What is the One Thing You Know Now, That You Wish You Would Have Learned Earlier? (Thriving Dentist 700th Special Episode)

“What is the one thing you know now, that you wish you would have learned earlier?”

Intro: This is The Thriving Dentist Show with Gary Takacs, where we help you develop your ideal dental practice—one that provides personal, professional, and financial satisfaction.

Gary Takacs: Welcome to another episode of The Thriving Dentist Show. I’m Gary Takacs, your podcast co-host, and we have a very special Thriving Dentist Show episode for you. This is episode number 700. Yep, you heard that right—episode 700.

Uh, you know, I started The Thriving Dentist Show podcast in 2011, uh, with a vision of simply providing useful information in a very convenient format, uh, to dentists. And, uh, it’s been a great 14-year ride. And, uh, this is episode number 700, which means we haven’t missed an episode in over 700 weeks.

And what we’re gonna do in this episode is something different. We’ve invited, um, a number of our friends and colleagues—friends of the podcast—to share their insight on a very specific question. And the question is, “What is the one thing that you know now that you wished you would’ve known sooner?”

So, you’re gonna hear from 10 of us altogether, including Naren and myself. You’re gonna hear from 10 of us, and we’re all gonna be sharing some insights around that question: What’s the one thing that I know now that I wish I would’ve known sooner?

Naren Arulrajah: This is Naren, the co-host, and let me introduce you to the very first tip from the founder of this podcast, Gary Takacs himself. And the topic he’ll be covering today is You Can Achieve a Thriving Practice and an Effective Work-Life Balance. Gary, take it away.

Gary Takacs: Yeah. My tip, uh, is that you absolutely can achieve a thriving practice—one that provides personal, professional, and financial satisfaction—and an effective work-life balance. At the same time. Those goals are not mutually exclusive.

And I have to say, when I became a practice owner in 2007, if you would’ve looked at my work life, uh, what you would’ve noticed is that, um, a massive amount of effort, uh, was spent in helping to develop that practice—frankly, at the expense of work-life balance. And what I’ve learned since, um, and I always, in my mind, um, I always did the “someday aisle.” You know, someday I will achieve work-life balance, but not now—someday I will.

And I told that story for a very, very long time, and I felt like I needed to put my nose to the grindstone to fully develop that practice before I started looking at work-life balance.

Gary Takacs: And now I realize, um, that I was mistaken. That I could have achieved an effective work-life balance much earlier in my career if I would’ve made it a priority. Absolutely could have achieved an effective work-life balance. But I felt like I needed to pay my dues. So I’m sure some of you are thinking that as well. And I have regrets around that, and I don’t mind admitting that.

Uh, you know, most of you’ll know that Therese and I will celebrate our 43rd wedding anniversary, uh, this coming August. Um, and, uh, very, very, very lucky man. Uh, we have four adult kids. We have five grandkids. Uh, and we’re enjoying this season of our life more than ever. I’m enjoying my career, enjoying my work—whether it be podcasting, coaching, speaking—uh, enjoying every bit of that. But I’ve also made it, um, made having an effective work-life balance a priority.

Gary Takacs: And if I could do it all over again, I would’ve made that priority much sooner, because I think actually having the work-life balance would allow me to be more effective in developing the practice, if that makes any sense. I felt like they were… felt like, no, I had to pay my dues before I could do that. And knowing what I know now, uh, I would pursue it differently.

And I hope that’s a message that resonates with all of you, because if you have a successful practice at the expense of your family, uh, expense of relationship with your kids, at the expense of your health, your fitness, your wellness, um, your hobbies, your interests, your balance in your life, then I would politely suggest that’s not success at all.

But in fact, you can achieve a thriving practice—one that provides personal, professional, and financial satisfaction—and achieve an effective work-life balance if you simply make that a priority.

Our next guest on the 700th episode of The Thriving Dentist Show is my co-host, Naren Arulrajah. And Naren is gonna talk about the concept of Start With the End in Mind.

Naren Arulrajah: Thank you, Gary. I’m gonna piggyback on your tip of “you can achieve a thriving practice and an effective work-life balance.” Now imagine that’s the future that you envision for yourself, right? That’s the end you envision for yourself—a practice you love, taking care of patients you love, with the team you love.

