketing agency, Studio EightyEight. Four interviews with four different doctors led to a discussion on mental health and wellness as it relates to dentistry. One of my favorite ways to introduce someone on a podcast, Zoom call or Facebook Live is to tell the story of how we met and also share with the audience qualities and characteristics that describe who they are as a human. Most people are surprised when I introduce them this way, but to me, it’s everything.

A person’s values, beliefs, communication style, personality and character should match their purpose

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or calling. The faster we discover ourselves, the closer we are to identifying our purpose. Finding simple ways to help individuals discover the clarity they need when on the path is extremely important and just happens to light me up. Here are a few of my favorite ways to begin your discovery process.

My Favorite Tools For Self Discovery Strengths Finder The global strengths movement started six decades ago when Don Clifton posed a simple question: “What would happen if we studied what was right with people versus what’s wrong with people?” You will love this short assessment identifying individuals' top five strengths.

The Enneagram An ancient personality typing system that identifies nine types of people and how they relate to one another and the world. The Enneagram is a powerful tool for understanding why we behave the way we do and how our personalities are powerfully influenced by our motivations. I am an Enneagram 8, and it has set me free to embrace who I am in a new way, while working towards the healthiest version of “me” that I can be.

Three Questions Another tool in moving towards clarity is in answering these three questions. I encourage you to take as long as you need. Go find a quiet space and reflect on the change you were meant to create in this world.

1.

What do I sing about? What fills my heart?

2.

What do I cry about? What breaks my heart?

3.

What do I dream about? What lifts my heart?

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LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS

Bias Towards Action Admittedly, I am a podcast junkie and short video podcasts are the best. Donald Miller is an author and the founder of a marketing company called Storybrand, and he recently released a video describing the one thing all successful people have in common. He shares how people can be wildly successful and yet operate so differently. The single common denominator among all successful people is a bias towards action. They don’t live in a daydream all day long, and they get things done.

They are always moving forward. ProTip: Make a to-do list every day of the highest priority things you can do to move towards success, and do them every day. Even if you’re still working on clarifying your calling, finding tangible ways to move toward it will help you make a determination faster.

Final Thoughts My dear DeW friends... You may already know your calling, and, if you do, I applaud you for doing the work it takes to get there. Live freely, take up space and speak your truth. Our world needs you, and we need you too. If you are in a season of transition or have never truly felt as if you have come alive with purpose, then these words are for you:

You are not past your due date. It’s not too late. Your dreams are waiting for you, so don’t give up. Go be captivated by what you were meant to do. I can’t wait to hear about your fearless story.

About the Author: Joanna Scott is an organizational thinker with over 17 years of leadership experience in the nonprofit sector.

She graduated from Rhema Bible Seminary and went on to get her Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Management at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

She currently serves as the Business Development Director for Studio EightyEight, dentistry’s story-driven marketing agency and has loved helping her husband build a company that “speaks human.” Joanna has been married to her best friend for twenty-four years and together they have two children in New Albany, Ohio.

Writing has become a primary focus and giving others a platform to share their stories is part of her why. That and spending time with family and friends cultivating deep, authentic relationships - bonus if it’s done on a hike or outside.

Website: www.joannascott.com Email: joanna@s8e8.com Instagram: @joannafscott

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It’s good to be back doing what we love.

Helping patients get care.

As patients come in for preventive care and needed dentistry, many may be more cost conscious. Being able to pay over time with the CareCredit credit card may make it easier for them to move forward with recommended care.

Contactless Applications and Online Payments By sharing your Custom Link, your patients can use their own device to learn about and apply for the CareCredit credit card — eliminating the need to pass a paper application or a credit card back and forth.

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Download your Custom Link at www.carecredit.com/mycustomlink.

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