Dental A Team Podcast

Kiera is a guest on The Zero Balance Podcast with John Stamper! She and John discuss the advancement of software over the past few years, and why the current culmination — artificial intelligence — isn't something to be skittish around in your practice. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera. And today we are sharing a guest interview I did on another podcast. And it was too valuable not to bring you guys here. this episode, you're gonna hear this host lead the conversation and then I'll wrap us up at the end. I cannot wait. It was truly one of my most incredible episodes and I truly hope you enjoy. John (00:19) What's going on everybody. Welcome to another episode here on The ZeroBalance podcast brought to you by the team at Quanta Suite. Very excited to keep this thing going. Uh, our last conversations and episodes crazy to think it's 2026 already were at the Dykma conference. And I had the privilege of spending time, not only with the Quanta Suite team, but also a lot of great individuals that came on the podcast and talked about what they were seeing in that case, it was in the DSO space. Uh, I'm very excited today to be with Kiera Dent from the Dental A team. I've known Kiera for many years. We were actually just talking before we came on here live. ⁓ she is doing a lot along with her team to help dental practices, take things to the next level. she's been in dental for many, many years. And so we're going to have a conversation today, ⁓ kind of around all things AI and automation and love to have her, you know, kind of share with all of you what she's seeing, you know, her and her team are working with dental practices on a daily basis. And obviously, you know, the Qantas suite team is, is creating. their software in an effort to be able to support practices in the RCM world. But Kiera, it's such great to have you here. How you doing? Kiera (01:26) Oh my gosh, John, it's great to see you again. And I love chatting about all things dentistry. I love having the last name dent. I love dental. love AI. love, um, it's crazy. Dental A Team hits 10 years old this year, which is like absolutely wild. Uh, 2026, I was getting ready to, know, writing my goals out and I was like, Oh my gosh, I turned 40. My husband turns 40. We've been married for 15 years and Dental A Team hits 10 years this year. So ⁓ and I bring that up only because like, it's like a trifecta of a cool year for me. ⁓ but I think as you were discussing, like being in dental consulting for 10 years, having worked in front office teams, having worked at a dental college, having owned dental practices, having bought and sold, having consulted like 300 plus offices physically, ⁓ watching the DSO emerge, watching AI come in. I just think it's really like such a fun time for us to be in dentistry and so many great advancements and, yeah. In Dental A Team, we are obsessed with doctors and teams, like getting them aligned, getting them streamlined, helping dentists be like CEOs and owners of their practices. We love ⁓ Josh, we love what he's building in DCS and now in Qantas. We think that they're doing some really fun, incredible things. And Dental A Team, we're just really big on, I think, streamlining dental practices, helping them say yes to more things. So getting them in their vision, getting financially free and profitable. and then getting systems and team development to support that. And AI is definitely being a big player. And I think dentistry is, it's so fun because it's been such a, like, I think slow roll on evolution in certain ways. Sometimes I think we are very archaic. My husband's in healthcare and medicine and he's like, wait, that's your guys' software. I'm like, don't judge. I know it's a little dated. He's like, they didn't even have that when I started my career 15 years ago. ⁓ But I think, to watch dentistry evolve into AI and automations and different things. I think we are in such a special time. So yeah, we work with solo practices. We work with multi practices. We work with emerging DSOs. We work with DSOs. We've got consulting for kind of a broad spectrum and kind of our sweet side, like two to five to $10 million practice. ⁓ We definitely have built a lot of things that can help multi offices, but yeah, we really love those offices that are obsessed about team, about culture and about. just positively impacting the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. So John, super excited to talk about it. I feel like we just have like so much knowledge to bring to the table and just rift and discuss and give your listeners hopefully a fresh, fun, positive perspective on the world of AI dentistry and of course bringing team and doctor perspectives to the table for you today. John (04:03) Well, thanks for sharing that. you can see, everybody, Kiera comes with a ton of energy,

Kiera and Dana dive into the hygienist's mindset (which tends toward patient care over business numbers) and how a doctor can get a full hygiene team on board with metrics and measurables. They touch on the hygienist drought, growing your practice without stepping on your hygienists' toes, setting expectations everyone can agree on, and more. Dana also touches on a hygiene team she worked with for a couple years that went from struggling to hit its goals to hitting even their daily goals 95% of the time. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today is a great freaking day over there. I get the one and only Dana, Dynamite Dana over there. I did not say the other nickname. If you've been on the podcast for a while, you might know, but Dana, welcome to the show today. How are you? DAT-Dana (00:16) doing pretty good. Thanks so much for having me. It's not always that I get dedicated, you know, Kiera time. So I'm excited to be here. The Dental A Team (00:22) I know when Dana and I get a podcast, like it's not always common, but I mean, you guys might start seeing Dana a bit more. I've got a few plans and tricks up my sleeves for Dana. We've been together for a long time. Dana, like donuts with Dana tip. don't remember what that was like dentistry tips or something. You were on a roll. You used to, I think you still do them actually every single week. Um, but Dana, you were just a diehard dedicated and always without, will not share it. DAT-Dana (00:39) Yeah. The Dental A Team (00:49) but Dana always has the best story. So if you don't know Dana and you want like a good giggle in your life, you name it. And also Dana is the best with trivia. We do a company end of year party every year and it's always like trivia based. Dana whoops everybody. Like this woman knows facts and stats like nobody's business. So Dana, today's gonna be a fun day because not only is Dana dynamite this way, but we're gonna do a little bit of an office autopsy about a hygiene department. So if you don't know in Dana's Other Life, Dana used to work at a prison as a hygienist and Dana that still is a trip to me. Like, did you ever get nervous that they were going to take their shackled hands and like stab you with an instrument? I'm truly curious because that's my fear. Let's just talk about that for one second. DAT-Dana (01:27) Yeah, I mean, there were a lot of like protocols in place for protection and for safety. But at the end of the day, you knew where you were. you know, yes, there was always I think just a niggling element of I just need to be careful, pay attention beyond my toes. Yeah. The Dental A Team (01:44) Like you're working with sharp instruments. I mean, it's not like you doled them out to take them in there. Like we're not going to have a sharp scaler. You get a doled one. Like you got to be in there. But yeah, cause I remember I worked in an office and they would bring in inmates and they would be like handcuffed top to bottom. And the girl would always be like, so what were you in prison for? And I'm like, why are we, why are we poking the bear? Like, why don't we just keep them calm? And like, I don't even want to know. Like, but she did it every time. I was only up there a couple of times consulting them, but. DAT-Dana (02:04) Thanks. The Dental A Team (02:13) Anyway, beyond prison, also is an incredible hygienist. So today we wanted to kind of office autopsy because Dana had a practice that she worked with for several years on hygiene and their number one motive and their number one objective was hygiene. And I think that this is such a, it's very delicate because I think dentists want hygienists to produce and as a practice, we want hygienists to produce. And Dana, as a hygienist, you feel, I'm not gonna put words in your mouth, but the assumption I get from a lot of hygienists is We want to just do great work and we don't want to always have to be looking at numbers. Maybe that's true or not, but like Dana, I want to hear what's kind of like the mindset of hygienist and then how do doctors approach this? And then we'll dig into the practice that you worked with that like really freaking crushed it. But I think like, this is such a, I don't know. I feel like it's a sliver in a practice. Like no one wants to talk about it. Like let's just not touch it so it doesn't hurt. But then it like blows up and people are like, my freaking hygienist aren't producing and they don't want to like tick them off because no one's there. So let's talk about it, because is that how hygienists feel and how do you win over hygiene? DAT-Dana (03:12) Yeah, I think it's a mindset. I think it's a difference in mindset, right? I think dentists are always looking at the business side of it because oftentimes the dentists are the business owners and hygiene, their mindset is patient care. And

This episode is all about your vision for your practice, and how you can use it to propel growth and success. Tiff and Dana share how to create a vision that's true to you, how to get your team members bought in, how to set goals according to that vision, and so much more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello Dental A Team listeners. We are so excited to be here with you today. You know that the consultant takeover section here, I don't know if that's even still what we call it, but that's what we call it, Dana and I call it, because that's where OG status, know, like Donuts with Dana came on the other day. I was like, oh, I do miss Donuts. Anyways, we're here with you today, you guys. are, gosh, almost done with Q1 by the time this releases. It's wild. It's, you know, and I think we say this every year probably, I know January every year we're like, this is the longest month of our lives. But then we get to the end of January, we're like, that went so fast. Where did the time go? And then from there, just doesn't stop. It just doesn't stop. DAT-Dana (00:40) I know, feel like January is 12 weeks long and then the rest of the year is like two. The Dental A Team (00:43) Yeah, it's so true. Yeah, especially February, which I know February is quote unquote a short month. But I'm like, does that two days seriously mean we lost two weeks? Because that's what it feels like. I don't understand it. Time, it's all relative, right? We just make it up anyways. So that's why. That's why, because we just make it up anyways. So Dana, we just recorded a really fun podcast. I actually really, really loved that one on overhead. DAT-Dana (00:57) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. The Dental A Team (01:13) listen to that one yet about why not to cut your team members. Go listen to that too. You don't have to listen to it first. You don't have listen to it today. I don't care. Just listen to it sometime. But I think that it really actually coincides really well with this podcast topic that we're talking about today as well. And on a side note to all of you listeners out there, if you ever have podcast topics, things that you want to hear about, please let us know. You guys, we create these. Actually, our marketing company creates these based on like, what's relevant in the dental industry right now, but you know, Kiera does a ton of podcasts. We do a ton of podcasts. We're always really happy to add things in that you feel you're seeing in your practice, because if you're seeing it, the likelihood is that other people are seeing it as well. And that's why we focus so heavily at the Dental A Team on community, because we really want you guys talking to each other. So that includes this. That's my little plug for Please Send Us Ideas. Thank you. Thank you. ⁓ But this one, this one's fun too. I think we do, honestly we do a lot of really fun things at the Dental A Team. ⁓ I think, I mentioned it on the last one, but Dana I think for me at least, focusing on the people first actually really, really drives me. It makes me feel like we're in we're in a stale business sometimes, you know? Like it's. ever-changing, dentistry grows and it changes, but kind of not at the same time. It's kind of also stale, especially when it comes to team members. DAT-Dana (02:41) And then it makes no teeth, right? And so it can only expand and grow so much and sure, has it made leaps and bounds? Absolutely. But again, it is still teeth and the business of dentistry. The Dental A Team (02:48) Yeah. I agree. So I think adding in that human side of it, the people side, gives us purpose. And I think probably in any business, right, I think Aaron's a financial advisor and if he didn't, he loves the people aspect of it. He really, he became a financial advisor to help people grow their finances, to help people retire successfully and he loves nothing more than being able to help someone see that path. And I know not all advisors are that way and not all consultants, dental consultants are that way, but I think that purpose driven piece is what separates any business from the other ones. Yeah. DAT-Dana (03:34) Yeah, and I think at the of the day, it's people taking care of other people. And so it is a people industry. I think we always think of it as, it's healthcare, right, for sure. But it really is people taking care of people, so. The Dental A Team (03:46) Yeah, yeah, good point. All right, well that's our philosophical piece. I loved it. And on that same vein though, that same note is really, ⁓ today we want to talk about vision-driven growth. And I think to me, Dana, when I saw this topic, I thought vision-driven growth, Realistically, it's just like, for me, it's having the map. It's kind like a treasure hunt. DAT-Dana (03:50) Okay. The Dental A Team (04:12) I feel like and it's having the map with that X on it, then I can say, okay, this is how I'm going to get there

Kiera is a guest on The Extraction, a podcast by TeamCare, to talk about accountability without the drama. She, along with co-hosts Kyle Bergman and Dr. Sharon Bleiler, discuss the sometimes difficult realities of what it takes to be a good leader versus a great leader. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera. And today we are sharing a guest interview I did on another podcast. And it was too valuable not to bring you guys here. this episode, you're gonna hear this host lead the conversation and then I'll wrap us up at the end. I cannot wait. It was truly one of my episodes and I truly hope you enjoy. The Dental A Team (00:18) everyone and welcome back to The Extraction podcast. Your cohost Kyle here today with my cohost and the co-founder of TeamCare, Dr. Sharon Bleiler. And today we are joined by Kiera Dent, who is the CEO and founder of Dental A Team, a consulting and training company focused on profitability, systems, accountability. culture and leadership in dental practices. Kiera has worked nearly every role inside of a practice, which is a big part of why her content lands with both owners and teams. So in this episode, we are going to be riffing a little bit about everything and anything that goes into making a practice smarter, scaling from a leadership, bonding. We're going to talk a little bit about AI and efficiency. And so stick around. This is a good one. Kiera. Welcome to The Extraction. How are you? Amazing guys. Thank you so much for having me. I've been super pumped to get on the podcast. Definitely a big fan over here. Excited to just rift on all things dental. I mean, my last name is Dent. So it's definitely my cup of tea here and excited to be with you guys today. So thanks for the warm welcome. Absolutely. And thank you again for taking the time to join us. I know you're super busy and congrats on all the success you've had building dental. A team. One of the first questions I love to ask is what brought you to the dental industry? Not necessarily something that people grow up aspiring to be back when we want to be firefighters, astronauts or Olympians, but what brought you into it? Curious. mean, great question. It's funny. I remember in first grade, my teacher, Mrs. Larson had us like right out where we wanted to be. You guys, I have gone all over the map. I went from being like, I wanted to be a hotel cleaner. That was a big dream of mine. I was like, I want to be a hotel. cleaner mom, like it's gonna be amazing to wanting to be a vet. I don't even really like animals. Like you can judge me harshly right now. And I was like, vet all the way up to I wanted to have, I wanted to break the world record and have 99 kids because I was like, listen, and then I'll just have like, I had already thought in processes at that point in my life. Like if I just like meet with them like one day a year, I could see each of them three times a year to then being like, listen, I just want to like wear scrubs for my life. And so was either like be a nurse and learn the whole body or be a dental assistant and just learn the mouth. So that's actually what got me into dentistry was the desire to wear scrubs. Also, I became varsity tennis player, not because I love varsity, I just wanted to wear the cute skirt. Like that was really my motive in life. So I clearly am like a mixed bag over here of why I got here. But I actually then got into dental assisting. It was very fun, loved it. And then I went to college and I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I settled on wanting to be a marriage and family therapist. And I remember I was sitting in my interview, I was in Oklahoma and I was interviewing to get my degree and master's get accepted to school. They asked me questions and I was thinking about my patients back at the dental office. And it was a, I call these like the pivotal moments where I sat there and was like, Keara, do you really want to be a marriage and family therapist? The fact that you're sitting in this interview, you've worked hard. mean, passing the GRE is freaking hard. So like even to get there, I was like, do you actually want to be this marriage and family therapist? And it was a moment where I was like, I think I actually absolutely love dentistry and that's where I'm meant to be and what I love to do. And then you fast forward a little bit further and now we're in consulting and I feel like I've been able to blend my love of the marriage and family therapy, of the love of people and wanting to solve problems, but I get to do it in a space of dentistry that I feel is just magical to change lives. So that's kind of my like roundabout random story of going from hotel cleaner to veterinarian to becoming a dental consultant. And I feel like I really did that like sweet landing of a space that I'm obsessed with of helping people. An