So how do you create that? I believe step one is to attract the patients you love. If many of you are PPO practices or have a large component of your practice that is PPO-based, more than likely you are attracting patients who are coming to you because you do free dentistry. It’s not the patients you love. Why? Because their first question is, “Is it covered by insurance?”

So how do you attract patients you love? I would recommend, now that you’re starting with the end in mind, think about the type of patients you want.

Naren Arulrajah: Do you want patients who want a healthy, um, mouth? Or do you want patients who love, you know, to create the smile of their dreams? For example, you come down to the answer of, “I want, you know, patients who have a lot—a lot—of dental work because I do sedation. I want to lean into Invisalign. I want to lean into implants.” Whatever the answer may be, I would recommend using Google—especially search engine optimization—to attract those patients.

Again, I don’t want to talk about how to do that. If you are interested, you know, you can go to ekwa.com/td and book a MSM—marketing strategy meeting—and you can learn more. But definitely, regardless of how you do it or who you do it with, start attracting patients you love. That’s step number one.

Step number two is, you know, business. I know people like to complicate it and throw a lot of buzzwords.

Naren Arulrajah: To me, it’s really simple. It’s giving patients what they want. And usually, to find out what they want, go and read your Google reviews. More than likely, there are three or four reasons they love you. Perhaps it’s you treat them like family. Perhaps it’s you invest in technology, and you really provide the best care. Or maybe it’s because you stand behind your work.

Now that you know those three reasons why most of your patients love you, lean into it. Create a team that can consistently provide those results for your patients. Remember, it’s not just you—it’s you and your team. Create a culture. And I would recommend talking to Gary if you need help with that. You know, Thriving Dentist provides coaching and services around helping patients who, um, who love coming to you and who love staying with you for life. So that’s the second thing.

Naren Arulrajah: And then, of course, how do you know if you’re successful? You’re getting 10 or more Google reviews, and many of them are what I call “love letter” reviews—saying how much they love you, how much they love your team, how much they like being your patients.

So this is it, right? Start with your end in mind. Attract the patients you want, take care of them the way they want to be taken care of, and make sure the word is spreading through Google reviews.

That’s my tip for today. Now, the nuances could change. You might say, “I’m going to lean into these types of three services,” while somebody else might say, “I want to lean into something else.” One doctor might say, “I want a massive practice.” Somebody else might say, “I want a practice where I go to work three days a week.”

It doesn’t matter—the nuances and what you want. It really matters how you start with that, how you get crystal clear around that, and then how you, day by day, year by year, create that future.

Naren Arulrajah: The next tip is from Rebecca Herring. And the topic she’ll be talking about today is Embracing the Challenges and Changing the Perspective.

Rebecca Herring: One thing I know now that I truly wish I had known earlier in my career: that transformation doesn’t come from chasing the one right answer. It comes from embracing the possibility that there are many.

I used to carry the weight of believing I had to have it all figured out—every system, every solution, every answer for every team member and every challenge. But over the years, experience has taught me something powerful. The most meaningful cha—uh, changes often begin when we shift our perspective and allow ourselves to explore new ways of thinking, leading, and connecting.

For example, I—um—just because someone is good at their job doesn’t mean that they’re in the right role. I remember a rockstar front office coordinator who had incredible attention to detail but was drowning in patient-facing responsibilities. She wasn’t thriving—she was just surviving. Once we shifted her into an insurance and billing role behind the scenes, her confidence soared.

Rebecca Herring: She felt energized, and the team felt supported. And the practice saw fewer billing errors and faster collections. That shift wasn’t about fixing her—it was about freeing her to do what she was naturally great at. That’s the kind of transformation we miss when we focus only on performance and not alignment.

Another lesson: there is support beyond our four walls. I used to think hiring more in-office staff was the only solution, but that’s just not true anymore. When I discovered the power of virtual assistants, it changed everything. I’ve seen teams burnt out from phones and follow-up, and insurance verifications and eligibilities completely transformed when those tasks were delegated offshore. That doesn’t just lighten the load—it lets your team go back to what they do best: building relationships and delivering exceptional care. The VA isn’t a replacement—it’s a reinforcement. And I wish I had known that option existed earlier.

