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The Dentist on Fire Manifesto

There comes a point in a dentist’s career (and anyone’s career, for that matter) when we begin thinking, “What’s next?” This is a devastating question if you find yourself following the prescribed course of life that you have seen others follow before you, and you’re actually successful at following the course. You realize, at some point, there’s a certain emptiness in pursuing the next thing. At what point have you arrived?

Where’s Valhalla?

My vision for the Dentist on Fire is for that person to become the best version of themself. Not because you’ll make more money, indeed you will make more money since the goal is true financial independence - the FI of FIRE. And not because you’ll retire early (the RE of FIRE), but because you realize that if you have the option to retire early, you won’t be sad if your body gives out one day and you can’t do your best work on your patients. Most of us see dentistry as a calling rather than a job, and doctoring our fellow human beings is a sacred privilege and responsibility. If money was not a necessity but rather a vote of appreciation for your work, would you still do it? Would you do it differently? This is the essence of FIRE, that pursuing FI makes you better, and frees you up to truly enjoy what you do. In a world where we are stewarding our money and resources well, we gain back time, the currency of life. Then we can spend the moments of our life, the time of our life doing the things that are worth spending the life on. This is Valhalla, that mythical place of yore where the heroes of old spend their remaining time as a reward for their mighty deeds. Welcome home, hero.

Areas of Development for the Dentist on Fire

We will focus on 4 key areas in this blog:

  • Financial - maximizing our stewardship of our financial resources is right in the dentist’s wheelhouse because we are exacting, and details are our love language.
  • Leadership - being a leader of the team is integral to our success, but up to the point of beginning to practice dentistry, the emphasis is on solo performance. Our team is our force multiplier, and doing it right doesn’t come naturally to us. We have to be intentional.
  • Salesmanship - this done right is a blessing to all we encounter. True salesmanship is matching people with the best solutions through expert guidance and effective communication, including listening. It is delivering value in excess of what you charge.
  • Expertise - being a true expert means understanding the why in addition to the how. This ranges from technical skill to philosophical understanding.
I’m not a master, but I get closer every day. Join me on the journey as I share what I am learning. Dental school taught you to be a dentist. But to be worthy of the title “Doctor,” we must never stop learning and pursuing mastery.

- DOF

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