Does it seem like there are communication troubles in your practice? Spoiler alert: That usually has to do with accountability. Kiera and Dana riff on why creating an accountability ladder a) isn't as difficult as you think, and b) will save tons of time, energy, and money. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and I've got the one and only Dana back with me today. I wanted to podcast with Dana, so I ⁓ maybe selfishly took her for two podcasts today. So Dana, welcome back to the podcast. How are you today? DAT-Dana (00:12) Doing pretty good, I'm ready for round two. The Dental A Team (00:15) Good. I do love podcasting because Dana and I were just able to rift and jive and it's fun. I think when you work with people for quite a while and you both have a ton of passion, makes podcasting very easy. So Dana, I wanted to just kick us off today on, I think, accountable teams. I think accountability is a buzzword in practices and people might be like, womp, womp, accountability. But I'm going to say like, no, it's not womp, womp. It's a, if you don't have accountability, your team is freaking chaos. And yet I think offices don't want to have accountability and then we're going to do a pivot of like what happens if your doctor doesn't want to be accountable. So tune in. I hope you guys are ready. We're going to dive into it because it happens and I don't just think it's teams that aren't accountable. It's also doctors that aren't accountable. Like what do do because if accountability is such a like ick and issue and constant stressor for everybody. Well, like what the heck? Like how do we, how do we fix this and overcome? So Dana, let's dig in. Let's talk about like I'm gonna just walk us through. It's gonna be a short rift today, but walk me through like, we get new offices. And I found that usually the number one issue they have is communication, which usually leads down to accountability. That's at least what I find. But I think that it's like, well, where do you start and how do you know like, is my team accountable? Is it not like, what do accountable teams look like? What do accountable teams not look like? Walk me down through like what you see in the practices you consult. DAT-Dana (01:35) Yeah, I agree with you. It typically will come down to communication. And so when I talk to a team about accountability, I always say, there's accountability ladder, right? So we have to hold ourselves accountable first, right? Then we've got leadership team to hold us accountable. And then we've got practice owner typically there at the top. But there's always a caveat to that. And that is it has to be seen from the top down. So yes, we have to hold those lines. We have to follow those ladders as far as the chain of accountability. But the tone for accountability is set from the top down. So if we don't have an accountable practice owner, we're probably not gonna have accountable leaders, which means we're not gonna have an accountable team. And so that's usually how I kind of open that discussion and that it does really come down to communication and some personal integrity, right? If we say we're gonna do something, do it. And if we notice that somebody isn't, have the conversation. So like you said, it really truly comes down to 100%. of communication ⁓ and clear expectations. The Dental A Team (02:39) Yeah. Gosh, Dana, like I love the accountability letter. Thank you. I have not heard that from you. So I think that's a fun, like you're right. It does start as you. And then it goes to your leadership team or your direct manager. And then it goes to the practice owner. And as you said that, just thought like, my husband and I were chatting the other day and something Jason, hi, I don't know why I do the things I do half the time. Jason and I were watching love is blind. So we decided to say like, okay, if we were in the pods, what questions would we ask each other? And Jason, think Jason is a very, uh, he hears what's not being said. And Jason said, I would ask the question of what things are going to make it really easy to be in a relationship with you and what things are going to make it really hard to be in a relationship with you. And I was like, that's pretty good. Pretty great question. And I told Jason, I said, like, one of the things for me with Jason is a lot of times Jason, feel, um, tries to kind of like form himself into the relationship he is. And so he'll maybe not say everything a hundred percent the way like, Like we had an issue and he was like, you know, like, and tried to just like almost sugar coat it for the person. And I, I called JSAO. I was like, Jay, why, like, why, why don't you just say like, I'm sorry. And Jason told me, he said like, well, in this scenario I'm embarrassed because I didn't do X, Y, or Z. And, ⁓ gosh, this is coming from year

Does your P&L team cost feel high? Tiff and Dana provide insight on how to reduce your overhead besides scaling back team members. There could be easy solutions, from cleaning up definitions and job descriptions in your ops manual, to facing the numbers when it comes to debt, and many more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello Dental A Team listeners. I am here with you today ⁓ with Dana. Dana, you know, is one of my favorite humans on earth. We are starting our Monday with you guys. And I know it may not be Monday while you're listening to this, but you know these are pre-recorded, these aren't live. That's not a shock to you. So we record these on Mondays and Fridays. And Dana has been so gracious to share her Monday morning with us. Dana, how are you on this beautiful day? DAT-Dana (00:27) I'm doing pretty good. I know I'm loving the weather right now. As you know, I'm like a sunshine lizard, right? So I love the sunshine we're getting right now. And I love some extra tip time on a Monday. It's a great start to the week. The Dental A Team (00:30) beautiful. I agree, I agree. was like, yesterday I was like, oh gosh, what is tomorrow? know, like, because I had prep the week before, I think we all kind of prep, but then Sunday you're like, wait a second though, what was that again? I've had two days to forget what I'm supposed to be doing tomorrow. And I checked, I'm like, oh yeah, podcasting with Dana is gonna be so great. So we're here today with you and Dana, this one's a really fun topic. I know you and I, notoriously, if anyone goes back into the archives and listens to the other 5,000, It feels as though it's been 5,000 podcasts on operations manuals that we've done. That's just Dana's fun girl for that. But today is team related but less about training and kind of operations manually kind of things. And I think it's just a really fun version of a team aspect. And I say that because this is coming at it from a business standpoint. I think you guys all know that Dental A Team focuses on profit. and profitability, but we focus first and foremost on happy people and having a fantastic business that can support your personal life, but then also having a fantastic business that supports an awesome team. And so being team focused and being people focused first, we truly believe that that's what creates a business that's sustainable over a lifetime and gets that profit for you. If we went profit first, not the book, we love the book. If we went profit first and never the people, I think we would just be doing you a disservice. So today is all about how to get profitable, how to be profitable without sacrificing the team. And Dana, I know you and I, I think our whole company is really, really strong in this belief, but you and I specifically very, very strongly believe that treating the team right and not looking at the team for the cuts in the overhead is, that's how we start. So I'm gonna. Just pick your brain some today, Dana. First of all, what are you seeing today? It's 2026, recording this. It's close to the beginning of the year. We're about almost done with Q1, honestly. So I'm flying by, but we're getting towards the end of Q1. But with that, we've had some financials. I don't know why, but in my world, financials are hard to come by this year. I love you CPAs, and I'm just hoping that we can get a little bit better towards Q2. But so far in the financials, what are you starting to see and what did you see out of 2025 with your clients? What kind of trends were you noticing? DAT-Dana (03:14) Yeah, think ⁓ financials, know expenses going up in different areas, a lot of that expense does come from team members. A lot of my conversations right now are like how do I show my team appreciation? How do I create things for my team when it comes to pay increase raises, things like that. ⁓ and still keep my payroll within where it should be. So a lot of team pieces are part of these financial conversations, I think even pretty heavy in 2026. The Dental A Team (03:46) Yeah, totally agree with you. I've seen those same things and towards the end of the year too, was like Christmas bonuses. I know you and I worked, we talked about it. So I know, I know at least you and I did. I'm sure the rest of the team did too, but we talked about it towards the beginning of last year, I think on a podcast of making sure that we were getting our clients prepped to give bonuses. So they're saving some little acorns every month over in a bucket for that. So hopefully it didn't hit them, but it still looks ugly on the PNL no matter what, you pull wherever you're pulling that money from. So. I totally agree. And then I do think wage increases. I mean, if we compare 2018, 2019 to today, drastic difference. And I know, I think in our brains, it doesn't feel like COVID was that long ago. It feels like it was yesterday, bu

Kiera joins Dr. Paul Etchison on the Dental Practice Heroes podcast to talk about the infamous front desk and how to finally figure out what levers should be pulled and which should be pushed to get the department in ship-shape. The best part about this episode is that Kiera and Dr. Etchison make the steps to success easy to understand and implement. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera. And today we are sharing a guest interview I did on another podcast. And it was too valuable not to bring you guys here. this episode, you're gonna hear this host lead the conversation and then I'll wrap us up at the end. I cannot wait. It was truly one of my most incredible episodes and I truly hope you enjoy. speaker-0 (00:19) Kiera, so glad to have you back on the podcast. It's always a joy having you on here. And I'll tell the listeners, I've worked personally with Kiera a number of occasions, someone I very much trust, someone I respect entirely in the industry and just knows her stuff and always a great guest to have you on. And today we're going to be talking about, you know, front desk stuff where I work with a lot of clients. Do you work with a lot of clients? I don't know if you share the same regard. I would love to hear your opinion on this, but I would say most of the clients that I work with, the front desk tends to be their most chaotic and unorganized department. I mean, do you feel that you share the same sentiment? speaker-1 (00:59) Yeah, Paul super excited to be on the podcast with you. Always enjoy a good chat and I mean, think proof's in the pudding. Do you remember the number one reason you called me to work with you the first time? Oh yeah, I was front office. speaker-0 (01:12) I think it was the second time and the third time. speaker-1 (01:14) It really all those times were and the answer is yes and this is why I created Dental A Team is because like Working in the dental college and seeing so many dental students like you guys learn how to Drop your box on an MO and like how do I have a perfect crown prep? You don't learn how do I do the billing and how do I do the insurance and how do I schedule patients like you learn how to have patient etiquette and great dentistry and so that's why I created Dental A Team like it's dentists and teams like hey dentist let's get you to rock your space and then let's work on the team side because because even myself as a team member, there was no learning. It was like, just do it. And I'm like, well, what do I just do? And so I think the front office just feels so elusive. It feels so scary. And like, Paul, you're in someone's mouth. You're not like, ⁓ how do I do an insurance claim? And so I think there's so many nuances, but also for dentists, the front office is the gatekeeper of your money. Like they're the ones who schedule for you. They're the ones who present your cases for you. They're the ones who collect the money for you. They're the ones who bill for you. So so much of your financial freedom and like, your paycheck is also directed by a department you don't even understand. So I think that that's why there's so much just like, it's not conflict, it's just almost like unknown and it feels daunting. And so you don't even know what levers to push or pull because you don't even understand how the how the engine works. It'd be like, hey, Kiera, my car is making a sound and I'm like, good, I don't know what to do. Like, that's not even my realm. And I think that that's how a lot of dentists feel about the front office. So, yeah, that's why that's why I exist and why I love to be on the podcast and share because it doesn't need to feel daunting or scary, nor do you need to do it all. I think just being aware and knowing what things to look for, what things you can expect and having a hopefully a trusted voice in the industry where like, hey, I'm here, no judgment. Like just ask all the questions and let's help you guys get your team up to par. And also for team members, cause they, lot of times don't even know what they should do either. speaker-0 (03:05) Yeah, absolutely. They're just thrown in there and said, here, figure it out. Do it. Just answer the phone and do all this fun stuff. I mean, like, I think what struggles for dentists as practice owners is we just don't understand, like you mentioned. We don't understand, like, how to send a claim, how to look at an insurance breakdown. But whereas every other element of the practice, we have a deeper understanding on it. Do you think, I mean, I'm sure it would be beneficial, but is it necessary for a dentist to learn everything about claim submission and all these things? front desk related? Or can we get by with some more higher level organizations such as you provide? speaker-1 (03:41) I think, Paul, it depends on who you are. think Paul Etchison, I wou

Re-releasing a DAT listener favorite! Chris Sands and Brent Saunier are on the podcast to talk about the hottest topics in the dental accounting world. Founding partners of Pro-Fi 20/20, these dental CPAs chat with Kiera about how to reduce overhead and expand the number of patients coming in, expense metrics from the hundreds of offices Pro-Fi works with, a tax rule you NEED to live by, what to stay away from financially with your business, and a ton more. Pro-Fi 20/20 is an accounting business that the Dental A-Team recommend. This episode is a goldmine of information from two fellows who know what they're talking about — especially with regard to the dental industry. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, literally thousands of episodes. And I wanted to start bringing a few of these amazing episodes back for you. So I hope you enjoy. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time. on the Dental A Team podcast. speaker-0 (00:31) today I wanted to bring on two special guests. These are actually CPA in the CPA world. Believe it or not, Dental A Team actually consults this company. So we definitely love them. They went a step above most CPA companies and they really wanted to get to know the ins and outs of the dental world. So I'm super jazzed to bring them on and to just have them dive into some of the hot topics in the accounting world. ⁓ two people that I trust and recommend heavily. ⁓ I They are one of my top three CPA firms that I refer and recommend constantly. So I'm excited to welcome Chris and Brent from Pro-Fi. How are you gentlemen today? speaker-1 (01:06) Awesome, Kiera. Thanks so much for having us. We're excited to be with you. speaker-0 (01:10) Yeah, absolutely. Brent, how are you doing today? speaker-2 (01:12) I am doing great. I appreciate the invite. I'm looking forward to this 30 minutes with you. speaker-0 (01:17) Yeah, absolutely. Well, who knows? We'll see how long this ends up going, guys. Brent, can't put a time on us. It could be dangerous zone. speaker-1 (01:24) You're lucky he said he's doing great because we're in the heat of extended tax season, so he's kind of in the trenches. Lucky he's in a good mood. speaker-0 (01:32) I know Tiffany has been trying to get back out to you guys to see you and Beth you heard this awesome rock star in the company She keeps saying like tiff. It's like extended tax time or it's this or it's that deadline I'm like, my gosh, you guys just have I think you're secretly adrenaline junkies of CPAs even though you don't come across that way But I think you love it cuz tax season I feel is just like adrenaline rush like trying to get to the deadline. I just can't imagine that stress like Every quarter every year you just hit it. So props to you guys. That's not my world but super jazz to have you guys on here. ⁓ so Chris let's dive in I know there's some things so we're gonna kind of hit on overhead we're gonna talk about some taxing some Some things to be aware of i'm just so excited because this is a world I don't know and I do purposely bring really really talented and educated cpas and financial advisors onto the podcast because I'm we have a three-fold approach in our company. It's focusing on Money and finances making sure your business is profitable you as a person and as an individual and then systems and teams top to bottom So I am big I think as a business owner. I wasn't profitable when I first started. I didn't know how to look at my numbers I didn't even know what the heck over influence. I was like googling how to figure it out So i'm just jazzing you guys are here. So Chris kind of take us away I know you had some great topics for today and i'm excited to just Rift a little bit with you, dive into these things, things that are really tangible for our practices now, especially where you guys work with hundreds of offices across the nation. Lots of good data to be pulling out for our practices listening. speaker-1 (03:04) Sure, well, ⁓ Kiera, I think that there's a lot of discussion around, does the DSO world seem to do a better job with overhead than the private practice world? I think a lot of private practice doctors are wondering that, they're frustrated or how do I get my overhead down? And a lot of times, I think when you focus on expenses, you tend to attract expenses. And in our world of accounting, I will often tell doctors that, ⁓ Accounting cannot make you money, it cannot generate revenue. The expenses part is the easy part fo

