Anne: Hi everyone. It's Anne Duffy and to Dental Entrepreneur, the Future of Dentistry podcast. I am so happy you're with me today. I've got a very, very dear friend. We've known each other for, I don't know, 20, 25 years, something like that. And I worked together on many things growing dental entrepreneur and growing dental entrepreneur, woman.
And recently she has become the president of Dental Entrepreneurs Board which I'm extremely excited about. But before we introduce her, let me tell you a little bit about her. Mary Fisher-Day has served dentistry for 35 years. Her work as a management consultant and a broker led her to realize that dentists need a personal transition advisor.
Today, she helps dentists navigate the purchase or sale of a dental practice providing practice. Valuations and emergency exit plan strategies. Mary is the owner of the dental business and author, educator and president for de the Future of Dentistry Board and a board member of the Academy of Dental Management Consultants.
You are pretty special. Your special to us and special to me. Please help me welcome Mary Fisher-Day. Hi Mary. Hi. How are you? I'm doing great. Good to
Mary: see you.
Anne: It's so good to see you.
Mary: Thank you for having me.
Anne: Thanks for being here. For those of you that know me know that whenever I reference Mary, I reference Mary Fisher-Day, so that is her business statement.
I remember meeting you, gosh 25 years ago at a booth at, was it Holiday Dental or the Hyman? It was holiday, holiday dental. Oh my gosh. In Charlotte, North Carolina. That really brings me back and I, I still can remember walking over to you had a booth. Yeah. And Michelle Lowe introduced us to each other.
Yeah. She just gotta meet each other and then look at us. Here we are today, just growing our businesses and all the people around us. It's so exciting.
Mary: Yes, it is.
Anne: But fun to have you on the ride with me.
Mary: you have really upped our game at Dental Entrepreneur, the Future of Dentistry, and to share a little bit of the background.
Anne: For those of you that don't know, dental Entrepreneur used to be, when I first started it, 23 years ago, or 24 now, business Beyond the Classroom, and we just used to print. I don't know, 20,000 and drop ship to all the dental schools. It was really business 1 0 1 for the junior and senior dental students, because as Mary and I both know, and all of you know, they get very little business education in dental school that's a missing in dentistry.
And even to this day, the deans they tell us that they don't have. Time for that kind of thing. And so they have to learn that on their own. And then, back up, maybe four years ago we rebranded to Dental Entrepreneur The Future of Dentistry. 'cause it was more interesting and more exciting and really encompasses not only the business of dental practice, but also the new businesses that are popping up.
Innovation, those kinds of things. And that's when Mary came in to my life as far as a leader in. Dental entrepreneur because I really needed some help. and Mary, you came in and, what do you see right now is the highlight, the key milestones that we are gonna hit this year?
Mary: One of the things I'm most excited about us adding is ask de an Ask de column because the future of dentistry is unknown, right?
I mean, We might be able to see some of what's going on, but there's a lot that's unknown. So we have between our board and the experts out in the industry, we can answer pretty much any question. A professional has. So we're excited to offer that. Another thing I'm really excited about is Dr.
Sharon Parsons is gonna head up our health and wellness feature that we'll have every issue and hopefully some in newsletters and blogs and things of that nature too. to really help dental professionals focus on their mental and physical wellbeing and let it be known that's okay to have both.
Issues and it's okay to not be okay. It's the same, I think. Yeah,
Anne: I was gonna say who, doesn't have both issues in this day and age, right? Yeah. Oh
Mary: and to be there to support each other and just show, ways that things are being done to help and improve your health physically and mentally.
Also, to show dentists that feel like maybe they've been injured or they're just exhausted from being in dentistry, There's no other future for them Laura Brenner has great resources and she will be a great resource for us with side gigs.
Side gigs for dentist. We're gonna expand on that and go out and just give some examples and show some other ways that dentists can work in dentistry. Stay in dentistry if they can't be in the treatment room anymore.
