Anne: Hello everyone. It's Anne Duffy and welcome to Dental Entrepreneur, the Future of Dentistry podcast. I am so excited today because I have the future of dentistry on our podcast today. I have a young lady that is in. dental school, and I've known her about herfor over, at least over 20 years since I've known her mom and dad and she's just a doll.
So let me tell you just a bit about her before we get started. Ryan O'Donnell is a second year dental student at the Dental College of Georgia with a passion for patient care and hands on learning and a fun fact. She's a scuba diver or scuba certified
and she likes to sew her own clothes, which I just think that is super, super cool and maybe you'll sew something for me someday, my dear, so please help me. Welcome Ryan O'Donnell.
Ryan: Thank you so much. And, um, no. Speaking of sewing, I actually have my sewing machine on my desk presently.
I was texting my sister about a project I was working on, and I'm struggling with zippers right now. I cut one too short and so I'm gonna have to reredo my whole project. So anyway, we're just trying to figure that out. Sosewing is a work in progress, but I'm always trying something new.
My family can tell you that. I'm always trying a new hobby, so. Well, you know, sewing is one of them.
Anne: That is so funny because I took sewing in home ec my mom sewed all my clothes. A lot of people ask me where I got fashion sense. And I think it's 'cause I went with my mom. We picked out fabric and she made my clothes and she was just a lovely seamstress and I didn't appreciate it, you know, when I was younger.
Mm-hmm. Um, but now looking back, I'm like, oh my God, those clothes were so yummy. And I'm always looking, I've got a, I've got something in my mind. And I can't find it. And I wish I knew how to soap, but the funny thing is, is what you just said, one of my strengths is not patience. So if I would make a zipper that was too short, I'd just never go back to it.
I'd just like, okay, that's it. I'm done with that. So you have to have a certain, I. Strength to be able to take the zipper out and redo it and not, you know, have patience. So, kudos to you. I can't wait. We'll come back on the do, podcast ladies and gentlemen and, uh, talk about sewing and, I'll, ill tell you about what I want for the the do fashion show in November.
'cause it's always a big bougie event and I need something new this year. Okay. Oh, yes, We digress because here we are, the future of dentistry, and I said you are the future of dentistry. Tell us a little bit about what inspired you to pursue dentistry.
Ryan: Yes, of course. So like you said, you do know my parents.
I grew up around dentistry. my dad's a dentist, so. The smell of the office the sound of the milling machine weirdly feels like home to me. when he started his own practice, he renovated an old house in downtown Alpharetta. And so this old house that turned into this modern. Practice. It was like a little second home and the staff was like a little second family and an extension of that, the patients.
But I really didn't choose dentistry just because of that. Of course, I can't deny that influence in my life. But I love people. I love solving problems with my hands. I love that dentistry can be this beautiful blend of. Science, which I could say, I'm not sure how much I exactly enjoy, but the design, the business and the connection is truly like what's makes it worth the sciencey and the, hard work to get here. So much worth it in school, I feel like, of course, I'm only a D two. Again, I'm taking my, some of my finals this week, so we're almost a D three, but I realize it's bigger than. Even the connection. At first you're so focused on getting everything right clinically exactly to how a professor wants.
But dentistry is so much more about the emotional intelligence and the leadership communication. My psychology degree and college is definitely serving me well now, but the energy you give off that the patients feel it and your team feels it. It's a lot of realizing how much I know I can do to make myself better, to make my patients feel more comfortable.
Anne: There's a couple things, I mean, and that is the kind of the second part was how your perspective evolved during dental school. But I wanna, I wanna go back to that, but first I wanna talk a little bit about. Your gift as a dentist. I see it coming out because I practiced hygiene for 46 years. And what I miss more than anything, is the, human contact and learning so much from all of my patients and just all different walks of life.
And it's just, it's such a rich, rich community that walks through the door. Right. And you know, honestly I am not like, oh, Ann is sy. Let's get her in. Uh. Right. In a science program. No I have the other gifts that make dentistry a beautiful profession for me, and I understood it. I think, you know, you, gotta be smart.