This episode is all about the simple power of a morning huddle. Tiff and Trish talk about the why behind these daily meetings, including what to include versus not include, how to look for opportunities in the schedule, why everything goes a lot smoother with a bit of communication. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are back at you again. We've got another fun topic today. This is one, honestly, we talk about these a lot. We talk about morning huddles. That's what we're gonna do, spoiler alert, morning huddles. We talk about these a lot, but I feel like we have not had an awesome recording, an awesome podcast recording on this in quite a little while. So I'm actually super excited for what's to come. And I've got Ms. here with me today. ​ cleared her calendar for some podcasting time with me today, which I always appreciate and adore. And we're actually, we pre-record these, you guys know this, so I'm just gonna drop this now. It kind of makes it a little funky, because this may be the end of March. I'm not sure where you're gonna get this, where this drops, so enjoy. But we're getting ready for our in-person mastermind. We'll be having another one in September, so that's why I don't mind talking about it. It's the end of February now, recording for March. But we're getting ready for our in-person event. ​ Literally two days from now. I can't believe that I moved podcasting here, but Trish I think we were I was at least sick I had to reschedule everybody's been sick, but holy cow what an amazing week I feel like the energy and the team is is crazy We've got a slew of doctors and office managers coming to Phoenix tomorrow ⁓ At the airport is gonna be wild and I'm excited to see everybody in person Trish. How are you? How excited are you for this mastermind? ​ Trish Lee Ackerman (01:26) so jazzed. They've just been so fun. It's one, it's always just neat to actually be able to like touch the people that we work with, hug the people that we work with, shake hands with the clients, with the new clients, and just on site is always just really, really, really fun. So I am very, excited for this and our weather is perfect for the people that are coming from the cold. So they'll be very happy. The spouses that are attending will really be enjoying the pool. It's just going to be a great, a great experience for everybody. ​ The Dental A Team (01:43) I agree. ​ I agree. think end of February in Phoenix has to be one of the best ideas we've ever had. I remember a couple years ago I have a practice out in Georgia and she and her girlfriends do, they do trips every year and it's this girls trip and it's so cute and it's so fun and they came out here and it was, it would have been like two weeks ago our time now so beginning of February which is always, February in Phoenix is, I think it's the best time. ​ of the year to be in Phoenix. Hands down, February in Phoenix is my favorite month. And it poured. And it was freezing. And she's like, girl, we came here because it was snowing at home. And I was like, I they went to Sedona and it was freezing. And I was like, ⁓ dang it. But now, fast forward, this weekend ⁓ is literally the best time of the year to be here. And when we go in person, the reason this is super relevant is we do ​ Trish Lee Ackerman (02:34) I bet. ​ The Dental A Team (02:51) Morning huddles we implement with all of our practices. We strongly believe in them. We will tell you why. When we come in person to you, we get this really cool energy. And gosh, we love being boots on the ground in offices, seeing where you guys work, seeing how you work together, getting that intel and that information. And it's just, I think all consultants can say, sets us on fire. Having you guys all come to us is just like heartwarming in a way. ​ It touches our souls that you want to be here with us and it's just a different, it's a different energy, a different vibration and having so many really cool brains and minds melding together to help one another and seeing the community and the camaraderie is just so cool. And I just, I'm so excited. So we're, we're stoked. The next one's in September. If you're not coming to this one or you're not, by the time you listen to this, you're not reminiscing on how cool it was. ​ You better be here in September. [email protected]. That's how you're going to get your ticket. You tell us you want to be here, we'll figure out a way. with that, we won't be talking about morning huddles this week because we do them as consultants. But Trish, morning huddles, I know, are super important. think every consultant probably on Earth right now is like, you should be doing morning huddles, especially Dental A Team consultants. What is your why behind a morning huddle? ​ How do you explain the practices? How do we convince the people here that are lik

Three months into 2026 and the Dental A-Team is already clocking how different patient flow is this year. Kiera talks about optimizing your practice for that unique 2026 patient. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I hope you're just having the best day. I hope that you're realizing things are so good. Things are amazing. I hope that you are just like on cloud nine. And today I'm really excited because this is a topic that I was like just so jazzed about. Cause I realize our patient flow is something that is different for 2026. Like we have it different. It looks different. And I... I'm just really excited. So if you're new to the Dental A Team podcast, welcome. I'm super excited to be here with you. I hope that you are just jazzed. And I think that, like I said, this is going to be something that is going to be very fun for you. And I hope that you take it on. I hope that you look at it. I hope that you just get excited to like, Hey, amazing. We're going to be able to like fix our 2026 patient flow. So when I look at this, like 2026 is very, very, very different than what it was even like when I started the company back in 2016. I think patients in 2026, they're not more difficult. They're just super aware of their time. It's not just enough to be good at clinical excellence. You know how to be really easy to do business with. And if patients feel like energy's off or the vibe's not there, they're going to possibly just leave without saying anything. And so I just wanted to come on today talk to you about some things that I'm seeing in 2026, things that we're seeing with amazing practices that are doing really, really well to help you all, like let's optimize our patient experience, which I know I've talked so many years about patient experience, but I thought like the patient is different today in 2026, they're more used to everything being online. And I think let's not be foolish. We still sometimes have older patients and we need to make sure that we're not adapting everything and changing, but the new generation of patients are definitely a different breed. than what we had before, which every generation is different. So looking for this, I just want you guys to really like get excited. Welcome to the podcast. I'm Kiera Dent and our job is to help you guys have thriving practices, possibly impacting the world of dentistry and to truly just like make it to where you guys feel like you get tactical practical tips on the podcast. I love hanging out with you. I wanna remind you, you're doing better than you think you are. And if this podcast has inspired you, touch your life in any way. please be sure to leave us a review. Those five stars keep us top of mind for everybody. And also pop us in Facebook groups, us, tag us on Instagram. We will comment, we will respond to you and we always appreciate it because that is your subtle way of being able to help us infiltrate the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. So with that, I just want you guys to know that like, ⁓ this patient experience flow is going to help everything improve. And it's for our production, our case acceptance, our team energy, patient loyalty, all of that. So. Getting this patient flow, I believe is so important. So I think like really, really, really working on the first 15 minutes of our patient experience because patients are gonna decide about your practice immediately and they're gonna look at Google reviews, they're gonna look at your social media presence and then it's gonna be on how they make the phone call. So what's gonna happen for it? Like how can we optimize this? And I think one thing is how is your like... hello on the phone. So ⁓ even if we need to record it, listen back to it. I put a mirror always with my front office team members. I want them sitting up straight. I want them smiling really, really big, like almost a cheesy grin. People can feel that energy through it. And then I look at like, how can I make it the easiest, smoothest check-in for them to where when they get to my practice, after I won them over the phone, when they come into the office, they feel different. So how can I make sure my check-in is very fast and personable? How can I make sure there's like minimal paperwork that's like just annoying, iPads that don't work. My team is prep, so when they come and get the patient from the waiting room, they are concierge luxury without the like high price tag of that. Like I just want people when they come into the practice, I feel like people care a lot more about how they feel. They care about the experience of it. I mean, you guys have TikTokers, YouTubers, Instagram people, like that's the world we live in and they are walking everywhere around you. And so... we make sure that they're going to want to showcase our practice and feel t

This one's for the business owners out there! Kiera discusses all things overhead — what's normal, what's high, how to lower it, and what overhead even means in the first place. She then goes into specific tips of what it takes to lower that overhead quickly and responsibly. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and oh I hope you're ready for today's podcast today's podcast is one that I Love but you might not love it But guess what after today you're going to love it and you're going to know why because this is an episode for the business owners out there and office managers and team members guys, I Love, love, love, love, love talking about overhead. What's normal, what's high and how to lower your overhead and what does overhead even mean? And I know that this is something where maybe you've heard it in the past and guess what? One of the greatest tools to learning is remembering. And so today I'm gonna walk you through how we get overhead and how we're able to lower it fast. ⁓ I have found when consulting hundreds and hundreds of offices, the number one pain point is cashflow. We actually just created ⁓ like, amazing little graph and document of how offices are looking at things and how we, this is like just a pyramid. And if you guys are watching, we're going to see how good I do. Gosh, I'm not, okay, Paul, it's not pretty enough. I won't share it yet, but we actually built this like pyramid to show kind of a proven path from chaos to control and how we go. Like what is the base layer that causes offices the most amount of stress and how it goes up. so base layer of this triangle is cashflow and profit stability. Then after that, it's time delegation or removing the doctors a bottleneck. Then we go up to systems and consistency. Then we do leadership and CEO transition, and then it's legacy and optionality. So, and this was like really fun because I like put it all together and I was like, okay, guys, I figured out what causes Dennis the most. Like we're talking hundreds and thousands of offices and putting it together. And then our marketing team was amazing and Paul, shout out to him, he took it and he was like, all right, here, here you go. This is what it is. And what I looked at is so many people come in and like, here, we need systems, like, because we don't have cash. So they think that the systems will get them the cash, but knowing the right system. And this is oftentimes where it feels like whack-a-mole is we're putting in the wrong system, trying to get the outcome. And so it's like putting in the correct lever to be able to move. And then you're like, well, I need a leadership team. But if you're on cashflow row, you're not thinking about a leadership team. You're like, I gotta get out of the burning bush. But if you're on cashflow positive, you're like, gosh, I'm just like stuck in all the weeds. Well, great, we need like to build you a leadership team and we need to get systems in place for you. And we need to look at which systems are not working. And so that's why I wanted to go into overhead for you today of how, like what is overhead and how is it working for me or against me? And how do I get this down fast, AKA more profit for you. And that's not because we wanna be rich and like, whatever, I want you to actually be very wealthy. You like put in a lot of time and effort, but we want you to be making profit as a business. If you're not making money, it's a hobby and it's a liability and it's stressful. And we need to get you out of that stress zone so you can do the best dentistry, the best care. So when I look at offices, a lot of times they're not under producing, they might be overspending. And when I look at profitability, there's three levers. We need to produce more, collect more, or reduce our spending. are the three ways to get there. And so that's how we're gonna look at these. Those three make more profit. So when I look at this and when I look at your biggest pain point that most offices are struggling with is cashflow. And why? Because you were taught to be a dentist, you weren't taught to be a business owner. So you're like, great, I made money, but I don't know how to spend the money and I don't know what I'm overspending. I was talking to someone and ⁓ this is a dear friend to me and she's running her business and this is like leading me into a possible other business idea that's been percolating for me. She was like, Kiera. She's not in dentistry. She's in a different industry. she's like, Kiera, I made 200,000 this last year. And I was like, dang girl, I'm super freaking proud of you. And she's like, I took them 48,000. And I was like, what? She's like, yeah. And I said, well, hold on. She doesn't have employees. She's solo. And I was like, but why? Like, okay, 200,000, let's take taxes out of there. Even if you're s

Tiff and Trish break down what it means to have the right person in the right chair that's best for your practice. This means gauging comfort levels and the ability to stay calm, but it also means supporting each position so they feel like they can win at their job. Listeners are invited to review their positions based on what personality would thrive there — not only to increase treatment, but to make everyone's lives better, too. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are here today with, honestly, really fun one. These are some of my favorite subjects, the things that we talk about on here. I tell you guys that all the time, but I have Ms. Trish here with us today. Her internal nickname, Dental A Team name, for all of her clients, you guys can use this, is Tada. There's all kinds of reasons for it. We don't need to hash out today, but just know Tada is here. And I know I've said this on the podcast before, but if you're new here, you haven't heard it yet, I love. podcasting with these women and I love also handpicking the topics. get topics given to us from our marketing company. We have a lot of input and say on them as the consultants, but really we just kind of look, I look ahead and I'm like, that's what we're doing in the month of March. So fantastic. And then I kind of handpick which consultants I want because I love when I get to watch someone and partake with someone speaking on things that they're passionate about, that they truly thrive in and they love. And Trish, this topic specifically today, I know I tell you guys this, I don't know if you believe me or not, maybe you do, maybe you don't, but I know this is something that lights you up and I'm excited to be here with you. Thank you for blocking your calendar for me. Thank you for getting this set up. know it's like, both of us are like a little chaotic storms. when it comes to things like this. So I know both of us were like frantically getting ready. So thank you. How are you today? And how excited are you to be here? Like just, you know. Tricia Lee Ackerman (01:24) Thanks. ⁓ Thank you. Thank you. I'm doing great. I always love it when I get to podcast with you. The Dental A Team (01:34) Thank you, thank you. I ⁓ feel like all of you ladies bring your own sense of ease to podcasting for me, which is fantastic, because then I don't feel like totally exhausted by the end, so thank you. ⁓ Something you're really phenomenal at is people, Trish. I think you read people really well. I think you read people quickly, and I think that it's very easy for you to determine. where people should sit or what they should be doing, what they're really great at. It's very easy for you to walk into a room and say, my gosh, this person is born to be a treatment coordinator. She is born to be a billing representative. you mentioned, gosh, what were we on? We were on some call this week. And you mentioned that you were a really great treatment coordinator. And I think we did it. It was on our coaching call we did together. Tricia Lee Ackerman (02:24) Yes. The Dental A Team (02:24) last week and you mentioned that you are a phenomenal treatment coordinator and is your passion and I think that reading people piece is part of that. It's part of who you are, it's part of your personality and it's part of what makes you a phenomenal consultant but also what fed into that piece of treatment coordinating for you and I think Trish if I had to read you correctly I think you love it and I think it lights you up to be able to read people and get people established in something they can be passionate about. because you can read personalities. So very easy to see why this kind of topic we're doing, know, personality versus experience when it comes to team members. Very easy to see why that was such an easy fit for me to choose you to be here today. And before we dive in too much Trish, I want to ask what, ⁓ gosh, what about reading people and being able to peg that? What do you love the most? What do you love when you walk into a room and you can say, my gosh, this, like what lights you up the most about it? Tricia Lee Ackerman (03:28) I think what lights me up the most is like I can easily target somebody who is comfortable talking. So if somebody just kind of looks like their, you know, their shoulders are down, they look like they're at ease, that's going to be a pretty easy person to go and approach. Then you have your people that smile and they obviously they still look very friendly, but there is, it's, again, Tiff, it's like they don't have something written on their forehead. So it is really a read. It's an internal emotional read that I have where it's like, you know what, that person actually probably doesn't want me just going up to them, just like starting a big conversation. And even if I do, you can read a person's body l

Kiera is joined by Derick Van Ness of Big Life Financial to talk about taxes, and how to handle them beyond simply thinking of them as a necessary evil. The pair discuss knowing your numbers, utilizing tax credits, the magic touch of a CPA, and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team Listeners, this is Kiera. And today I am super excited. This is one of our top favorite guests that has been on the podcast. We're bringing him back on because there are some new updates and our clients love him. I love him. He is incredible. Derick Van Ness, he is with Big Life Financial. And you might have heard him on the podcast before talking about R &D credits, tax saving ideas, CPA. This man does a lot of your wealth and how to build and keep your wealth. So I always love our conversations and just like his good information. Plus, if I remember right, he might know Garrett Gunderson. So obviously I've been a fangirl since day one. Derick, welcome back to the show. How are you today? Derick Van Ness (00:42) Well, I'm doing great and really happy to be here with you, Kiera. I'm not Garrett Gunderson because he is taller and better looking, but I'm a good second place. The Dental A Team (00:48) Ha ha ha! I think that you're great. The fact that you know Garrett Gunderson, that already just has elevated you. I mean, I think it was one of our first conversations we ever had. And I was like, have you ever read like Killing Sacred Cows? And you're like, I actually know Garrett Gunderson. I was like, what? Fangirling. So ⁓ anyway, Derick, for those who have not met you, haven't heard your episode, because we do have new listeners to the podcast. Just kind of give them a little intro of who is Derick Bennis? What is Big Life Financial? And give the listeners a little intro to who you are. Derick Van Ness (01:20) Okay, well outside of being ⁓ in love with my wife, in love with art and in love with racing sailboats, what I do professionally is I help ⁓ doctors and dentists to be smarter with their money. So what does that mean? That means how do you, not so much to make it, I mean we do help people scale, but once you make the money, which is something a lot of dentists are good at, how do you keep it through tax savings? How do you grow it and how do you protect it, right? And today we're going to talk a little bit about how do you keep more what you make? Because honestly, for dentists, even though taxes seem boring when you don't have to write that $50,000 or $100,000 or $200,000 check, it gets a lot cooler. If you would have told me I'd be a tax and financial guy when I was a kid, I probably would have just taken an early exit somewhere and jumped off a bridge. But I really see money in what we do as a lifestyle business. It's not about money. The Dental A Team (02:01) Yeah. Derick Van Ness (02:17) If you have enough, then money is what it is. When you don't have enough, it's a problem. And I just find for a lot of people, it's the reason or excuse that they constrain themselves. They don't spend time with family. They don't think do things that they want to do. They don't have the experiences that are going to change their life. So when we can get money out of the way, then you can live your big life, which is why the company's big life financial, because it doesn't matter if you have more or less money. The question is, what's the life you're living? What's your quality of life? And so taxes are a big piece of that. Obviously we can't talk about everything on a podcast like this, because you'd be buried under a ton of bricks. But that's what I do is I try to make this stuff easy. I try to make it fun. And I want you to realize that the whole point of all this money stuff is so that you can live a life you want to The Dental A Team (02:55) You Which Derick, that's why we have connected. You have met my husband. have had personal conversations outside of the podcast because I very much align and subscribe to this lifestyle and this mode of thinking. I believe that practices should work for us and us not work for our practices. I believe that we became business owners to have these big lives and these, audacious dreams. And yet I feel so many people live below their, their potential. They are trapped. They are. Derick Van Ness (03:33) Mm-hmm. The Dental A Team (03:34) It's crazy. I ⁓ had a client and she actually made so much money last year, which was amazing because the year before she was like, Kiera, I want to make more. So I was like, great, we're going after profit and production like blinders on. Don't talk to me about anything else. And she had like a crazy year and she's like, great. Now I have this huge check. I've got to write in taxes. And I was like, not my problem. Like you need better CPA help on that, but glad we made you the money. But I bring that up because one, it was a huge win