Anne: First of all, a couple things there, Mary. I love having Sharon Parsons lead the health and wellness because she's in the trenches.
Sharon golly, she's younger than I am, but she is still practicing and still loves it, and brought in her, son is an associate with her, so she's had it all and bought a practice. Doing such great work within the Ohio Dental Association, past president of the ODA, and she's a speaker and she's got her own nonprofit.
There's so much richness in Sharon's history that I think she really can expound on that through, gaining authors and securing authors that will be able to speak to health and wellness. As a personal story, and as you and I know, I really like the personal stories that we provide in Dental Entrepreneur because I think that stories.
Are wonderful and, you know, facts tell, and stories sell in the sense of you'll remember the story. And so that's how we set ourselves apart from other publications that are more clinical in nature, ours are really like, you know, where were you, where are you and where are you going? So I think That is really gonna be key. And then of course, we don't know what we don't know as editors and publishers in our role in dentistry. So I think what we'll do, Mary, and let's just brainstorm this, why we're on this podcast. Let's just make sure that we get our Facebook page, the Dental Entrepreneur Facebook page, and people ask to be on that all the time.
And that could be a resource. Like If you have a question, put it in there and then we'll find an author that will be able to speak directly to you. 'cause we have a broad range, of professionals in dentistry that are actually in the trenches or designing their products jumping into a company.
There's just so many avenues and we want the smart people to stay in dentistry
Mary: Absolutely, and I would even say that we're okay with some anonymous requests. If it's for, anything but for health and wellness. People don't always want their name out there.
Feel free to reach out anonymously. We want you to know there's open to answer your questions. We will have the resources.
Anne: You're not alone. Not just that though, Mary. Think about practice evaluations and selling a practice. That's something that, a lot of docs don't wanna really reveal that as their name is.
Like, I'm struggling here. do, that's very true. How can I be helped? And so, yeah, we're gonna try to expand that, give you what you want. And so again we'll let you know how to get in touch with us at the end of this podcast so that you can write in your answers and email us and we can figure this out and make this Just, something that you really wanna pick up and share with your colleagues. Tell us a little bit more, Mary. ' you came on board this was about maybe six months ago, I think, Mary, was it about six months ago?
Mary: Really the first of the year. We started talking about it long time ago, but I became active the first of the year probably with this position and us trying to Help every board member see what they would like to focus on to help with de and I think we've got one of the most amazing boards. And everyone's excited. It's a volunteer board, and I think that's important to say because there aren't paid positions on this board.
It's because of the passion for dentistry that we have board members. We do. And. Everything from innovation to technology to professional development. We've got somebody to cover a lot of things.
Anne: go down the list, Mary, and tell a quick little synopsis of, Of each one. 'cause you talked to each one individually on why they chose the subject line that they wanted to be focused on. Yeah.
Mary: So I'm the president and director of content, we are so lucky to have Dr. Sharon Parsons as the Vice President and the Director of Wellness and Health, and Ryan Vet.
If you don't know him, he is a powerhouse. He's our business advisor and. He's something else. He's already written an article for me for the next issue. And let me tell you, it's great. He's already sent it to me.
Anne: Yay.
Mary: And he, must have written it while he was speaking six times at Hinman. He spoke six times at Hinman, so yeah, I got his
Anne: book too.
Speak good rx, something like that. And it's just super cool. I read it cover to cover. the weekend I got home, so keep going. That's wonderful. And
Mary: then Dr. Dirk Fleischman, he's director of mentorship, He's such a. Jam. He's,
Anne: and I've known Dirk for so long he called me Outta the Blue when Dental entrepreneur was first getting published and just loved dental entrepreneur, shared it with all of his students, and a lot of the students from Nova, I mean, he's mentored so many of those students and seen their careers grow exponentially.
So he walks the walk. he's a, an amazing gentleman and just very dear, not only to me, but to so many in dentistry.