Rebecca Herring: It would’ve saved teams from stress and saved—saved practices from turnover.

And the biggest, most transformational truth of all: relationships are everything. Systems can be perfected, and technology can be upgraded, but if you are not invested in the relationships with your team, your patients, your community—none of it will stick. I’ve worked with practices where trust was low and communication was fractured, and all the strategy in the world couldn’t fix it until connection was restored.

I’ve also seen what happens when a leader takes time to really listen, to build trust, and to show they care. The culture shifts, the energy changes, and people show up differently because they know that they matter.

So now I lead with this truth: transformation doesn’t come from doing more—it comes from choosing better. Better alignment, better solutions, and better relationships. Transformation doesn’t require a total overhaul—just the courage to look differently at what’s already there.

You don’t need to have all the answers. You just need to stay curious, stay connected, and stay open to the ones that are waiting to be discovered.

Thanks, you guys.

Gary Takacs: Our next guest on the Thriving Dentist Show podcast is a great friend of the podcast, uh, Dr. Jim Arnold. And Jim is gonna talk about the concept of Be Present for Your Family.

Dr. Jim Arnold: Hey Gary, congrats on your 700th episode. That’s one heck of a milestone, and I’m really proud of you and all the great value you’ve created for the industry. Um, I sure loved my guest appearance on your show, love listening to it—always get something of value. So thanks for doing all that you do.

So you guys asked me, what do I know now that I wish I knew much earlier in my career? And there are probably quite a few things, but the one thing that comes to mind first and foremost is be present with your family.

You know, a lot of us feel like working hard—60, 70 hours a week—we can do it. We could work, you know, a hundred hours a week when we need to or feel like we’re building something important. But we’re doing that for our families. We’re trying to provide the best life possible for them.

Dr. Jim Arnold: But sometimes what they really need is us to be present. And I don’t mean just there in body, but I mean in mind and in spirit.

I think that I was on the road a lot early in my career doing CE, teaching, that sort of thing—going to every conference and wanting to be the best I could be. And that’s great. Nothing wrong with that. But when I was home, often I was only there in body because I was thinking about all the things that I needed to do. And I didn’t really see it that way at the time. And now looking back, I have a lot of regret about that.

You know, I wish that I’d been more present because, you know, the kids are only small once. They grow up so fast. And those years go by quickly. There were times where I thought, “Oh yeah, yeah, I’ll get to that. This is a small thing.” But sometimes those small things can accumulate, and it can really, I think, hinder that great relationship building when the kids are little.

Dr. Jim Arnold: Now, you can always make that up later, but you can’t get those years back. And you can’t have those special times—you know, when they’re so excited when you come home, they come running into your arms, and they wanna hug you, and they want you to cuddle up with them and read them a bedtime story. All those kinds of things—those years go really fast.

So don’t ever look back and regret having put too much into your career and not enough into your family. It doesn’t matter how much money you make. It doesn’t matter how successful you are. Because they need your time more than they need that extra money.

So if I were to do anything over again, that would be it. But I’m happy to have a great relationship with my kids now. And, uh, I hope that you have a great week. And again, Gary, thanks so much for everything you do for the profession. Hope to see you soon, buddy.

Naren Arulrajah: The next guest of the 700th episode of The Thriving Dentist Show is Kari Carter, and she’s gonna be talking about a really important topic—How to Overcome Burnout as a Hygienist. She has a lot of real-world experience, and she’s gonna be sharing it with us.

Kari Carter: One thing I wish I had known early in my career was just how prevalent burnout is among dental hygienists. It’s really prevalent for a number of reasons, and we end up being burnt out at some point in our career. A lot of it really stems from us not setting proper boundaries with our patients or our employers. Often, we don’t feel as though we can advocate for ourselves. We may feel pressure to say yes to everything. And that saying yes could be basically from us skipping breaks, or staying later, or seeing patients—um, maybe throughout our lunch breaks—or doing treatments that we don’t actually feel are ethical or right.