Chances are, your accounts receivable (AR) is not dialed in. Kiera provides very tactical, specific tips on how to get your AR cleaned up and start bringing in money you've already earned. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today is a very important topic But one the people like my rat rat rat, but guess what my rat rat rat is gonna make you a lot of money So I hope you're excited for it. So we'll take that rat rat rat into kaching Because it's dentistry party done and we're just gonna like help you out. I hope you guys enjoy hanging out with me This is my like nerdy geeky side that definitely loves and obsesses of being able to help you guys and it's been so fun I'm working with some people and teaching them about this and getting them excited on how they can fix their AR ⁓ is something that just like really, really lights my fire because doctors, you do the freaking dentistry, get paid for it. Can I get an amen out there? Like seriously, you do the dentistry and AR and making sure you're paid is something that I am so obsessed about. So, and this doesn't mean doctors, have to do it yourself. So I want us to get into the AR like the womp, womp, womp, it's annoying, but guess what? These are billing tips that work that are gonna make you a lot of money for work that you've already done. This is like people like, Kiera, how can I make more money and not do more work? And I'm like, just take the money, the what you've already done. it's crazy. lot of people come in and like, Kiera, you're really going to be able to like, ⁓ give us an ROI on your consulting. And I'm like, time. Why? Because I know your AR is out of control. have yet to meet a practice that has perfect AR. And if you are the practice email me, I'm going to give you a freaking shirt and we don't get out done on a team shirts anymore. So yeah, you should definitely email us. ⁓ there are a couple of practices out there. But most the time, AR is something that is not dialed in. It does not have a plan. And this is something that is going to be very tactical for you. So first step is AR. What is AR? It's the accounts receivable. Okay. And there's two parts to it. AR has the patient portion and the insurance portion. Okay. So when we do dentistry, we need to make sure we collect money and we bill insurance and then we make sure that we get paid for that. Now, insurance is such a sneaky little game and I get so annoyed by it I love to teach people this. So we need to have it where there's like a few processes that make AR really good. So we're gonna break it down very simply. Number one, good information in means good clean claims going out. I'm always like, we send clean claims. Clean claims mean, clean claims, clean claims. Clean claims, clean claims. ⁓ Clean claims. I'm gonna giggle saying it. I can hear the little jingle in my voice. Clean claims means that we... have the correct information. So I've got the patient's name, the date of birth, the insurance information. That's all correct. I've got the group number and please for the love of everything, holy, do not make a million group numbers. Do not do that. Make sure AR are so messy and your insurance box is so messy. We just have it. We also need to have fee schedules that are up to date every single year. Please do that. We need to attach it. We do not want write-offs. So what this means, ⁓ also another like, it's not a pet peeve. It's just like, Oh, I'm sorry. You need to like listen to the podcast and implement this. Stop reporting to me your fees in gross numbers and do it in net. So many times I get on calls with people and they're like, Kiera, we produced like 2 million, but we collected one. And I'm like, ouch. And they're like, well, like our net was like, you know, 1.2. I'm like, so tell me you produce 1.2. Let's live in real land numbers, not the 2 million. Cause you're always going to be mad at me. They're like, well, I produced 2 million, but I'm only making a million. Well, yeah. Because guess what? You didn't really produce two million. I know you want to say you did, but guess what? Insurance is what really is paying you. So we've got to do that. And I know you don't want to, but when you will do this and you attach the correct fee schedules to it, you are actually going be able to predict your numbers better and your money and your finances are going to get better on your personal side too. So hear me out. It was the worst day. was worse than Christmas getting a lump of coal. I took our production and it dropped us by 30%. And guess what? My goals are to produce 20 grand in a five out practice per day. You want to know how hard that was? I was like, I'm never going to make it. But guess what? Because I was reporting in real numbers, me even as a TC and an O.M. we were able to schedule more correctly and get us to the act

The Dental A-Team Podcast has been around for seven years, if you can believe it! Kiera reflects on her original goal with the pod, how that goal (and dentistry in general) has changed since. It's been an evolution of leadership, systems, culture, and growth, and the ball is still rolling. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:02) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and happy birthday to the Dental A Team podcast. guys, gosh, if this was a child that I would have had, Dental A Team podcast today is seven years old. We started this back in 2019. So is that right? 2020 would be one, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, seven. Guys, seven years. We've been hanging out together. Like gosh, I would have a seven year old child. Like that's insane. And I just think like, thank you. is what I is my biggest piece of ⁓ if I was blowing out the candles today, which I usually actually do. ⁓ That thank you for going on seven years of a journey. Thank you for listening to me when I used to car cast and I didn't have video and I was so new. I remember like one of my first ones was like nailing jello to a wall. And like, gosh, I just think back to don't break up with me and so many of the podcasts over the years and the guests that we've had and the people that I've met because of this podcast, like I get emotional, I get grateful of, gosh, like we just think that these things happen. We think that, it was just right time, right place, but I believe that there's something far greater than that to where all of us were working, we were being prepared, we were being put into place where it didn't just slip into place and happen. It was something that was magical, it was euphoric, and it was meant to be able to reach each other, to be able to talk to each other, to be able to serve you. to be able to have you implement and put things into your place in your practices, to be able to be right time, right place, but due to lots of preparation to be here. So if you're new to the podcast, welcome, I'm Kiera Dent. I had this crazy idea to create a podcast that helps dentists and teams come together. Being a team member myself and being a business owner, guys, like this is the perfect platform to bring that together. And I think I have such a special vantage point to be able to share with you doctor and team members perspectives. And so today I just wanted to think about like, growth doesn't happen overnight. And what the podcast was versus what the podcast has become, it's crazy to see how far we've come and how much we've evolved. You guys, have like 1100 plus episodes, never in my wildest dreams that I think I would hit record that many times and talk to you for this many years and hang out with you and travel across the globe with you. But it's one of those things of today is going to be reflecting back and a forward looking episode. And this I think very much applies to practices, team member evolution and how it goes. And I think days often feel long and years seem short. And when we can do this, we're gonna look at like, gosh, what the journey has been in seven years and how fast it goes and how slow it goes and hurdles and challenges. But you guys, this is about how we reflect on the growth we've had on our practices and how it's gonna be able to serve you guys moving forward. So as we go through this truly, I hope that today, I don't know, just wrap your arms around yourself, give you a giant hug and pretend that's me giving you a hug. a hug for listening, a hug for sharing, hug for ⁓ leaving reviews, a hug for ⁓ giving ideas, a hug for sharing in Facebook groups where we glean information, a hug for ⁓ being a pen pal to me, a hug for ⁓ allowing me a space to share my life to the podcast. It's been something where I will wake up in the middle and I'm like, my gosh, I got a great idea. I'm gonna go like podcasts this of sharing tips and tricks and things that I feel you guys would really benefit and serve. So just giving you like, Just give a squeeze because I adore you. love you and I'm so grateful for this. So as we reflect back, ⁓ I think oftentimes we see growth as much easier if we look back, right? Like little kids, you don't see them growing day on day and day. But when you measure on a wall, you're able to see the growth. And it's like, wow, we have this. And so when I started the podcast, my goal was like, let's give teams, let's give tactical. And we stayed that stayed true. ⁓ But over time it's expanded and I recognize the needs of practices. mean, hashtag COVID, things changed, it became radical. We went through the great migration together. We've gone through team members and the evolution of hiring and firing and culture and going from like dentists and to where it's like, wow, we aren't just here at Basic. We're now looking at CEOs and we're running these multimillion dollar businesses. We've got startup practices. I

Why is it so difficult for doctors to delegate, even when it so obviously impacts the team? Kiera and Dana discuss the art of delegation, and where it overlaps with clear expectations and accountability. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and I love when I get the consultants to podcast with me. And today I got the one and only Dana, I actually have a better nickname than Danie for you. I've like upgraded. I really do think you're Dynamite Dana. And so welcome to the show. Dynamite Dana. Like you just are dynamite in so many ways, so many areas. People love you. I know people are like donuts with Dana. That one was really catchy and clever, but I think like dynamite Dana is who I'm going to stick with. So how are you today there? Dynamite Dana. The Dental A Team (00:27) Doing good. I'm glad you found one that felt right. The Dental A Team (00:29) I mean, I still love Dainty so much and that will probably always forever remain. ⁓ But Dana, truly you're a dynamite consultant and I've watched you evolve and it's like, ⁓ you were on the podcast with me last time where you took a practice from negative profitability to multi profitability in just a couple of months. And I think the dynamic and dynamite ability you have so like dynamic doesn't feel as cool as dynamite, but it's because you're this dynamic player and you're able to help teams, help doctors, help offices. The Dental A Team (00:33) You The Dental A Team (00:58) And really it's, think like role clarity, like really focusing on top priorities. And I think that that's like the clutch piece of consulting. If I like boil down what two consultants do differently is yes, we have this like Mary Poppins bag of tricks, but I think the piece is we know which Mary Poppins tool and prioritization and piece based on the numbers, based on the goals need to happen. And I think you're very, very dynamic and dynamite and being able to do that. So excited to have you on the show today. The Dental A Team (01:26) Yeah, I'm really excited to be here. I haven't podcast in a while with you, so it's going to be fun. The Dental A Team (01:31) great time girl. think our last one was talking about your transformation practice. So today's gonna be fun because I think that this is a topic you and I see often is like doctors struggle, teams struggle to delegate and they struggle to have like role clarity and I'm even guilty of this. Like I've watched myself like it's crazy when I have these podcast topics and I'm like hi it's me I know I'm the problem I know I'm hanging on to these issues I know I'm causing this chaos and so I kind of wanted to like talk about why doctors struggle to delegate, why we get into this like bottleneck, and then what it can look like on the other side and how we've been able to help doctors. Like, I know you've got a couple in mind. I've got a couple in mind of what does it look like when we start to trust that process? So Dana, from your perspective, why do you feel like doctors don't delegate and we like bottleneck and we hold on or like owners and founders and office managers? Like, what is that? Like we know we're bottlenecking. Like it's annoying to me. I'm like, I know I'm having a temper tantrum and I don't know how to stop it. Like I know I'm not delegating. I know I'm holding on. know I'm freaking like failing over here. What, like, why do think this is a rift? What are your thoughts? The Dental A Team (02:32) I I will say I feel like Dr. Personality is like a doer, right? They're so used to like to get to become a dentist, right? You have to have succeeded thus far in life. And I do feel like that in order to kind of get where they are, they've had to kind of always do right work really hard, hit the books really hard, hit the clinic really hard. And so I do feel like it's kind of ingrained in them just as humans is that they want to do all of the things. And I also think that there's a misconception of leadership. And being a good leader means doing all things, making all the decisions, having everyone lean on you for everything. The Dental A Team (03:07) Yeah, I love that you say that because ⁓ there's a book that, gosh, I should look up the name of it. mean, like, I really will actually, guys. Like, if you're watching, don't worry, I'm ⁓ looking this up right now. ⁓ But it's like the founder mindset. And I think so many of us, it's the founder's mentality, how to overcome the predictable crisis of growth. And I think about this book often because like you said, it's a... what you have always done won't get you where you need to go. And like those habits and those patterns and the different pieces, it's this, like you said, like you had to work hard in dental school. You guys, watched you. Like I worked at a dental college. ⁓ We watched you be this person. And also there's a perfectionis

Are you providing your patients with a 5-star treatment? It starts with your front office. Kiera breaks down what a full rollout of peak client care looks like, identifying five different points to utilize as soon as that patient walks through the door (or calls). Episode resources: 5 Star Treatment Planning Document Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera. And today, I am so excited. Today is gonna be one of my absolute favorite topics, and it is getting more patients to say yes to treatment. You guys, I obsess about this, and I talk about it a lot, and I just feel that these are some really good things. And so I wanted to go through our five-star treatment planning process with you today, so that way you guys are able to help more patients say yes, be able to maximize your practice. Because at the end of the day, a patient who comes into your practice, they want to do dentistry. There is a treatment coordinator that I worked with for years and she always says like, Kiera, my thoughts are when I go in and I treatment plan, like the reason is patients are gonna say yes to me because they're at the practice, they want to get this help. And I just think having that mindset helps so much. And so this is a five-star treatment planning and we've actually created it for the entire practice. And one I'm gonna go through is, specific and then we actually broke it down for our front office team, our clinical team and our doctors of this process of five star treatment planning. And what's really fun is when we implement this into a practice, we do a full rollout with the team. And then what we do is actually once they complete it, they actually get to check off their stars. And there's actually way you can become five star certified in Dental A Team. So if you're new to the podcast, welcome. I'm Kiera. Dent really is my last name. I'm obsessed with all things dentistry and I'm obsessed with teams and doctors having their best life possible. Our team is so committed to you, to your practice, to making sure that you are thriving and not just surviving. And so really giving you guys tips and tricks that you can go implement into your practice to help more patients say yes, to be able to help your team be so thorough and so productive and really making life easier. So we love to hear from you. I love pen pals. You can always reach out [email protected]. And if you're ever curious of, I wonder what consulting could look like in my practice. Be sure to book a call. It's complimentary. We go through your practice with you. We assess your practice. We give you a roadmap, whether you work with us or don't, to make sure that you are always being able to positively impact your team, your life, and your community. Because our goal is to positively impact the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. So with that, five-star treatment planning. So these are the quick five stars that we go. And like I said, then it's broken down more in depth of what each department needs to do. ⁓ The first one is going to be more for front office team members. And it also can be for clinical team if we're actually having them present treatment in the back. And so the first star is when we go into it, we're going to smile and assume the yes. So before we even walk into the room, we have confidence. We know that we're going to go into it. We know that we're going to have patients say yes to us and we smile. We are going to assume that the patient wants to do dentistry. Why are we going through and saying like, my gosh, this is a big case. my gosh. I don't know if they're going to accept. my gosh. my gosh. Stop that. Why are we doing that? There's absolutely no reason to do that. Patients are at the dental practice and just because they don't love the dentist doesn't mean that they don't want to have healthy mouths and healthy teeth and being able to have confidence. I say our mouths are the coolest thing ever. We get to smile with them. We get to talk with them. We get to eat with it. Like there's so much value to it. Like it truly is, I think, the gateway to our confidence. It's the gateway to our health. And so being able to help patients have that. So I'm always going to assume, like my mantra is, everyone says yes to Kiera and there's always a solution and we will find it together. So we go in and we have that and we're going to assume the yes. We also gonna use what I call the three E's and that is edification, empathy and energy. So I'm gonna watch the patient and I'm going to edify the doctor, which is star number two. I'm going to have empathy for what they're going through and not just assume it's run of the mill, just because it's a crown for us, doesn't mean that that might be life altering for our patients. But we're not going to put negativity out there. We're still going to be able to have em

