New Dentist Corner: Production and Rest

Production and Rest

By: Treyon Grant, OUCOD DS4

In the dental profession, we are tasked with taking care of others. We must be caring to their immediate needs, informative on prevention, and intuitive for their future needs. As dentists, we must be caring to our patients, precise with our craftsmanship, diligent in our work ethic, meticulous with details, and efficient with our time… all while being mindful that we have other patients that are in need! In short, we must be productive and industrious health care providers, leaders, and experts. With so many roles and so many different hats, dentists and dental students alike pour our energy throughout the day to our patients, to our teams who make caring for them possible, and to our family and friends. Yet, we spend little time ensuring that the cups we are pouring from are full, let alone overflowing. Imagine going into the kitchen to grab an empty pitcher and trying to use it to pour yourself some water. You would get exactly what you would expect, nothing! Now imagine pouring an ounce of water from that same pitcher into 15 different cups. Unsurprisingly, you would find the amount of water in each cup overwhelmingly inadequate for anything. So, as I asked myself some time ago and will now ask you, why do we find ourselves surprised when we are over-worked, under-rested, and underproductive for our abilities? After posing this question to myself, I decided that I needed to become intentional in investing in myself in order to be a better producer in life. I did two things: first, I started an indoor garden, and second, I began resting without guilt. I started indoor gardening during the summer prior to my second year of dental school. I began with one aloe vera plant, and one plant became two, and two became 75 (now this seems excessive, but with a smile and slight chuckle I say I regret nothing). I have learned so much from my plant adventures. One of the most valuable things I have learned from indoor gardening is that a plant’s only job is to grow, and there are some seasons where it will grow less and some seasons where it will grow more, and maybe some where it will not grow at all; but, given the right things it will always be bigger and better than before. Surprisingly enough, I also found that when I left some plants alone they grew better - - they simply needed time to rest from my demands. As I reflected on this, it seemed ironic to me how this relationship dynamic was mimicked in my own life. The more I allowed myself time alone to simply be, without the demands of others, and to rest, the more capacity I had to produce. As dental professionals, we all know that down-time can be hard to come by; however, we must create moments dedicated to rest. For some, that may be 30 minutes of quiet time in the car at the end of the day, or for others, it may be waking up an hour early for a quiet moment with a fresh cup of hot coffee. Whatever your preference, quiet time is a great way to intentionally recharge and grow. When we are rested we actually gain a larger capacity to grow and produce. Resting allows us to diffuse the day when we interact with our families and have a greater capacity for patience and leadership when interacting with our teams. Although I have not perfected the art and balance of rest and production, I have found a greater capacity for caring for my patients, learning, and interacting with those around me and it didn’t start in a book or clinic, but in my garden. Rest is not negligence of one’s responsibilities, but is required to complete the rest of our duties. With rest we have a greater capacity to show up as our best selves which empowers and encourages those around us to do the same!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Treyon Grant is a fourth-year OU College of Dentistry student, who was born and raised in Ardmore, Oklahoma. In his free time he loves to tend to his indoor garden, read, sketch, practice mindfulness, and be with his family. His goals are to curate spaces where those around them can be free and empowered to be their most authentic and best self through introspection and community, via a modeling and embodiment practice of leadership. His hope is to be a dentist that is known in his community for his kindness, compassion, empathy, skill and knowledge.