It can really be emotionally taxing to take care of patients, especially as the decades have advanced and people aren’t always as nice as they used to be previously. Some patients are anxious, some are difficult, or they’re not compliant with the care that we want to give on a day-to-day basis.

Kari Carter: And it really requires a lot of extra training and emotional intelligence to really be able to deal with patients. Um, and we’re not always taught that in school. In school, we’re really taught the foundation of how to care for patients as far as clinically, but we’re not always taught how to care for their emotional needs or how to de-escalate situations that can occur in the office.

Also, basically, at times we deal with burnout because we are not growing. If we’re just taking continuing education courses so that we can maintain our license, then we’re not always learning different techniques or different communication skills that can help us really have different opportunities that can get us out of burnout. So we have to make sure that we’re continuing to advance our career. And that may mean that we get uncomfortable and we actually learn some new technology or some different hands-on techniques, or how we can have more interpersonal communication with our patients as well as our colleagues.

Kari Carter: Doing this is really gonna help open up different opportunities that we may otherwise not be able to get if we don’t do this.

Another thing is, basically, a lot of hygienists feel as though they’re not able to give the best care these days because of maybe production goals that they’re having to meet or different quotas. So that can really be a conflict for patient care and can lead to burnout. A lot of people got into the field because they really want to help people. And if we are just seeing patients as a number, then that can really be a conflict of our interest between us wanting to help people and feeling that we must meet certain production goals in order to be able to keep our job.

The main thing, though, is mentorship. So if I could do it all over again from day one of getting my license, I wish that I had the mentor that I do have now, because that has really allowed me to have more satisfaction in my overall career and to grow as a professional.

Kari Carter: So if I was to talk to a new graduate, I would really emphasize the importance of thinking about what they want throughout their career. How are they gonna protect themselves against musculoskeletal injuries? How are they gonna continue to grow and advance their career so they don’t feel stagnant or stuck—and to grow as a profession?

And so all these different things are some of the key indicators that can help prevent burnout, because usually these are some underlying factors to most individuals’ experience in the dental industry. So if we can start this from the beginning, then hopefully we can all have a better career and really be happy that we chose this career and this profession.

Gary Takacs: Our next guest on this episode of The Thriving Dentist Show is my longtime friend, Ben Tunei. Uh, and Ben is gonna share some insights with you on Everything in Dental Insurance Is Negotiable, especially with the shift to going out of network. You’re gonna love what Ben has to say about that.

Ben Tunei: Hello there, everybody. Good day, good afternoon, good morning. My name is Ben, and it is my privilege to chime in and to be invited, uh, to give Gary and his team some feedback regarding the question: What is one thing you know now that you wish you had known earlier in your career?

First, I want to take this opportunity to congratulate my good friend Gary Takacs on reaching his 700th episode. I’ve been a longtime listener. In fact, I started listening a year after the podcast started, and I’ve been listening to pretty much every episode since then. So thank you, Gary, for the amazing content. And thank you to all your guests that you’ve invited over the years for such a wonderful and amazing podcast. To provide the content that you do is amazing.

So, to answer your question about the one thing that I wish I knew earlier in my career—it’s that I wish, as a person that fights insurance, as a person that engages in negotiating contracts and fee schedules and fighting appealed claims, denied claims—excuse me—and just fighting insurance in general to have a level of fairness between doctors and insurance carriers—I wish I had known when I first started my career that Delta Dental, United Concordia, MetLife, all Blue Cross Blue Shield programs—they all negotiate.

Ben Tunei: Every insurance plan is negotiable. I’ve always been of the mindset that everything in life is negotiable if you put your mind to it—if you have the right leverage, especially—you can negotiate just about anything in the world.

Now, the reason why we’re able to negotiate with Delta now, and Blue Cross Blue Shield, and just about any dental plan, is because of what Gary does—what his program does—his education. And as you know, Gary is one that advocates for less insurance dependence by going out of network, freeing yourself from those in-network agreements. So I would credit Gary with the wave and momentum of out-of-network journeys, the fee-for-service journey that a lot of doctors are taking right now.