Mary: he is a good one. Dr. Isabel RBA is the director of education and student relations, another powerhouse of energy, and she's got such great vision for how to help dentists who are going to become an out school just.
Have their questions answered because they read all the Facebook posts and everything. A lot of 'em, they're scared to death. Well, Let's give them some real advice. And she's got a great program in mind to do that.
Anne: And she was with Marilyn before, that's how I met her. And actually she's spoken, she's done one of our learning crews the highlight of women in dentistry. That was a long time ago. And now she's at Oklahoma and the dean of students there. So she's got her pulse on what students wanna hear, what they need to learn, and she loves her position, which, you know, this is also cool that we've got people in our honor board that.
Really love dentistry, so keep going. That's awesome.
Mary: She's also the immediate past president of the American Association of Women Dentist.
Anne: Yes, exactly. W just another, another
Mary: little thing for her.
she's amazing. She is
Anne: amazing.
Mary: Dr. David Rice. Ignite. DDS probably needs no introduction, but he is the director of professional development.
And if that's not the most appropriate title ever for him, I don't know what is. he's a powerhouse as well.
Anne: I call him the Pied Piper of the young dentist. is like they all wear little bands that say, what would David Rice say? He's so honest and so forthright he's, he, he.
Tells it like it is
Mary: and he doesn't hide it. Dr. Luke Shapiro he's another wonderful board member, director of innovation and, again, I can't imagine a better title or description for what he personifies in my mind.
Anne: He's young. I met him. He went to Tufts University, and I was up there at a pulpdent meeting that Christy Bailey put together for me.
And I, I couldn't help, but I was right there. I said, okay, I gotta find you, Luke, because he had reached out to me. I met him through David and he's just an amazing, and then he actually, one of his bosses who I adore, mark lems, has been on our cover and he works in the most. innovative orthodontic practice in New York City, downtown New York City with one of the most amazing gentlemen's in dentistry.
So, Go back and I wish I had that in front of me right now, but you have to go back. If you go on to Dental Entrepreneur Dot com and you click on magazine, you will see mark's. Cover story. And that's all because of Luke. And then Luke has a, column that he reaches out to young dentists that are doing special things and does a question and, answer interview with them one of my favorite parts of me too dental Entrepreneur. And I forgot to say David Rice is usually a closer for our publication. Yeah. And I love David. I'll, call him up and say, I need your article. And he will. just sit down and just lets it flow, which this is what we love.
It's so raw and so. honest you know, I just, I can't wait to see what he is gonna write about next time.
Mary: And one of my favorite people on earth is also a member of our board, Dr. Tom Snyder. I could tell you so much about that man, but he is their director of data and research.
And I know what that may sound like, but let me tell you, if you wanna know a stat data, what's happening in the industry, what happened and what's coming, he can tell you. He is on top of it. And he's just
Anne: he's a, a
dear, dear man. He's been with me since almost the beginning, I think of dental entrepreneur.
He always calls me up after an issue, comes out and gives me his 2 cents and introduces me to people that I need to know. And he's just an absolute gentleman in our industry.
Mary: He really is, and he's been a great mentor for me as well. Barb Stackhouse
Anne: Profit First for Dentist Profit.
Mary: First for dentist, yes.
Director of Financial Success. And again, people keep in mind while we're saying this, these are people we can get answers for you from.
Anne: Oh yes.
Mary: Them our board and beyond, and then we have Mr. Travis Rogers, director of Technology. He's another young man. He knows technology inside and out if you know anything about him.
So that's our board, and I think it's a powerhouse board.
Anne: It is a powerhouse board. and just to say a little bit about Barb, I've known her for probably five years. I've taken her course on practice first, which is very, very helpful. If you haven't gotten her book, and she just has a manual out now, even includes tax strategies for both US and Canadian dentists, which is really cool. So you can get that on Amazon. And then, you know, Travis he was with IBM before he got into dentistry, and so he really loves tech knows all the techy people out there in the industry and, really promotes their vision and their processes and their products and all of those things.
