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Should I Start My Own Dental Practice?

Why do dentists decide to start their own practice? There are a number of alluring positives that draw dentists into practice ownership.
  1. The ability to maintain a personal standard of care with all patients.
  2. The possibility of doing dentistry better.
  3. The promise of making more money at the end of the day.
  4. The appeal of a customized work life balance and the ability to create a personalized work schedule.
  5. The investment in an industry that should ultimately provide a good retirement plan.

Yet, there are so many unexpected headaches and hurdles along the path of practice ownership.
  1. Finding and keeping good staff members.
  2. Attracting not only new patients but good quality new patients.
  3. Protecting a work life balance.
  4. Controlling costs in order to ensure a good paycheck and a good retirement plan.
  5. Keeping track of how the practice is doing in order to make strategic changes.

At times, these hurdles can feel overwhelming and can even prevent a dentist from launching the practice of his or her dreams.

Our advice is to soul search and also research.
  1. Weigh out the positives and negative‘s of practice ownership and decide if you are willing to except the negatives that come along with ownership.
  2. Build a very clear vision of what you would want your practice to be known for and not known for - down to the smallest detail.
  3. Take the time to discover your personality and the strengths and weaknesses that come along with it. Do you have a personality that is good at managing people but poor at marketing/building professional relationships? Do you have a personality that dreams big but struggles with follow-through? All of these things are important to understand before stepping into the practice ownership process.
  4. Research. Based on your dreams and your personality, find a location that makes sense for you.
  5. Learn. Take the time to learn as much as you can before opening your practice to ensure that you have the tools you need to make it successful.

With advanced preparation, research, and good management, practice ownership and management can be an incredibly rewarding and profitable experience.

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