And the fact that doctors are going out of network these days with every dental plan is making it so much easier to get the big guys—the big players—like Delta, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and United Concordia, and others. They’re all negotiating right now. They may say over the phone that they don’t negotiate or over email, but the reality is that if you present the right leverage, they will negotiate. And the number one piece of leverage is the fact that so many doctors are going out of network.

Ben Tunei: So pay attention to that in your community. If you’re the last person standing and you’re the only one in network with any dental plan, that’s all you need—because if you leave the plan, the employers that use that plan will also leave. They’ll look for a different insurance plan to use, right?

So, that’s the one thing I wish I had known. You know, I’ve always been of the belief that everything is negotiable, but I never really pushed or tackled tougher negotiations until about five years ago when we really started hitting the bigger players very aggressively from a PPO negotiating standpoint.

And so, I hope that provides encouragement to you—that there is a path to negotiate with everybody.

But the other thing that I learned over my career that I wish I knew earlier is that being in network is not the best model. In fact, it’s not the easiest model, it’s not the most profitable model. And had I known that out of network was such an easier journey, I would’ve made those recommendations more often early in my career.

Ben Tunei: And the reason why is because out of network is beautiful. You don’t see a whole lot of patients leaving—if you do it right, if you do it and follow what Gary says in terms of out-of-network transitions, patient communication—just the culture that you have in your office makes a big difference in terms of going out of network.

But to me, with what I’m seeing as it pertains to my professional career and what I know in regards to negotiations, is that understanding out-of-network dynamics opens the door for you to be flexible on your options when you negotiate with insurance carriers that may say “no” multiple times.

So just know that. Just know that out of network is not bad. If you negotiate and you don’t produce the fees that you want, you actually get paid higher out of network. The income that you generate out of network—minus the rate of attrition of patients that would leave the practice—is that out of network is the fuel to negotiate with insurance companies these days.

Ben Tunei: And if you’re really bold and you don’t want to stay in network, out of network is—it’s a beautiful model. It is successful, and it’s one I highly recommend to any dental practice that’s out there.

And of course, our good friend Gary is the best person to help you with those transitions.

Folks, again, my name is Ben, and I just wanted to chime in here. Congratulations again, Gary and the team, for 700 episodes. I wish all of you the best of success. Take care—and fight insurance. Keep the fight going. Let’s not let them let up.

Take care, everybody.

Naren Arulrajah: Hope you enjoyed our tips so far, and I have a really interesting tip for you. And this comes from Jennifer Turner, who is a hygienist, and she’s gonna be talking about a really important topic. Communication and Confidence Is What Truly Elevates Patient Care, while clinical excellence is only part of the equation. So you’re gonna learn a lot about communication and confidence with this tip.

Jennifer Turner: Hello, this is Jennifer Turner, CEO of Hygiene Headquarters. And one thing I know now that I wish I had known earlier in my dental hygiene career is that clinical excellence is only part of the equation. Communication, collaboration, and confidence in advocating for patient care are what truly elevate you.

Early on, I focused so much on perfecting technique that I underestimated the power of using my voice to lead conversations about treatment, prevention, and overall health. Once I really leaned into educating patients with clarity and conviction and aligned with my dental team, I saw real transformation—better outcomes, stronger relationships, and more fulfillment in my role.

I really wish that I had realized this sooner—that I wasn’t just a hygienist. I was a vital part of the patient’s health journey and the practice’s success.

I’ve been fortunate to hold leadership positions with the College of Dental Hygienists of Ontario and the Canadian Dental Hygienist Association, and to lead two dental hygiene programs at the two largest, uh, DSOs or group dentistry organizations in Canada.

Jennifer Turner: Every step of that journey has shown me the power of relationships. So network, and just keep networking. Your connections can open doors, spark ideas, and help you grow in ways that you never even imagined.

And above all, I’ve learned that anything is possible. When you’re scared to jump—just jump anyways. Don’t settle for a career you’ll regret. If it isn’t working, pivot, reinvent, and explore.

We are not stuck. We’re capable of creating the life and the career that we truly want to live.

Thank you.