Key Performance Indicators (or KPIs)! By establishing KPIs in your practice, you find ways to remove the emotion that doesn't need to be there. Tiff and Kristy explain how KPIs drive a practice — and how to implement them if you haven't started yet. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are back again today and I say we again because I've got Miss Kristy here with me. You guys know how much I love her and podcasting with her is just, I told her today, like I just, you bring a sense of calm and it's great and letting it be on a, like Thursday afternoon, this is kind of cool for me ⁓ and ending my week. I've got, you know, we've got things to do tomorrow, ending calls with this is really, really cool. So Kristy, thank you so much for being here today. How are you? The Dental A Team (00:29) Good and you? The Dental A Team (00:31) I'm good, thank you. ⁓ I'm... I was gonna say that, like what the heck? I'm so glad you're here though because, you know, this time last year you were here in snow and ice and I'm so glad you're here but it is cold and I heard you guys, record these, this is January right now, it'll be released in February but it's like so cold. It's like 43 degrees in the morning here and us Arizona women are just not used to that so. The Dental A Team (00:34) It's cold for Arizona. The Dental A Team (01:01) I agree and there's supposed to be ice and snow coming, not for us, we get rain, thank goodness, but I'm like, that's why we live here, so we don't have to deal with ice and snow. yeah, puts a little damper on travel, so we'll see. We'll see how that goes, but I am glad that you're here. This is the time of year that everybody comes and visits. February is a massive, massive time to be in Arizona. In March, we've got spring training games going, we've got... Waste Management Open, we've got, oh my gosh, every weekend there's a taco festival or something going on. So this is the prime time to be in Arizona. If you wanna come visit, tell us that you're coming and we'll be happy to give you some suggestions. Kristy, we talk about these a lot and I'm excited because I know you actually thrive in this world a ton. You make decisions based on these. are phenomenal at projections. four practices and the world of KPIs, which you guys, for those of you who don't know, key performance indicators, those are the indicators within your practice that tell you how you're performing. I had years and years and years ago now, like way too long to even count, I had a manager one time and she said, Tiff, I want you to start joining the KPI meetings on Thursdays with the CPA doc and I. And I said, okay. And then I ran over to my computer and I was like, Google, what is KPI? What does KPI mean? I was like, I'll be there. That sounds great. This is like growth for me. You're putting me in. I was like, yep, I'll be there. And then I was like, what does this mean? So if you don't know what it means, you're not using them, you are not alone. I had to Google that once upon a time. And that was before Chat GPT. I feel like I would have been so much better off if I had that to break it down for me. But alas, here we are. And Kristy, I love KPIs. I love black and white decision making. I love any opportunity we have that we can remove some emotion. from a decision, especially in the dental industry. We have a lot of emotions in the dental industry and being able to remove those and say that yes or no something is or isn't working. And my favorite piece of that is when we do that, Kristy, I think it gives us the opportunity to tackle the system and not make it personal about the person. Like it might not be that you suck. it's that the system's not working or we're not using it correctly. And if that's the case, I'm fine. We start using it correctly or we alter it. But I think, Kristy, it makes me feel a lot better about accountability and about KPIs and just about leading teams when it's less about a feeling and a person and more about the system. So I'm excited. Kristy, tell me, why do you love KPIs? The Dental A Team (03:41) Yeah, for the same reason, Tip, because so many times we see people focused on the wrong thing. And when you really dial into the metrics, they start to tell a story, right? And sometimes even metrics can look a little bit deceiving, but that's why I like to say the numbers start to tell a story. And then we get to dig into it and figure out the story. So, you know, just in saying that, I think if I wasn't doing what I was doing, I would be some kind of detective. And I mean, The Dental A Team (04:09) I think you would too. The Dental A Team (04:10) Maybe that's why it's so exciting for me, but like, and it's truth, right? The numbers don't lie. And so a lot of times we have misperceptions on things and that's the human aspect. So to give grace on us, and I also f

This episode is all about the power of a phone call, and how you can maximize it. Kiera goes into the formula for phone call success, and how it will boost your patients' interactions with your practice. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and gosh, I decided to shake up the background and hang out in my house and have you come hang out with me. And so if you're watching this, welcome. This is the studio. This is where I live. This is where I hang out and just trying a couple different things. I really obsessed about making this podcast a space where you feel like you're hanging out with me in my living room. And we're just sitting here. chatting shop, we're sitting here talking about all things dentistry. And today I wanted to just go through a quick episode with you guys of how we can improve our conversion rates. So there's a couple quick levers of how we can improve our calls, our being able to get our forms and documents and being able to do this without spending more time because that's something that we all wanna do. And so ⁓ I think it's a lot of times like how can we convert our calls better? How can we get things done a little bit more efficiently? Do we do AI? Do we not do AI? And so. I really feel like just small improvements. You guys know on Dental A team, I'm obsessed about small little improvements done to create efficiencies. I remember I was in a practice and they said, ⁓ okay, Kiera, like come on in, we wanna see you. And I went in and we were able to add about 13,000 to their practice. And they were like, Kiera, what did you do? I'm like, what did I do? It was just very simple, easy things. was, ⁓ we had patients stop at the front desk and start making their payments so we were able to make our collections higher. We had them doing a handoff to their team of what were the next steps. So that way the patient felt confident of what they were doing next. ⁓ and we just scheduled patients. We assumed the yes. And those are not hard things. Those are not sexy things. Those things are just things that are going to help you guys tremendously. And so today it's like, let's figure out how we can convert a few more things. So. Dental A Team is truly a company where I believe that growing and having sustainable growth comes from optimizing before we spend more. And I know that it feels so. Alluring and something that I want to do is I want to spend more and I want to get the magic pill and the reality is that you can probably get the exact same results with minimal effort if we just optimize a little things and so figuring out how we can catch more missed calls or how we can convert more new patients or figuring out how we can get more patients to say yes to treatment is something that's really really fun A Team's podcast is tactical, practical, implementable. That's how we operate. That's how we like to consult. And I love working with practices. I love being able to see you guys ⁓ in your offices, being able to do things, ⁓ being able to just live your best life. Life is our passion. Dentistry is our platform. So, all right, you guys ready to dig in? Because I'm ready to dig in. The number one thing is, let's talk about our phone calls and optimizing our phone calls. because that is our number one zone. And I think it's crazy how much we spend on marketing to get these new patients and how much we work on having a great patient experience. And then we have our newest trained person that knows nothing about our practice answering our most important phone calls. And so things on this are like when we miss phone calls or we don't handle a phone call correctly, those are little lost opportunities. And this isn't to rag on our front office team. We're busy. You guys, I've sat in the front office. I prioritize the patient in front of me over the phone. And so what are some little things that we can do? And there are softwares. There's like patient prism and they're like, I pretty sure with weave, they have them where we can actually track and monitor and see our, ⁓ our phone calls and see how we're doing. But we want to just help our front office team. Like it is crazy. Jason, husband told me, ⁓ he was like, yeah, I, Kiera, if you don't like what someone tells you at a practice, just wait, call back and you'll get someone else and you'll get a different answer. And I think about that in practices and how often are we possibly doing this? How often is our practice maybe. doing it where we actually are having Susie follow protocol and Sarah isn't and therefore Susie is undercut, but Sarah was trying to do what's right. They're both trying to do what's right. So this is where we're at front office teams. Let's make sure we're all saying the same thing. So no matter if they get Sarah or Susie or Kiera or Jason or John, every single one of them is the exac

Re-releasing a DAT listener favorite! News flash: Setting goals for yourself isn't selfish! In fact, Kiera encourages you to set personal, then professional goals. In this episode, she talks about why it's important to think about yourself a bit more, why taking personal time helps you AND your team, and the best way to actually set those goals. Say the things you want to have; be clear about the life you want. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, literally thousands of episodes. And I wanted to start bringing a few of these amazing episodes back for you. So I hope you enjoy. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time. on the Dental A Team podcast. The Dental A Team (00:31) You guys, I hope today's an awesome day for you. I hope you're doing something great for you. Hope you're loving on your teams, giving them compliments, telling them how great they're doing, being very specific and intentional. And I hope you are just remembering that you are working in the best profession, in my opinion, that you could ever, ever, ever ask for. That's right. I believe that dentistry is the greatest profession any of us could ever work in. And I feel truly blessed and honored that we get to work and serve and Give back to a community that I am obsessed with. So with that said, guys, please be sure to leave us a review if you have not done so. Yes, I'm talking to you. I don't know your name, but I'm talking to you. Please go leave us a review. I know you've been a podcast listener for so long. Please help us out. Help us grow our podcast and serve and give to to more people. Guys, it's very simple. Whatever device you're listening to you scroll down to the bottom. There's a spot where you can either write an actual review or just leave the star rating. So please help us out. Keeping us at that five stars and giving back has been really, really beneficial. And then we're able to rank higher on the dental. When people search for dental podcasts, we're able to rank higher and help and serve more people. With that said guys, I want to talk about why as teams and owners, it's important for you to set goals for you. That's right. I think oftentimes we get so obsessed with setting goals for our practice that we forget that it's okay to set goals for the life that we want to have, for the life and the practice that we want to have. Not the one that we think we should have, but the one we genuinely want to have. What happens with that is so often I was actually just talking to a doctor and he said, you know, I really, really, really want to have where I only work three days a week. but I'm concerned that that's going to impact the team's goals of being able to grow and produce more since I'm such a strong producer. Okay. Number one, kudos to this doctor for loving on his team so much that he wanted to make sure his team was successful. Also with that said, I have found that when you are setting goals for yourself personally, you're much happier and you want to work harder. And also docs, if you just tell us what your goal is, we as team members get to become insanely. Yep. You got it. innovative. So we get to come up with it like this office. The office manager said, Hey, that's fine if you want to do this, because guess what? That gives us an opportunity to come up with different ways to change our insurances, to look for ways making sure that we have our fees exactly where they actually should be. It's going to eliminate patients who don't want to be paying for the services that we're offering. I love that this office manager took it on as a challenge. of how she could actually reach the goals that the practice is set while also reaching the goals that the doctor had for themselves. So for you guys, it's really that thought process of how can we actually achieve the goals that we want? Want? Yes, I said it, want. I want you to achieve the goals that you want. ⁓ And so with that said, making sure that you're setting goals for you. Now, sometimes I think that we feel selfish. We feel like, well, who am I to deserve this? But the answer is you're a person. You're a person of worth. You're a person who actually deserves to have the life you want if you want to have it. Or you can sit in a victim mentality and say, well, this is just the life it's going to be and I have to do this and I have to do that. Well, fantastic. You're welcome to stay in that mindset, but that's actually not true. You don't have to do anything. You

A practice won't truly thrive until its team members are aligned and attached to your company's purpose. Tiff and Kristy go into what it takes to gain collective buy-in from those who keep your practice humming, including being reminded of fundamental desires, embracing vulnerability, understanding motivators, and a ton more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. I'm so excited for you to be here today. You know, I'm always excited. I love podcasting. I have loved doing this over the course of all of the years that Kiera and I have been putting these out. They are so much fun. It is so cool to reach you guys and it is amazing to get the time in with our consultants. And I'm bringing her live to you, well not live, I guess. It's live for me. It's recorded for you. But I'm bringing her all this month for you because... We just busted them out in one day, if I'm honest with you, Kristy. Thank you for being here. Thank you for blocking your afternoon for podcasting with me. And I'm excited for this topic. How are you and how excited are you for this topic? The Dental A Team (00:41) Excited and I'm doing well. It's not 49 degrees in the morning. It's actually 71 here Oh 72 now, so know that's a little chilly to us, but I'm excited the sun's shining and We get our time together. So I'm excited The Dental A Team (00:49) ⁓ That's fair. I love walks and I was doing morning walks until like mid December and I was like, I can't, I don't know if it's because I'm an Arizona girl or if it's because I have, you know, thyroid stuff and Hashimoto's, but that chill, as soon as it hits my body, I'm done for. You don't want to be around me. You don't want to know me. And so I have not been going outside in the morning nor later in the evening because that Arizona desert does something different when that sun goes down. So very happy to hear 71. Those are my, I really, think my sweet spot is like 73 to 76. That's my ideal. So if we can find a place that's always 73 to 76, I say we jet. That's where we're going. We just stay there. So I love this topic today because, I mean, I love every topic we go through, because you tend to really spin it for me and make everything fun. ⁓ But I love the emotional side of life and the buy-in side, and today really talking about how to get teams bought into your big why. And I like that because I love purpose. I like everyone to have a purpose. And I think when a practice owner knows what they're after, they have their purpose, it allows the team to then see their purpose within that that why within the owner's purpose. And we actually talked about this a little bit. Now that I say that, it's like I've repeated that we talked about this at the Mastermind in September. And it was actually fun. Anyone who was there will hopefully remember maybe recap will remind you. But Kira was talking we were talking about writing their why's like what are they doing? What's their purpose? And Kiera spoke about hers and it was really really emotional because Kiera and I get emotional it was fun to see for her how her purpose and her why came to life when she spoke about it because I think it morphed a little bit as she was saying it but then it was really fun because she was able to see how my purpose is fulfilled within her purpose in that I think for owners, it's scary to think that your team has a drive or a why or a want, and it can feel like everyone wants to be an entrepreneur. And if they have their own thing, they're gonna leave. And some of them will, that will happen. I've seen, I had a practice. The Dental A Team (03:34) Hmm. The Dental A Team (03:39) She was there in September. She'll remember, she'll know exactly what I'm talking about. I had a practice, I went, we did a stellar meeting. ⁓ it was so much fun. So much fun. She has the best practice, she has the best why. She's just an incredible human. Two days later, ⁓ she had a team member quit because she wanted to open up her own business and she wanted to do hair. And the inspiration from talking about why's and talking about what are we doing with our lives. prompted her to quit and start a hair salon. She just, I was like, I am sorry and not sorry at the same time. So it can happen. And I think that's the fear for a lot of people. But watching Kira open up and then watching Kira get so emotional over how my why and my purpose is fulfilled within what I do, within my position. The Dental A Team (04:15) Yeah. The Dental A Team (04:33) it was like something morphed and changed for her and we all got to see it as like this butterfly effect. But I say that because I can't, I can have my own purpose and my own why, we all do. But when you can see how it aligns with the company that you're working with and how you can serve your purpose and your why within the job that you're in, that's really cool. And I think