So again, if something. Puts a light bulb on in your head. Reach out to one of our board members, pitch your product, your idea. We're always looking for great stories. We're always looking for people that wanna reach our amazing social media presence. every article goes out on social media, our LinkedIn on our website, it'll live there forever.
If you want that expert status and you're listening and you wanna write, please reach out to Mary. Reach out to one of our board members if kind of fits in that feature that they are in charge of that's how you'll get expert status.
You're already an expert. You know it. We just want you to write it. We wanna put that pen to paper.
Mary: absolutely. And. I do believe that technology has a lot to do with the future of dentistry. So any question you have ideas, suggestions, please reach out to us. I'm happy to answer any questions.
Anne: That's so wonderful.
Mary: I point you in the right direction. If I can't.
Anne: That's a great way to, segue into how do they find you, Mary. How does somebody find you, if they've got an idea for dental entrepreneur, they've got somebody they wanna introduce us to that they wanna share their story anything.
How do they find you?
Mary: Mary, at the dental business.com and just in the subject line, put DE or Dental Entrepreneur. because if I don't recognize your name, it'll just make it easier. Yeah. So Marriot the dental business.com is the best way. Honestly,
Anne: And of course if you need evaluation or you need a some practice help.
I mean, Mary knows everybody in the industry. So again, one of the things that we recognize with the experts that we work with, they know somebody that can help you. In what you're looking for, and this is part of what we're doing with Dental Entrepreneur, the future of dentistry and dental entrepreneur women, is not only to inspire and empower you, but to connect you with the amazing people that can help you build a great career, keep you in this career.
Because if the smart people stay in dentistry in some capacity, in any capacity, it's gonna be better for all of us as a whole in this industry.
Mary: Right I may just throw this out just so you guys will know what else to expect. You'll see some stuff on practice transitions, some practice management, some things about dental spouses and dental spouses that are in Oh, that's right.
Bev Beverly
Anne: Wilburn is gonna be featured in our publication, which, and she's running a great group with spouses. It's amazing '
Mary: And so we've got a lot of new things that are gonna be out and have it organized. So you kind of know what to look for in each magazine.
You're like, oh yeah, they do a feature on this type thing. But we wanna hear from you what you want, what questions you have, what you would like to see in the magazine. And we really are gonna focus on current and future of dentistry. We're excited.
Anne: I love it, Mary. Well, I can't think of anybody better to be at the helm of this.
You've had the dental business for how many years, Mary? 23. 23 and you've got two books already. The dental business one and two, two, I'm working on the
Mary: third
Anne: and she's working on the third. you know, We've got a very high brain trust here with dental entrepreneur and led by an amazing woman in dentistry.
I know Mary, you love dentistry. You've been there forever, you've. Been in every aspect, in every office, in every kind of office. So there is no story, Mary, that you have not heard. And so remember that, if you're listening again, you're not alone. We gotcha. we can't wait to feature you.
We can't wait to hear from you. We can't wait to showcase you, promote you. That's what the future of dentistry needs, and we're here to provide it. So
Mary: absolutely.
Anne: everybody, thanks for listening today. If you are a female, by the way, in dentistry in any capacity, we have a do life retreat coming up in November.
It's the 13th through 15 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Put it on your radar. It's a event not to be missed and all are welcome. Everyone is listening to this is welcome. If you're a female, we're gonna have a dude's thing eventually. I know all you guys out there. We love you. And a dude, DE capital W lowercase d is a man that supports women in dentistry.
And so you're out there, we love you. We can't do it without you. We wanna sit at the table, hold hands with you two. we got our spouses right, Mary, I mean, like you love your Todd, I love my Tom. And we would just wanna sit together and, support each other. So, All right guys.
Thanks so much for joining us and we'll see you next time. Everybody on. Dental Entrepreneurs Podcast. Take care. Have a great day. And Mary, thank you. Thanks again. Bye. Love you. Bye