Gary Takacs: Our next tip is from our friend Dr. Michael Sonick. You know, I kind of feel like the HIT parade just keeps continuing because Dr. Sonick’s gonna talk to you about the importance of human connectivity, mentorship, and mastermind groups.

Dr. Michael Sonick: Hi, I’m Dr. Mike Sonick, a full-time practicing periodontist for the last 40 years in downtown Fairfield, Connecticut. I’ve been in the same location for 40 years. I’ve also been an educator for the past 40 years as well—teaching all over the country, as well as at NYU, where I’ve been since 1984, and at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine, as well as Yale.

Gary asked me to share a couple things that I wished I had known earlier in my career. And if I had done them early in my career, they would’ve contributed to more of my success. There are so many things I wish I knew earlier. Unfortunately, most of the things that I learned, I had to learn by experience.

However, if you’re just starting out—or even if you’ve been practicing for a period of time—I want to share just two things with you.

Dr. Michael Sonick: The first thing is the importance of human connectivity in getting patients to say yes to treatment and also to get them more comfortable with the treatment that we provide. And the second thing is the importance of mentorship and creating mastermind groups.

Let’s talk about human connectivity first. Nothing is more important to a patient than to feel safe and cared for when they’re a patient. In our practice, people are scared. Nothing really compares to coming to see a dentist—especially if you’re going to have surgery or a procedure done. Patients want to be nurtured, they want to feel loved, they want to make sure that everything’s going to be okay.

So one of the things I tell all of my new patients is, “I know how difficult it was for you to come into our practice and make this appointment today. Let me assure you that you are in the right place. I’ll do everything I can to improve the quality of your health, to make things look better, to give you better function—and we’ll do this in a pain-free environment. And if at any time you don’t feel comfortable, please let me know.”

Dr. Michael Sonick: As a matter of fact, I’m going to communicate with you in a way where you can always have access to me. Most doctors don’t do this. At this point in time, I hand patients my business card, which has my cell phone and my personal email, and I give it to all my patients. That makes them feel safe and cared for, because in that way, they can always connect to me in a way that is convenient for them.

How many times have you ever been to a doctor and they said, “Here, call me on my cell,” or, “Here’s my personal email”? It’s very hard to do that. So that’s something that’s very important—the importance of the connectivity with the patient. I talk about this in greater detail in my book Treating People, Not Patients and on my website, MichaelSonick.com.

Dr. Michael Sonick: The other thing I want to share with you is the importance of mentorship. It’s important to find people—not just one, but multiple people—that will mentor you. And in my life today, I have many mentors—not just in dentistry, but in health, in science, in finance, in all areas of my life. I have a mentor, because there’s always someone that knows more than me.

One of the things I’ve found is that people who are very knowledgeable and who give of themselves freely are more than happy to become your mentor or to give you mentorship. I remember early in my career, I went up to many famous dentists—and I always get nervous around famous dentists, not famous actors—and I went up to them and I said, “Can I ask you a question?” And oftentimes they said, “You know, I don’t have time to answer it now,” but they gave me their home phone number.

Dr. Michael Sonick: And this happened with Bert Langer, with Harold Shavell, with Cliff Ochsenbein—who’s a periodontist that has since passed away. And these people were very kind to me.

Not only is it important to get a mentor, it’s also important to be a mentor, because it’s only by giving this information away that I truly can keep it. And what do I mean by that? Nothing is better for me. The greatest gift that I can give anybody is the gift of something that I know—and that turns out to be a gift to me. So it goes on and on. I get mentored, I mentor others, and then they mentor others.

Dr. Michael Sonick: Something else I just want to share with you before I finish up is I would recommend that you all create a mastermind group if you don’t have one.

What’s a mastermind group? A mastermind group is a group of like-minded individuals that share openly and honestly everything about what you’re going to discuss.

I’ve created four or five mastermind groups in my life. I have one right now with 20 periodontists that I’ve known for over 20 years. And we meet once a month for about two hours online and once a year in person for a day and a half to two days.

This mastermind group has been invaluable to me, and it’s been invaluable to them because we all share. Each of us in the group has one area of expertise that the other people in the group don’t have.