Re-releasing a DAT listener favorite! Dr. Dave Moghadam joins Kiera to discuss getting your hygiene team on the same page and at the same point of understanding. He shares his approach, and goes deeper into the following: Gather all information and establish a flow of procedure Hold a longer meeting for your hygiene team to review and add their own ideas Allow a period of follow-up for questions Transition into monthly or quarterly meetings to continually update Dr. Moghadam utilized the Dental A-Team's hygiene course to help him come up with this approach to calibrate his hygienist team. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: speaker-0 (00:05) Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent, and I have this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective, because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, filler, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled to over 165 different offices coaching teams. Yep, we don't just understand you, we are you. Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental. And I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A-Teams. Welcome to the Dental A Team Podcast. Hello Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And you guys, I am so excited to bring back on one of my favorite guests, one of your favorite guests, somebody who is in the real life with you guys. He is a practicing dentist, rocks our office. I've known him for quite a while. And he's a man that creates systems, implements and executes. And today I'm jazzed to bring him back on. Dr. Dave Moghadam, how are you today? speaker-1 (01:13) Wonderful, Kiera. Thanks for having me back. appreciate it. It's gonna be a blast as always. speaker-0 (01:17) It's gonna be great if you guys have not heard his other ones we've talked about we've gone from acquiring practices Bringing on associate doctors. We've talked about team quarterly calibrations and now we're gonna dive into something that you started I actually think you started it maybe COVID maybe you're doing it pre-covid ⁓ But but it's going to be diving into hygiene calibration, which I think is so relevant. I mean right now hi, Janice are like more Harder to find than unicorns in my opinion. They're like real real tricky But we just know that they're real. I think it's a great time actually to bring this in. So Dave, kind of walk us through, like I said, you're practicing, Dennis, this is your real life. This is what you're doing really in your practice, which is why I love having on the podcast. So kind of take us away on this hygiene calibration, how you even got the idea for it, what spurred that. I'd love to hear. speaker-1 (02:08) Yeah, so I think as far as like, how did this come about? What was the situation? Everything like that. Some of the key things that were happening were I had focused a lot on a lot of the rest of the practice, like a lot on systemize this, do this, let's grow and everything else was just really just taking off. But the one thing year after year after year that was kind of like fairly consistent, not really like, my God, really, you know, growing was the hygiene department. So I started to look into things of, how can we just improve? And I always feel like if we improve some of the other basic stuff, the numbers fall. So I think a lot of the things that I was ⁓ looking to do was just getting some consistency, make sure everybody's on the same page. At that point, had gotten, yeah, this was about two years ago. So we had just gotten a new hygienist to join our team who's been with us ⁓ since then. We had another hygienist who was only there a day a week at that time. So it was kind of a little difficult to try and get everything all buttoned up. the way I went about it was one, I first took the big chunk of what we had in our operations manual, such as protocols, expectations, standards, record keeping, all that stuff. And then the other thing is I contacted you and I said, Hey, what do you have for this? Because we're all going to be on our butts for a while when the world closed down for a little bit. we went through the hygiene course. I took some, some pearls from there. tried to organize things a little bit more. Uh, we did a little bit of coaching with, Tiffany as well, uh, virtually then. So we basically, the, outline for this, you know, it was basically protocols standards, you know, what ⁓ record keeping, know, what if you encounter some hiccups with patients, you know, as far as, know, those types of situations, ⁓ you know, what's the appointment flow like, what's the communication, like what are the key points that we want to hit on, ⁓ t

Do you want your patients to feel confident and cared for and to become raving fans about your practice? Kiera takes listeners through specific steps to help practices refine what their patients go through upon entering to exiting your office. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I'm excited for a quick tactical practical tip for you guys that I just think is magical. And I'll start with like a story about it to kind of kick us off. ⁓ Jason and I, we just recently went to Ruth's Chris. We decided we were gonna do a day date and Jason and I, went to the spa. I convinced him to go to the spa. He's not like obsessed about it, but really loved in like the hot tub room that they actually turned on a football game for him. So. I don't know how the spa gods were on my side that day, but they definitely were. And then we decided to go to Ruth's Chris. And if you guys are familiar with Ruth's Chris, ⁓ it's ⁓ an amazing steakhouse. And ⁓ I noticed when we went in there, there was just a different vibe. And I've been very obsessive about high-end restaurants, reading the book, Unreasonable Hospitality. I think I'm more aware of it. If you guys haven't read that book, I definitely recommend putting that on your book wish list. And what was interesting is, When we came in, they said, hi, Mr. and Mrs. Dent, great to see you. And they took us back to our table and the waitress was so kind to us. And she said, here's this information. What information do you guys need? There were seat spot for us. The busser came through and was like, we really love working with people like you. You guys just make our life so much easier. They're like, here, let's just box this up for you. You made great choices for you. They had all of our stuff boxed for us. The presentation was beautiful. They didn't come by and they weren't annoying to us, but they were so genuine to us. And then as we were leaving, they said, thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Dent. And they knew all about us. Okay. So that was one experience. Another experience has been Jason and I were in Bali and we went to the four seasons and I remember if you've been to Bali, you'll understand. Jason and I both got Bali belly. And if you haven't heard mine was, I got it on our flight home. I've never in all my years of flying, knock on wood, I've never once thrown up ever on a plane. Mine is my flight home that was a nice nine hour flight from Taiwan to San Francisco. And I threw up and had diarrhea the entire freaking time of that flight. I had thrown up about 13 times in two hours and I figured out, if I can make a system for this, like it was hold the vomit bag, go to the bathroom and brush my teeth all at the same time. I realized you can create a system for anything. So that's a little bit beside the point. So I'm here to tell you about great experiences. But at the four seasons, they were top notch. They had an app. They would text us. When I asked them like, hey, you guys have any medicine? They're like, ⁓ we don't have medicine. Here's the pharmacy. We can get it for you. We'll have it to your room. They had it to our room for us. They brought different things for us because they knew that we were sick. They had a turndown service for us. They paid attention to our likes. Our wants, made sure everything was done every single night for us. It was one of the most incredible experiences. And I think about it, like people are like, Kiera, you traveled all over the world. You've gone to Antarctica. You go to these places. And I'm like, Bali, even though I threw up for eight hours on my flight home. Bollywood one of my most amazing experiences and I'm like, what was it? Like it was how I felt at Four Seasons. It was how I felt of everybody was so happy for us to be there. They were so grateful for us to be there. People would say hello to us. They knew our names as we walked through. And ⁓ I've just been paying attention to like Ruth's Chris was recent. The Four Seasons was another one. And then I think about other experiences that maybe weren't as great. I think about... Hotels Jason and I we flew home. We missed a flight coming home from an international flight So we had to snag a hotel the only hotel available for us was a hotel I will not say But it was we'll just say a budget-friendly hotel and I remember we checked in and no one was there They weren't happy to see us. They were annoyed to see us the shuttle. I'm not joking you It was supposed to be there in 15 minutes We waited two hours to get our shuttle and they kept telling us one's on the way one's on the way. They were like you need to call this person By the time we got there our bed was dirty The bathroom was broken. And I just thought, man, I remember that experience. I don't remember the Four Seasons experience, but which one do I want to go back to? Which one do I t

This episode is all about the (sometimes surprising) benefits of comprehensive financing! Kristy breaks down why putting together a FULL plan for health will help patients and your practice in the long run. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. Thank you so much for being here. I want you to know that the Dental A Team, we truly, truly love what we do. And I wanna start this out by just thanking all of you for allowing us to be here. I know we're with you in your car or while you're getting ready in the morning or while you're falling asleep at night, I don't know, maybe in your team meeting, but we're here with you somewhere or I wouldn't be able to say this and we value and appreciate that, the consulting team specifically. We love what we do, we love helping clients, we love helping people, we love helping practices and practice owners build a business that works for them and not them always working for the business. So I'm just super excited to be here today. I wanted to just shout out you guys, massive thank you for the support that you give us, that you continue to bring to us and just know we're here. Dental A Team is here for all of your needs and just reach out, [email protected] anytime you need us. And I have with me today, Kristy, Miss Kristy, I adore you. Thank you so much for being here. I said on a different podcast we recorded that we have a slew of time together today and I'm just, I love it. It is the best way to end a call week. So thank you, Kristy, for being here with me today. How are you? And I'm excited because I think you're really excited about this topic. So how are you doing, Kristy? The Dental A Team (01:17) Yeah, I'm doing well. I'm grateful to have time with you. We don't always get time during the week, so I'm getting some extra Tiff time and it feels good to end the week this way. The Dental A Team (01:30) I agree. I agree. I committed recently, just so everyone knows, to being more intentional about my one-on-one time with the consultants. it really made me not just podcasting, but like actual one-on-one time. But it made me think yesterday while I was going through the schedule, kind of figuring it out, it made me think of doctors too and practices. And this is not in alignment with our, get to it, we'll get to profit in a second, but it is kind of in alignment with profit because We tend to forget, we just get in the machine of doing and in the machine of business and we forget that there's people and that you're not the only one who's busy or stressed or what have you and that the team is counting on you, the team needs you. So my leads and my doctors, it's just like a friendly nudge, a friendly reminder that if you're feeling stressed, you probably need to open up some time in your schedule to insert some team time. And while we push our clients to do one-on-ones, I do one-on-ones every month. with our consultants, but sometimes you just need one-on-one time that's not a one-on-one. You know what I mean? You just need connection. And that's what I call it, is I call it our connection time. So we have our one-on-ones, and then we have our connection time. And I think in office, it's a little bit easier, because you guys are side-by-side and you're talking, but still, to just have that 10, 15 minutes, it's like, hey girl, tell me how your life is. What's new? What's going on? And really connect with people. It's my strong nudge to remind you guys to give the kudos, give the connection, and make time for the people who are there doing this with you. So, Kristy, thank you. Thank you for bringing that up. And I am thoroughly enjoying this because I've had so much Kristy time and I get time tomorrow morning. So I am really enjoying this week and it really lights my life up. So thank you. Now. The Dental A Team (03:17) You're welcome. I was going to tell you, I love that you say that and I truly do believe this does tie to profits. And I know in practice we're super, super busy. I like to call it, go break bread with your people. Like be intentional with the time, even if you have to combine it, go break bread, take them out, get the work done on reviewing what you need to review, but then connect as people. And I do think that that reaps rewards in your profits because The Dental A Team (03:24) I agree. The Dental A Team (03:47) The teams that do this are more connected and they jive together. So I do think it ties together. The Dental A Team (03:53) I agree, thank you, I agree. Now tell me, Kristy, we've got quick tips to increase profit, and honestly, this is a quick tip to increase profit. We'll get you a couple more, but Kristy, tell me, because I agree, I think the connection does, but what about the connection do you think it is that does help the profit? It does help people really be on the same page and same team? What is th

Kiera is joined by Alexis Gallati, founder and lead tax strategist at Cerebral Tax Advisors, to talk about tax strategy not just for 2025 success, but 2026 and beyond. They discuss asking your CPA the right questions, shifting income from your higher tax bracket down, the Augusta rule, and a ton more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today I am super jazzed. I have an incredible guest joining us on the podcast today ⁓ to talk about last minute tax strategies before April 15th. Like why not? I mean, hey, maybe you were like, you're not the early bird. You were like, shoot, I forgot. Like what things can I do? And so I'm super excited. Alexis Gallati, she reached out to us. ⁓ She is founder and lead tax strategist at Cerebral Tax Advisors. Ansari Real Wealth Academy. And I was so excited about this topic because I know you guys know I love to geek out about this and I have it on my vision board of tax expert ahead. Like I hate taxes. I love taxes. I believe that taxes are such a beautiful way for us to pay to be in this incredible country. But you better believe I don't want to pay a penny more than I need to. So really figuring that out just a little bit about her is she is got a dual master's degree in business administration and taxation, which is super rad because Let's be real, she gets the business side of it. She gets the taxation and we were chatting before and she was like, what people make like their top line revenue versus their take home pay are two different things. And I was like, amen sister, preach on. She's enrolled agent, NTPI fellow and certified tax strategist. She also is the author of advanced tax planning for medical professionals. She specializes in high level strategic tax planning and multi-state tax preparation for healthcare professionals and business owners. She's raised in a family of physicians and married to one. She empathizes with the financial challenges medical professionals face. This personal connection inspired her to create accessible, unbiased tax solutions tailored to their busy lives. Driven by passion and guided by cerebral thinking, Alexis forms Cerebral to help professionals keep more of their hard earned money. Amen sister. That's what we want. That's why you're here. Their approach breaks the mold of traditional financial advice, offering a unique perspective for medical professionals and business owners. So while yes, she's not 1000 % dental guys were in the healthcare world and she's so brilliant. So Alexis, welcome to the show today. How are you? Alexis Gallati (01:54) Thank you so much for having me. I'm doing very well. Hope you had a wonderful holiday season. The Dental A Team (01:58) Yes, likewise. And I was so excited when I heard that you would be a guest on our podcast. I geek out about this, Alexis, I know it's like our first day meeting, but ⁓ I just think the world of tax is such the game of monopoly. And I'm like, if you would have just told me that rule, I could have played and won the game better. But I feel like it's always as ever changing, ever evolving. And I know there were some big things that happened in 2025 that are impacting like our our taxes. And so, yeah, definitely a timely and exciting podcast to throw out there. So Alexis, I know I gave you a very welcomed ⁓ bio and intro, but yeah, tell us a little bit about who is Alexis. You're married to a physician. You're in this world of tag. How does one become obsessive about CPA? I'm truly just curious. How do you like, how does this happen? How did you become this? Alexis Gallati (02:49) Yeah, so I love law and I love money. And so when I was in undergrad, I took a tax and accounting class and loved more the tax side than the accounting side, I do admit. And so after meeting my husband in college and us starting to go through that full medical journey, was about a year and a half out from him. The Dental A Team (02:54) you Alexis Gallati (03:18) from him finishing his residency. And I really saw the writing on the wall. Even at that time, with him being in residency, about four months of his salary was going towards taxes. And I was like, that's not right. That's not right. With The Dental A Team (03:36) No. Alexis Gallati (03:38) hard he works and how hard medical community works in general. ⁓ my gosh, that's not right. So that's when I really dedicated myself to finding out, why do the Warren Buffets and the Bill Gates of the world have this really low to sometimes non-existent tax bracket? And I really dove into that tax planning. ⁓ And so, you know, what's very unique about, ⁓ you know, the way that I work and my business is that my husband and I are in the same exact position as majority of our clients. And so, yes, I'm looking for strategies for my clients, but I'm also looking for those strategies for myself. The Dental

