Some thoughts on dentistry and business.

Throughout my entire professional career, I’ve framed my ambition in the context of problem solving. I like solving problems. And as I progressed from one company to the next, I sought out bigger and more complex problems. At CSL Behring, I got to solve manufacturing optimization questions and usher in new electronic batch recording technology to decrease administrative overhead and increase regulatory adherence. At West Monroe Partners, I got to partner with a number of companies to solve problems big and small (ranging from targeted reporting solutions to brand new claim adjudication platforms). At Health Care Service Corporation, I had the unique opportunity to implement new operations and technology solutions required as a result of the passage of the Affordable Care Act. I LOVED solving these problems. I loved it because of a framework I built for myself over time: (1) is the problem worth solving; (2) do I want to solve the problem; (3) am I in a position to solve the problem. Complex workplaces are rife with opportunity and you can drown yourself in initiatives. Triage and prioritization is critical when picking which problem you want to solve. I found happiness in my work because I could confidently say that the problems I faced were worth solving and I could make a meaningful difference in solving them.

As the opportunity to own our dental practice became more and more real, the answer to #2 above (i.e., “do I want to solve this problem”) in the context of my job at Health Care Service Corporation moved closer and closer to “No”. This wasn’t a function of the work I was doing at Health Care Service Corporation. It was a function of the brave new world of small business ownership and learning a new industry in dentistry. As I saw it, every minute I was spending at my corporate gig was a minute I wasn’t spending at the dental practice. So I quit! It was a hard decision to leave my friends behind. But I was convinced (and have been validated over time) that diving head first into the dental practice was the right thing to do for me and my family.

I can’t yet say the rest is history. But a lot of the big pieces of the puzzle are now in place and we get to tinker around the margins over time while we continue to build relationships with our patients and the Bartlett community. And that’s probably the greatest positive externality of owning a business. As owners, Jamie and I get to pick how we project ourselves into the world beyond those facets of our lives we’ve been working on already. We obviously hold ourselves accountable as partners to each other, parents to our two boys, family members to our parents and brothers and sisters, and so on. But owning a dental business gives Jamie and I the opportunity to pick how want to be to our patients and how we want to make them feel. For a lot of people, going to the dentist sucks. It’s scary. It’s painful. It’s sterile. It’s an interruption to an otherwise already busy day. Jamie and I choose to bring positivity, humor, joy, and compassion (as does our staff). I have a bunch of anecdotes validating this approach and it’s an incredibly gratifying feeling. I knew that this venture was going to be a success. But I didn’t anticipate how powerful the validation from our patients would be. I’m thankful for and humbled by that validation. And it excites me more than anything to be able to provide this type of service and care for a long time.

One last note before I close this one out…working with your spouse is complicated and incredible. Jamie and I have been together since December 2002. We’ve known each other since the mid-90s. Before working together, I thought I knew everything there was to know about Jamie. So when we started working together, while I assumed that I would learn new things about the industry, I couldn’t imagine what new things I’d learn about my wife (which in hindsight is obviously preposterous). First, we communicate differently. The two of us come from VERY different professional backgrounds. And through that professional education, we built up habits with which the two of us were unfamiliar. Getting on the same page from a communication perspective was critical to us finding emotional success at the practice. That was pretty easy to resolve. More importantly, I got the education of a lifetime in terms of Jamie’s clinical skillset. I already knew about Jamie’s deep well of empathy and powerful ability to connect with people at a fundamental emotional level. But to witness Jamie in action with her patients and her staff fills me with pride. She navigates a complex array of clinical, emotional, organizational, and logistical problems with confidence and poise. She delivers tough news when she has to. And somehow, she gets her patients (our customers) to listen, understand, and take action (when needed). It’s a joy to behold. And I’m privileged to be a party to it.