Dr. Michael Sonick: So in summary—if you don’t have a mastermind group, create it. If you don’t have or haven’t found a mentor, find them. If you’re not mentoring somebody, do so. And most importantly, always be there for the people that we are privileged to serve.

I hope some of this information has been useful to you. It definitely will be useful to your patients. And I want you to have a great day, everybody. Be it a gift.

Naren Arulrajah: Our next tip comes from Tessina Bullock. She has been a friend of The Thriving Dentist Show and the podcast for years, and she’s going to be giving us a really important tip—and that is the insurance company is not the end-all and be-all.

Tessina Bullock: Hello. Thank you for, um, having me. First off, I want to say how honored I am to be here and to have the opportunity to share some of my insight with you guys. So thank you so much for having me.

Something I know now that I wish I had known earlier on in my career would have to be something that I talk about often—passionately—and that is how much power we actually wield and can have over the insurance companies, versus the insurance companies having that power over us.

And folded into that is that the insurance companies flag us—flag offices—for offices that they can bully versus offices that they will back off of and process claims faster and easier. And then another thing tied into that is the insurance commissioner. So all of those things used together are what help us take back the power from the insurance companies.

Tessina Bullock: I think a lot of offices will resonate with this. Early on in the career, there’s not a lot of training for how to deal with insurance companies—what is really required. Each insurance company requires different documentation, different processing policies, and so you get in the habit of just asking the insurance company.

And in doing so, the insurance company is only going to tell you, of course, what they want you to do—to play by their rules so that they can continue to bully you, deny claims, and so on and so forth. And such the journey goes.

We wind up becoming in a position where we’re begging and pleading for claims to be processed in a timely manner—and correctly, for that matter—instead of knowing that there are laws and rights that protect us. Versus the insurance company saying, "You have to do it this way, and if you don’t do it this way, we’re not gonna pay," and we’re just at their mercy.

Tessina Bullock: Instead, what I talk about often is taking back that power and stating back to the insurance company what the laws and requirements are—and that if they don’t abide by the laws and requirements to get these claims processed, that we will report them to the insurance commissioner.

And as we start doing that and actually following through with those threats—by reporting them to the insurance commissioner—then we get flagged as a whistleblower. And the insurance company backs off of us so that they can continue to bully other offices, as long as they don’t get caught.

That insurance commissioner has the ability to police them and either apply a fine or—this is extreme, I haven’t seen this happen—but tell them that they cannot sell their policies in the state anymore. Insurance companies do not want these fines. They do not want to be kicked out of the state. They will comply.

So when the commissioner gets involved—and they already know what they’re doing is illegal—they’re pretty quick to get those claims reprocessed. And again, they flag your office like, “Okay, these guys are blowing the whistles. We need to back off of them and process their claims better so that they don’t report us.”

Tessina Bullock: So that’s it. That’s what I have. I mean, it’s big, but yes—I wish I had known that early on in my career. I could have saved so much time, so much headache, so much money.

And it’s a lot more fun going to the insurance companies and saying, “Get this paid or I’ll report you,” versus, “Please, what do you need? I’ll send you three more X-rays. I’ll send you intraoral photos. I’ll write five narratives. I’ll fight this for a year—whatever I have to do—please just pay the claim.”

So I like the newer method. It takes me maybe a month or two to get a claim processed if I’m having an issue with it, and they know to back off of me.

So yeah—if that’s anything I could share, that would be the one thing. That’s all that I have. If you need anything else, always please feel free to reach out to me. And again, thank you so much for having me.

Gary Takacs: Our final guest contributor is Sarah Beth Herman, and she’s got some great insights for you. She’s gonna talk about the fact that your path and success are uniquely yours. No one can take away what’s meant for you.

Sarah Beth Herman: Hey everyone, I am Sarah Beth Herman, and it is truly an honor to celebrate this milestone with you all—700 episodes of growth and grit and thriving in dentistry. And what a moment for all of you.

You asked me in the email you sent, what is one thing I know now that I wish I had known earlier in my career? And so here’s my answer:

I wish I had known that no one can stop what’s meant for you—not fear, doubt, competition, competitors of any kind, intrinsic thoughts—nothing.