Kiera is joined by the tooth-healer himself, Jason Dent! Jason has an extensive background in pharmacy, and shares with Kiera where his pharmaceutical experience has bled over into dentistry. This includes the difference between anti-quag and anti-platelet and which medications are probably safe, what to do to shorten the drag time in the pharmacy, how to write prescriptions most efficiently, and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today is a really awesome and unique day. It is, think the second time I've had somebody in the podcast studio with me live for a podcast and it's the one and only Jason Dent. Jason, how are you? I'm doing well. Good morning. Thanks for having me. It is crazy. I I watch Instagram real like this all the time where people are like in the podcast and they're hanging out on two chairs and couches and now look at us. We're doing it. Cheers. Cheers. That was a mic cheer for those of you who are only listening, but yeah, Jace, how does this feel to be on the podcast? It's weird. Like I was not nervous at all talking about it. I got really nervous as soon as you hit play. So if I stumble over my words, please forgive me ahead of time. Well, Jason, I appreciate you being on the podcast because marketing had asked me to do a topic about teledentistry and I was like, oh shoot, that's like not my forte at all. so You and I were actually chatting in the hot tub. call it Think Tank session and you and I, we have a lot of good ideas that come from that Think Tank. A lot of business. no phones. That's why. We do leave our phones out. But I was talking to Jason and this is actually a podcast we had talked about quite a while ago. Jason has a lot of information on pharmacy. And if you don't know, Jason isn't really, we were going through all of it last night. It's kind of a mock in the tub. And I think it's going to be great because I feel like this is an area, I'm working at Midwestern and knowing about how dentists, pharmacology was surely not your favorite one. Jason actually helps a lot of dentists with their clearances. And so we were talking about it and I like it will just be a really awesome podcast for you guys to brush up on pharmacology, different things from a pharmacist's side. So Jason, welcome. Thank you. Yeah, no, we were talking about it and here's like, what should I talk about on the podcast next? I have all these different topics and she's like, what do you know? And the only real interaction I have with dentists is doing clearances for procedures. We get them all the time, which makes sense. Lots of people are on blood thinner, I've always told Kiera, like, hey, I could talk about that. Like, that's kind of a passion of mine. I'm not a dentist. Or my name is Jason Dent. So in Hebrew, Jason means tooth. No, no, no, sorry. Nerves are getting to me. Jason means healer and Dent means tooth. So my name means tooth healer. So, here's a little set. Hold on, on, hold Can we just talk about? I brought that up before you could talk about it more. So. My name means tooth healer but I did not become a dentist. I know you wanted me to become a dentist. did. I don't know why. I enjoy medicine. I know what you're going to get to already. The things you're going to ask me. There's been years of this. But nevertheless, that's my name. We'll get that out of the way. But you did give me a great last name. So I mean, it's OK. You're All is fair and love here. SEO's up for that. But yeah, Jason, I'm going to get you right into the show. And I'm going to be the host. And we're going to welcome to the podcast show. Jace, how are you? Good, good, good. Good, good, good. So by getting into clearances, right? This is what you're kinda talking about with you know, before we get to clearances, I actually wanted Jason, for the listeners who don't know you, who haven't talked to you, who don't know, let's kinda just give them like, how did you go from, Kiera wanted you to be a dentist, to now Jason, you are on the podcast talking as our expert on pharmacy. fantastic. I've always really loved medicine, a ton. As a kid getting headaches and taking Excedrin, like you just feel like a miserable pile of crap. and then you take two pills and all of a sudden you feel better. Like that's amazing, like how does that happen? Also getting ear aches as a kid, just being in so much pain and then taking some medicine and you start feeling a lot better. I always had a lot of appreciation for that. I've always been mechanically inclined. I went to, started doing my undergrad and took biology and learned about ATP synthase, which is a spinning enzyme that's inside the mitochondria, like a turbine engine. I used to work on small engines on my dirt bike and thought that is so cool. So I really got wrapped up into chemistry. All the mechanics of chemistry really p

No matter what position, no matter how many years someone's been in their position, every team member likes to know that they're doing a good job. Tiff and Kristy talk about why defining duties and responsibilities—and then measuring metrics against those duties and responsibilities—is so critical to "winning" at your job. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello Dental A Team listeners. I am so excited to be here with you today I know I see that every single time but I hope you guys know how much I truly love podcasting it is a time away from like we'll call it work I feel like podcasting just isn't work for us and we love Speaking to you guys. love getting all this information out there for you and we love our time together So you guys afford us that and today I have an all-time fave I actually I know this is gonna make you blush but I get some pretty incredible feedback. Kristy, I have Kristy here with us today. I get some pretty incredible feedback from a lot of our clients and a lot of listeners on the podcasts that we do together. So Kristy, I am here today in your presence and it just makes me feel so good. And I'm here to pick that brilliant brain. So thank you for showing up, bringing it and giving me, we've got an ample amount of time this afternoon together. So thank you, Kristy. The Dental A Team (00:54) Yeah. I always have fun when I'm here with you. You know that. It's just so natural that we can rip off each other. And ⁓ I don't know, you do a good job at picking my brain and pulling it out. So it's always fun. look forward to our time together. The Dental A Team (01:09) Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Kristy. You guys should know something about Kristy. She is an incredible consultant and I know that this is our time that I get to kind of share and spread some light and joy on our consulting team. And Kristy, I think it's imperative for the world to know that, gosh, you have just an amazing list of clients who are really seeing some impressive results recently. We're into the new year. We're like, Now when this releases two months into the new year, which is freaking wild, but that's fine. But so many of your clients saw so many successes last year and in those successes we're seeing systems development and within those systems development, really seeing goals being pushed, being reached, being surpassed. You've got some clients that I know you were looking at the goals that they were setting for themselves and you were like, yes, and that's one of my favorite Kristy-isms. Yes, and, yes, and. I think you can do more. So you like are pushing them outside of their comfort zones and really projecting for them things that I don't think that a lot of your clients even see possible. I just think it's really cool. And today we're talking really about how accountability is gonna help reduce stress within the practice. And I say all of these things that you're doing really well for your clients right now, Kristy, because it takes so much accountability to be able to perform those pieces without an overload of stress. You can grow and not have accountability. You can spin your wheels and cycle in the negative or however you want to say it. But when that accountability piece is also attached to the things that you're implementing, I think that's really where you see the true results. And that's where we've gotten some incredible feedback that Kristy is amazing. And ⁓ you've taught them so many skills that they can then take them themselves. and carry it on. And I think it's really cool. It's just really valuable what you've been able to implement for practices. So my question, my first question to you, my first brain pick is why do you find it so important to uphold the accountability levels that you hold for your clients and that you train them to hold for their teams by proxy? Why is that so important to you and so valuable in the coaching that you do? The Dental A Team (03:31) Yeah, I love that question because even us in what we do, we want to know if we're winning or not. Right. And so every team member, doesn't matter what job you're doing. You want to know if you're doing a good job and if you're winning. And if we don't have KPIs to measure or clarity in our roles, we're just, we're going day by day by default, you know, and we could have a success, but like you said, it's How do we repeat it if we don't even know what we're looking for? So number one is defining those duties and understanding what am I responsible for and how do I know if I'm winning or The Dental A Team (04:15) Yeah, I love that. you said a couple of things there that I keyed in on, but you said duplicate. So making it repeatable and making it so that that system can be driven by anyone. like anyone can do it, it can be duplicated and you can take a same or similar system and copy and paste it into a different depart

Kiera is joined by Dr. Paul Etchison to talk about changing the mindset of turnover = failure. This transition is part of the evolution of leadership. Both Kiera and Dr. Etchison share their own experiences in remaining true to core values, and keeping their definitions of success separate from whether a team member stuck around or not. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today is an extra special day. I have one of my faves and every time we podcast, people say, you two just seem like you love each other so much. And I really do. I've been to this man's practice. We've been friends in the industry for I don't even know how many years pre-COVID. That's a long time. And we've been on each other's podcasts a lot. He has an incredible podcast. He's an incredible human, incredible friend, incredible mentor. I got the one and only Paul Etchison on the podcast today. Welcome. How are you today, Paul? Paul Etchison (00:28) Hey, I'm good. And I was just thinking about how you mentioned like the pre-COVID thing. You texted me a picture of when you came into my practice for two days. And it was like before COVID. And what was funny about it, and I don't know if it's funny or not, but like I looked at it and half of my team has turned over. They're all new people. So I know. ⁓ Kiera Dent (00:36) cute. Mm-hmm. It's real life, Paul. That's real life. It is funny and isn't because I go back and I used to be embarrassed about that. So let's just kind of highlight on that. I used to actually be very embarrassed of like, my gosh, I don't have senior team members. And like, I hate the question. There was a hot minute. The Dental A Team felt like I was Johnny Depp in the middle of the ocean and my boat was full blown on fire. And I was like, I just hope another one shows up soon. Like I hope something comes. ⁓ And then I realized that's business ownership. Like that's real life. And yes, we built these great cultures, but you outgrow team members and team members outgrow you in life circumstances. And I'd rather be honest and real rather than perfect. And so the fact that like teams shift in a lot, mean, shoot, I used to have this vision board, Paul, you want to hear how ridiculous this was? And I took the team and I put them in the one year, the three year, the 10, and I just had this like same team follow with me. That lasted me for like six months. And I was like, rip this thing up. Paul Etchison (01:31) Yes. You Kiera Dent (01:40) It's gotten better, it's stabilized, but I think that that's real life. So thanks for talking about it. Paul Etchison (01:44) It's hard, yeah, I mean, we look at it and I think like the beginning of my practice career, I had very little turnover, but it was, I had to put so much into keeping that. Like it was such a hard thing to keep going. there was a lot of team members that I kept and I was able to make them happy and I was able to have it be a productive relationship and they were good at the practice. But sometimes I look back on it I'm like, man, it was just, that was a lot of energy I put into one person. I should have just moved on. So that's how I practice now. It's different. There's a little bit more turnover and I think that's normal and that's part of business ownership. So we're okay. Kiera Dent (02:16) What changed in your mindset for that? I have so many questions for you today. You guys, Paul and I, when we get on the podcast, it really is just like a free for all. And Paul has no clue. I have a full plan of what I'm asking you today, ⁓ but it's going to be a free for all rift of business ownership of teams. How did you change that perspective? Because I think so many people chalk that up to, I'm a failure of a boss if I've got turnover. Like I had a doctor the other day on a coaching call and she's like, Kiera, Paul Etchison (02:19) Yeah. Kiera Dent (02:42) What am I going to do for PR? Like I've got people turning over and how do I PR this? So anything is twofold. One, how did you get like mentally change that mindset? Cause I think it's a big mental game. Paul Etchison (02:54) Yeah, for me, was everything that I've done in my career as far as like leadership growth and stuff, I think has always stemmed from some period of just struggle and burnout to some extent. It was like, I got to the point where I was taking everything that happened at the practice personally, every upset person at upset employees, they're bothered about something. They're they always, I mean, they're telling you how you should be doing things that not realizing that there's very complicated solutions. And sometimes there's not perfect solutions. A lot of times there's perfect solutions. So I think what changed for me is I started looking at it from a point of my mental sanity saying I can't attribute my feelings on the happiness of all these team member

Kiera is here with a gift to make your practice even better: The three most common mistakes dental practices make, and guidance on how to get out of them. Is your practice making one of these mistakes? Delegating tasks without ownership Avoiding hard conversations Flying blind on your numbers Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera and today is one of my favorite topics of all time. It's how to avoid the pitfalls because I feel like these are costly mistakes that dental practice owners make. We make these costly pitfalls. We go into them. We don't know about them. And you guys, if you know me, I have a mantra and I say, don't lose money. I hate losing money. It's one of my biggest pet peeves and I don't want you to lose money. So I'm excited to talk about it. I hope you guys are excited because... The reality is like so many people talk about like, success leaves clues and it does, but so does failure. And I I talk about this a lot when I present and when I speak and I say like success and failure are truly not radically different. They're not, they're like small little things. It's like successful practices are consistent. Successful practices put systems in, successful practices look at their KPIs, successful practices have team meetings that are effective. Successful practices have CEO time. Successful practices have delegation and ownership. Successful practices ⁓ follow through. They look at their case acceptance. They make their re-care calls. They do their reactivation. They do different verbiage. Like that's what they do. Failure practices don't stay consistent. They always have an excuse. They're always blaming. ⁓ They don't check their case acceptance. They don't track their KPIs. They don't look at their numbers. They don't take CEO time. Like these are just little steps. And like with my fingers, if you're just listening, I'm like, almost like scallops, like if we've got a middle point, success is I checked my KPIs, failure is I didn't check my KPIs. And while that's not like a huge move, it is moving you points away to where you end up either closer to success or closer to failure. And so I think when we realize this, these are the ones, like, how can I help you guys avoid these costs and mistakes? How can I like motivate and inspire you and like, not just motivate, but genuinely change you? So that way it's not this I like, well, shoot, we're on failure row. Shoot, like, I don't really know about this. Like, I just want to talk about three of the most common mistakes that people make and how do you correct course because you're going to make mistakes. But like if I'm doing the scallops again, successful offices realize like we didn't do the KPIs. So we're going to start doing the KPIs and we don't miss those. We're going to hold the meetings and we don't miss those. they course correct before they end up in the failure or the success bucket. They're course correcting constantly. And so this is just like where I'm at coaching hundreds and thousands of offices, team members galore, our team, like literally, I feel so blessed that we get to serve so many offices. I just saw like this really awesome highlight reel of all these doctors that came in person and I was watching it with Jason and I look over and Jason's just the sweetest thing. He's tearing up and he said, Kiera. I knew when you started Dental A Team, it was going to be like, he's like, I never imagined it being what it is today. He said, but all those people's lives, including all of you listening to the podcasts, all of those lives that we've been able to change because of Dental A Team Gosh, that is just such a blessing. It's such a beautiful thing. And I just want to say thank you. Like, thank you for being here. Thank you for being a part of the offices. Thank you for being a part of my Dental A Team podcast family. Thank you for just showing up. Thank you for changing lives through dentistry. Thank you for giving people a gift of confidence. Like, And for me to be able to give you a gift to make your practice even better, that's what I'm here for. That's what Dental A Team's about. So like we're here to help you recognize patterns. We're here to help you avoid burnout. We're here to help you make small changes before they become giant snowballs. And I think like my thought process has always been I'm here to positively impact the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. We're here to share this podcast message with every single office out there. We're here to help offices realize like running a successful practice. does not have to be hard. It can actually be easy. And let's give you the tools, the tips, the resources, all of that to make your life a grand success. So if that sounds great to you, we'll rock on. So step number one, mistake number one that's very costly is del

Tiff and Monica provide exclusive, step-by-step insight into creating hiring ads that both grasp your specific practice's strengths and needs, and attract those rockstar team members you've been looking for. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are back today. I think we used to call it Consultant Takeover and now it's just literally a podcast, but it's my consulting team. And gosh, I love these days. You guys get to hear me just brag about the consultant team and the Dental A Team in general. And I have one of my faves. All these women are some of my favorite human beings in life. we got to recently, we were able to spend some really good quality time together and really just. Honestly, it was just fun. Like it wasn't even one-on-one, like getting to know each other. It was just really getting to know each other by proxy of having fun together. And if no one here listening knows, fun is one of our core values. And that is one of the core values. I don't even know. You may know this, but it was one of the core values that Kiera and I have had literally since day one. That was one that has never changed. Fun has always been there. We did have it really high. used to be our number one core value. And then we realized like, it was setting a weird precedent. So it's not quite as high anymore, but fun is massive for us. And we really, truly believe if you're not having fun, what are you even doing? I think there's oftentimes in life that things are not necessarily quote unquote fun, but there should be some air of sprinkles on top that can make life a little bit more fun in the end. So Monica, you make podcasting fun, your way of thinking. I like following. Monica (00:59) Yeah. The Dental A Team (01:22) your thought process. really, it is really fun for me to follow the thought process, especially because I tend to think I'm pretty good at knowing where someone's going or what they're doing, what their intent is. Like I'm usually pretty good at keying into it, but sometimes you catch me and I'm like, dang, I love how your brain works. So I love it because you make me think a little bit harder, like a little... more intentional, I like the word intentional. You make me think a little more intentional than I do on my day to day. So thank you for being here today, Monica, and shedding your brilliance on the Dental A Team, listeners and team. How are you this morning? It's a Monday morning for us and we're just at it bright and early. How are you? Monica (02:09) I'm doing great, Tiff. Thank you. Thanks for inviting me. You know, I think one of the things that attracted me and I was really curious about the Dental A Team was that core value of having fun because, you know, we just kind of get a little serious and boring as we become adults. And I'm like, gosh, I don't ever remember thinking like, my gosh, this work should be fun. Sometimes it is fun, but should it be fun? And I was so curious about that. to be honest, I think I shared this. I struggled a little bit with adding the fun factor in, you know, when I think about work and in my day. And I'm so glad that I decided to join the Dental A Team because that is my core value. Every day that I wake up, I'm like, I'm going to make this so fun today. What's going to be fun about my day? And I think fun is just a mindset. Right? Because you can do hard things. You can have hard conversations. You can have a hard day and still look for the fun and still make it fun. ⁓ So thank you. Thanks for inviting me today. This is one of my, I guess, new hobbies, newfound passions is podcasting, unscripted podcasting, ⁓ going with it. Right. And just seeing what our brains kind of like come up with. So. The Dental A Team (03:31) Yep. Monica (03:35) just so you all know, this is unscripted. This is ⁓ just real time and I love it. I love the authenticity of it, right? Because this is where great ideas are born with no agenda. it's, you you and I have like this really great kind of cadence and engagement. One thought leads to another. And sometimes I have to stop myself because I can see myself going down and, you know, a rabbit hole and just, you know, and so we'll... We'll keep it short and sweet and impactful. The Dental A Team (04:07) Awesome. I love that. Thank you. And I'm glad that you, I'm actually glad that you mentioned that I do. I do think it's important for listeners to know, like this is literally off the cuff. Uh, 99.9 % of it, have a topic and we like brainstorm for a quick minute, but really we have no idea what's going to come out of these podcasts until it's done. So it is a really magical experience. And I like it that way because I think that, like you said, there's, there's more ideas that are born in that kind of a mindset and it does, it keeps it fun. Monica (04:12) Thank Yeah. Yeah. The Dental A Team (04:36) Monica, b