When I started in dentistry at 17 years old, I was filing charts in the back of a dental practice. No one saw me, no one knew me, and no one expected me to become a front office team member, an office manager, a district manager, a regional director of operations, a chief of training and talent development, a chief operating officer, or eventually a CEO who would go on to hire nearly 700 team members and build one of the largest women-owned dental companies in the United States.

Sarah Beth Herman: And that’s Dentistry Support.

Did I know I’d lead like this? Speak on stages in front of thousands of people? Host a podcast with over 27,000 downloads? No. But I did know this: I was in charge of where I was going.

And over the years, I’ve learned that staying the course—especially when it’s really, really hard, and all of the things come at you at once, like the complaining clients, the team members that disappoint you, the people that betray you, the friends and family that don’t stick by you, the ones that think they should have a handout because they know you—that’s the dividing line between the people who say they want it and the people who build it.

There are many, many quotes that I’ve learned to live by, but one that I’ve really been clinging to lately is this:

“The dream was planted in you for a reason. Protect it. Water it. And don’t you dare let it go just because the road gets really hard.”

Sarah Beth Herman: You’re allowed to build something that no one understands. You’re allowed to walk a path that others have never seen. And you are allowed to rise—even when the odds say that you shouldn’t.

And in case you need to hear it today, there is no amount of competition that can crush a calling.

This profession gave me a seat at the table. But I brought the chair.

Dentistry has provided so much for me, and I never, ever knew that that would be my world. I’ve suffered grandiose things in my life—moments that people can’t even imagine—everything from poverty to the greatest successes I could ever dream of.

And so, as I even answer this question, I’m so inspired by all of those that I’ve learned from along the way, and every single way that I get to prepare our future generation through something I call generational leadership, where I am just focused every single day on making the next generation that comes after me better.

Sarah Beth Herman: Because they are who will be on this planet long after I am gone—living out all of the things that all of us have been working so hard to do.

Dentistry is better because of so many people. It has created jobs and opportunity and confidence and has given people back the most beautiful thing in the world—which is their smile.

So if you’re listening to this 700th episode and you’re wondering if it’s too late, or too hard, or too uncertain—I’m here to tell you that it’s not.

Stay in it. Stay faithful. And keep going.

And I really want you to hear from me that no matter how many competitors exist in what you want to create—in dentistry, in business, and in life—there’s always room for us all.

It doesn’t have to be scary. It doesn’t have to feel like, “Oh my gosh, they’re gonna steal my client, they’re gonna steal the customer, they’re gonna steal the patient, they’re gonna steal my idea”—because no one can deliver it just like you. No one can make it as awesome as you are going to make it.

Sarah Beth Herman: So here is cheers to the next 700 episodes and the thousands of lives that we all get to impact along the way.

Thank you for including me in this moment. I am Sarah Beth Herman, CEO of Dentistry Support and four other women-owned organizations. I speak across stages all over the United States, and I have a global organization all over the world of people that I employ to help service dental practices just like yours—everything from eligibility, phones, dental billing, credentialing, medical billing for dental—even an online dental school.

I’m grateful to be here and grateful to be part of this episode. Thank you so much, and I’ll talk to you soon.

Gary Takacs: Well, we’ve sure appreciated bringing this 700th episode to all of our listeners, and I hope you can apply those tips that were provided.

I want to take a minute and thank all of our guest contributors. They really put some time and effort into this to share with you their answer to, what is the one thing that they know now that they wish they would’ve learned sooner?

So, regardless of where you are in your career, you now know a bunch of things from some very wise people that hopefully you can start applying in your practice.

Well, as we wrap up this 700th episode, stay tuned. We’re gonna be doing many more, and we’ll be continuing the journey on The Thriving Dentist Show.

And I want to take a minute and just extend a sincere gratitude to each and every one of you. You know, The Thriving Dentist Show was the very first dental podcast, and we’re rather proud of the fact that today we have listeners in 188 countries—and we have you to thank for that.

So thank you so much for being part of The Thriving Dentist Show. Thank you for the privilege of your time today, and stay tuned for future episodes.

Looking forward to seeing you then.