Re-releasing a DAT listener favorite! The Dental A-Team is Team Online Statements over Team Paper Statements! This podcast episode is a sign your practice needs to get on the online statement train. Lots of practices struggle getting collections up because they're doing it the old-fashioned way. Listen in for the four steps you should take to make it as easy as possible to collect payments from your patients. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, literally thousands of episodes. And I wanted to start bringing a few of these amazing episodes back for you. So I hope you enjoy. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time. on the Dental A Team podcast. The Dental A Team (00:32) You guys, happy day to you. I hope you're doing fantastic wherever you are. And I hope you are just enjoying life. I think I need this podcast more than you guys might need this podcast. I've got the COVID crank, guys. I feel like I've just gotten angry and sick of not being able to hire people and frustrated with just feeling like I'm trapped. Maybe any of you are feeling that way. Hey, just shoot me an email, say me too, you can text me. ⁓ But I hope we can all remember today, for me, when I'm in those modes, I have to literally go to my journal and do gratitude. And I also listen to, I've got a podcast that I listen to over and over and over again. Yes, you guys know I'm obsessed with Tony Robbins. ⁓ And this one is when it says change your life in 2021. And I will literally listen to that podcast over and over and over again and remind myself of how many great things there are in my life. ⁓ I don't think it's important to say like my life could be so much worse because while it can, that just negates your feelings of feeling yuck. And right now for me, I feel like I'm feeling very stagnant. But last night I had to remind myself that ⁓ just like... The world has seasons, our life has seasons. And right now, instead of maybe being in massive growth and full bloom, it's not quite spring yet. So maybe being okay to hibernate, to slow down a little bit more, to get ready for that hustle and bustle of bloom seasons. I didn't feel like I really slowed down through the winter hibernation seasons. And so maybe just also allowing yourself and your practice to go through the seasons as well. That way you can have vibrant springs. You can have very flowing summers, you can have more harvest in the fall and then have that hibernation quiet time as well. But definitely give yourself that space and not mitigate the reality of what you're facing. So today guys, ⁓ with that said, I'm here for you. If you wanna be here for me, I'll take it. So just email me guys. [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you. I truly do, I enjoy hearing from you guys. So thanks for being my pen pals. I never really had a great pen pal growing up. Did any of you guys have a good pen pal? Because if you did, also tell me that. Like you guys, you don't understand. Your emails that are just like a, Kiera, I'm a massive fan, I love the podcast, yeah, I had a pen pal. Those ones are some of my favorite emails of the day. You guys, I average hundreds of emails every single day. And so to get those little sprinklings of fun ones, they just make my day. So thank you for those of you who have done that. And if you're thinking about it, do it. Also, I do love ⁓ in the I travel a lot guys and I get bored a lot. I'm a very busy human. I appreciate when you guys leave us ⁓ reviews on the podcast. You guys are helping shout out to this podcast family guys. Our downloads are cranking. So whatever you're doing, keep doing it. If you're sharing this, if you're leaving reviews, do it, do it again. Have somebody else that you know do it as well because guys we are on track to break that millionth download this year and you guys are the only way that we can do this. So. Keep it up, we skyrocketed in the month of January. February is on track as well. So guys, keep moving, keep moving. And the way you can help us out, I'll give you specifics. Number one, if you have not done so, go leave a five star review on the podcast. Whatever platform you're listening, that helps us, because it helps them rank us higher so other people can find us. Number two, download the podcast. I know it sounds so dumb, but actually, Download it not just listen that helps it as well because then more people will find us because they're ranking us as a higher podcast and number three shared on social

Kiera takes listeners through specific actions the most successful dentistry minds have incorporated into their day-to-day to stay elevated. She touches on: Planning out an ideal week Reviewing these numbers weekly Fostering problem-solvers And more! Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera and I hope that you guys are having an amazing day today. I hope you're loving dentistry. I hope you're loving your opportunities. I hope that you are remembering that we have one life and I hope that you're making it the absolute best life you can. There's a song that I recently heard called Time's a Ticken and it's like, so call your mom, love your babies, talk to your friends and... I just think about it and another thing I saw were like, if your mom and dad are still able to call you, how blessed are we? And I know some people have strained relationships, but I think as much love that we can give and as much as we can foster great relationships in our lives and realize how much goodness we have, I think that's an amazing space for us. just hopefully you know how much I love and appreciate you and how much I'm rooting for you, whether I know you personally or whether... you are someone in our Dental A Team family, or if you are in our podcast family, or if you're new to this, just know I'm rooting for you. Even if I don't know you personally, ⁓ you're doing better than you think you are today. Guys, it's going to be fun. I want to talk about CEO habits for next level, like what top practice leaders are doing and just some tips for you. As we're rolling into a 2026, I love looking at habits and not necessarily fads, but habits. And so what do things do? And I believe that habits, not just hustle, are going to help you with success. ⁓ So many times it's like, well, what made the success successful? And it's like really consistency on doing the best things and the highest priority things consistently. And so giving a couple of three core habits that I think growth-minded leaders, practice owners have versus overwhelmed operators. And so really being able to give you that guidance and at Dental A Team we're obsessed with helping dentists become CEOs of their practices and having amazing teams thrive around them and. ⁓ Giving you guys all of that today is really what it is and we want you guys to feel clarity, confidence and consistency. And I know sometimes when you're in the whirlwind of the day-to-day business, it can feel very hard to have this. But I will say, if you can build these as a building blocks, the noise can lessen. I'm not gonna promise it will go away, but it can definitely lessen and doing it over time. Just like with front office team members were like, I just don't have time, Kiera. And we're like, great, let's put in a power hour. And they're like, it's never enough time. You're right. Today is not enough time, but if you do one hour a week blocked with no interruptions and you work on the highest level things, I've watched teams over and over and over again, be like, I actually don't need this hour anymore. And we get our recare calls done and we get our unscheduled treatment calls done and we block that and we do it. And office managers, they block that time and billers block the time to do insurance verification. It does not need to be a lot of time, but it does need to be consistent. So with that, you guys, this is going to be something that's a a habit, ⁓ daily and weekly habits that you can create that you can really just put into your life now. So number one is, this sounds so silly and I do this often, it's creating and committing to an ideal week. ⁓ And so that's being able to have a rhythm and not reaction. so what I noticed and it's crazy because as my company evolves, my life and my business and my schedule needs to evolve as well. When the business was smaller, I used to be able to run back to back to back to back meetings. There wasn't as much strategy that I needed to think about. There weren't as many hard decisions. There weren't as many like complex decisions that I used to be able to run a week like back to back to back. And then I realized like, I can't run like that anymore. I need to have like on time and off time, on time, off time. And then there's presenting like podcasts. Like you try to put meetings on a podcast day. You guys, am in podcast is creative land and I'm on presenting mode. And I'm like here hanging out with you guys and having a good time. don't put meetings where I'm trying to like figure out a budget that is such a different mind than a creative mind. And so really being able to block this where we have it and color coding your calendar. What I really do believe is as a CEO of a practice, you're going to have clinician time, right? You're going to have being a dentist. Then you're going to have leader time where yo

DAT consultant Kristy breaks down what exactly took place for a practice that didn't have a solid admin team, struggled to find team members, and other challenges to hit its goal of $3 million in revenue. She touches on what core systems were implemented, how delegation worked, case acceptances successes, and more that got this office meeting its five-year goal 44 months early. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: speaker-0 (00:00) Good morning, Dental A Team listeners. I am so excited to be here. You guys know that the consultants and I love recording these podcasts and I get to be here. This is our Monday morning mix up here for Kristy and I. have switched on some of our podcast recording and honestly starting my day. with these beautiful, beautiful minds has been something that's really, really turned a corner for me. I love starting the week and starting the day with podcasting. Kristy, thank you so much for being here today. ⁓ Gosh, how are you? How's life? How's Kristy's world? speaker-1 (00:35) Absolutely. I love being here and starting the day and the week with you as well and going well. mean, hitting the ground running end of year and really pushing planning for next year. It's been fun. Fun celebrating with clients and looking toward new goals for the new year. speaker-0 (00:55) Amazing. I love it. And you guys know we record these in ⁓ succession. We record these in advance and we get these prepped and ready for you. And something we're really excited to bring you today is something Kristy's found within her digging. So every year we help all of our clients prep for the next year. We look at what did we do this year? What was your growth this year? And it gives us an opportunity to see everything that has been done and what's worked really, really well. With all of our clients, we do this obviously monthly. And then we do a really big quarterly report and get all those information over there and make sure that we're on track for our yearly goal. But at the end of the year, it's this big push to say, realistically, realistically, where are we? And then where can we take you next year to really prep and plan? So this I am really excited for. like to, you know, I like to pick the brains of the consultants. And towards the end of the year now, as Kristy is getting all of these things ready and this recording, you know, comes out early January that or early new year, I should say at least. ⁓ We're just really excited to be able to see these numbers, share them with you, and then share some tactical pieces that Kristy's been able to develop and implement with this specific practice we picked today. So I am so excited, Kristy. Thank you for being here. Thank you so much for allowing me to pick your brain on your clients. I know you have a handful of platinum and gold clients that you work with constantly. are a... ⁓ you are a digger. Like I feel like you just you dig and you dig and you dig until you find that last missing piece that is that you know, I feel like you've got like thousand piece puzzle and you find you finally found that piece hiding under the table to finish your puzzle and that's it feels like that's what you did this year with this specific client. So Kristy again, thank you for letting me pick your brain and gosh, I I think the best place to start Kristy is to really highlight where they were this specific practice and then we can get into where you were able to take them with your consulting and their ⁓ you know their leadership within the practice. So where were they when they came to Dental A Team? They signed up just so you guys know as a platinum client. So this means that they had an hour and a half of dedicated time with Kristy dedicated means an hour of time an hour and a half of time with Kristy with access to Kristy outside of that. So that's why it's that dedicated time. So I know there were emails and there were text messages and then they also did the platinum package has two in office visits or our in person masterminds choice to be made there at sign up. So just so you know, they had the full package and Kristy take us, take us through it. Where were they when they signed up for that platinum package and they were just like, girl, get in my office. We need you here. What did their life look like? Yeah. speaker-1 (03:38) ⁓ truly Tiff, they were about 2.8 million last year and really pushing, striving to hit over that $3 million mark for this year. ⁓ but really having, struggling with team. they had no admin team members really when we started. so, ⁓ outsourced insurance, ⁓ trying to get that back on track and really struggling to find teammates, ⁓ of quality. So there was a lot of moving pieces I would say for this year. speaker-0 (04:14) Yeah, and how many providers did they have in office at 2.8 million for reference? speaker-1 (04:18) ⁓ Actually, they had ⁓ two and a half because they d

Kiera and Tiff are on the pod together to ask, What are you working toward? Your professional purpose can often get lost when you're too buried in work, and the two invite listeners to take a step back and ask themselves key questions in order to recenter. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and it is Spiffy Tiffy and Kiera back on the podcast. I messaged Tiff and just said, Hey, are you free? Because the topic today, I actually think Tiff and I can really rift on of such a solid conversation. I'm really excited about. So Tiff, welcome to the podcast. How are doing today? The Dental A Team (00:19) I'm good. I'm excited because we haven't even, I don't even know what this, what you're thinking. So we're all learning this together, you guys. The Dental A Team (00:25) you It's true. This is the magic of Kiera and Tiff. We can truly pull each other in at any moment of any presentation and we pretty much can just pick up. And I think that's a beautiful thing when you have somebody that, I don't know, Tiff, it's just like, I was gonna say a funny joke, but I'm not gonna say that joke. We want someone who is so connected to you that just knows what you're going to do. It's truly pure magic. And we've literally had that since we met. So for those of you new to the podcast, welcome. Tiff and I are. just two girls who love dentistry and wanted to change the world. And here we are. We really are passionate about life and business. We're passionate about dentists having their best lives, team members having their best lives. And that's really the core of what Dental A Team is about. So to get both of us, mean, literally I met Tiff when I was a rookie business owner. So the fact that we're still here together, we still love working together, I think is a pretty magical, incredible thing. And we would just always have said, we wanted to build a business that we are proud of, that we enjoy working in. There have been times we have not enjoyed working here. I remember last year about this time I called you and we're both like, why is it so hard? Like I just remember it. And so there are ups and downs of a business, but in that vein, okay, Tiff, here's the preface. You ready? I'm going to tell you. So I was at the gym the other day and I absolutely hate with a passion sled pushes. Like I hate them. They are freaking hard. And Laura, my trainer, she like, I hate it. Like I don't have strong. shoulders, my knees like hurt like that's why I go to the gym like I've got these like dumb problems and I was pushing the sled and like I'm shaking every ounce me wants to just give up it is so hard it's not that far but I really absolutely like loathe sled sled pushes and sled poles and Laura yelled at me she's like Kiera what are you working towards think about that while you push this and I was like I'm doing a podcast on this and Tiff I feel like you are the perfect person to podcast with me on because that has set with me. And as I was pushing, I literally had the thought of I'm pushing to my 90, 100, 110 year old self that Tiff knows the vision. Cotton candy pink hair here, cotton candy blue hair on Tiff. We're going to be these like fit ripped grannies that are just living our best life, having so much fun. But I thought about that physically for my body. But I thought we do sled pushes and sled pulls in our business every single day. And to really start to think and dig deep of like What are we working for? What is that purpose? And Tiff, know that this is right up your alley, which is why I didn't even have to prep you on it. Cause I'm like, let me just give a little preface and you're going to be all in. Cause one it's working out, which is your huge passion to its life. And three, we get to be on the podcast together. It's a triple win. You're welcome. So triple whammy. Here we go. So just thinking about that, I don't know. I want to just, have no agenda of where I want to take this podcast other than The Dental A Team (03:01) I do love it. Triple whammy. The Dental A Team (03:15) It just made me really, I've been thinking about this. We're probably like four weeks since she said it to me, like literally it was a yell. So just imagine me and Tiff are your gym trainers here yelling at you, like, what are you working towards? What are you pushing this for? Why are you doing it? And I think sometimes that can get lost in people. And I think until we get that like yell wake up when it's like truly just like hard, I think sometimes we are asleep and hopefully today's podcast might wake you up and bring you to being present, being focused and being intentional. So Tiff. It's okay, take it away. The Dental A Team (03:45) Totally, I love working out, so thank you. Thank you for thinking of me and that reference. I don't do sled pulls because I don't like them, and I don't have a tr