You know, I can't deny that I'm, I'm pretty smart, but it's so interesting. I think the other. Things that you don't actually realize you need for dentistry. That the creativity, the fact that you love creating with your hands, that you love decorating, you love sewing and all of those things.
And beauty, right? Yeah. And you know how to put colors together. That, to me, those are intangible. Those are things that you can't, learn. You innately have those, honestly, Ryan. And so you're gonna make an amazing dentist because the science comes with determination repeat and learning, right?
And we can all learn. But the other little things that you just talked about, that's what's gonna make you a special dentist. And I think that's what brings you, to this pinnacle that you know, you started This program, but what other perspectives have evolved since you got into dental school?
Ryan: Yes. I really think the object of perfectionism is As, I don't know, Americans are just growing up in a world with internet now you're supposed to know everything at a drop of a hat. It's supposed to be quick, quick, quick. You know this. Mm-hmm. but I feel like sometimes it's okay just to, okay, I'm gonna get this done, I'm gonna move on.
It's that little margin of error that I feel like in any profession you have to be. Okay with a little bit. We always wanna strive our best. We wanna give our patients the best we can. But the important part to me is how do I make that patient feel?
How? Mm-hmm. Do you have a positive experience here? Did they feel like they were welcomed, that they could talk about their problems openly? It's important to me to be that person where my patients do feel that comfort. I guess I could say you're recovering perfectionist,
Anne: I like that attitude. Ryan, I'll tell you why. Nothing's perfect. Let's just go that, I mean, you could do,20 crowns and you might get like, 10. Perfect. Let's just say 50%. Yeah. Because perfection in dentistry is just, it's just, it's just so minuscule. Right?
Right. But. Your main goal when you think about it is to make sure that patient comes back for a lifetime of dental care.
and oh my gosh, that's just, it's so profound when you think about that. There's so much so that's really interesting. And I think every dentist, what causes burnout more than anything is just this striving for perfection.
And we know that, Jesus had perfection, but he's like the only one we know, right? Yes. It's hard for us humans to get there every single day. Yes ma'am. So you decided to get involved or start, you're the founder of the Dentist Entrepreneur Alliance.
Ryan: Yes, ma'am.
Anne: And tell us how you got involved, what brought that around and how you helped start the student chapter. That's very cool.
Ryan: Yes. So. In terms of things that I know, I think that we might be one of the first entrepreneur kind of alliance organizations for students. and so I, with two of my classmates, started the Dentist Entrepreneur Alliance at the Dental College of Georgia.
And it's honestly one of the most exciting things I'm a part of right now. We started the chapter because. I was noticing even through our professional development classes and there's some lunch and learns that come in, businesses, lawyers, but dental students, including myself, we had this, I don't know, deeper curiosity.
We wanted conversations with real people about ownership, innovation and I guess what it means to build. Build your practice, yes. But build a life that you really love. Hmm. because again, dentistry is going to be our career. We're in dental school, but does that have to be the end all? Be all of my life?
It's like, well, building a practice involves that flexibility. The. Dentist Entrepreneur Alliance isn't necessarily about the cookie cutter success. We're not necessarily gonna be pushing out all these owners or startups or anything like that. We want people to. Feel empowered to think differently, differently than maybe exactly what our professors say.
Exactly what these marketers are trying to sell us when they're giving us lunch.
Anne: Yeah.
Ryan: But we want them to build the life that they wantover time, the energy and their future. Just a space for them to have the conversations early before we get swept up into a life that we might not have.
Envisioned ourselves in,
Anne: you know, I think that's so smart now because especially younger generation. Is looking for a little bit more life balance. dentistry can be a grind if you don't realize that there's other things to life and the best way to do that. And that's you know, really one of the reasons we started do is the community of people that have.
Some thread that understand where you're coming from. So to be able to bring all of these young classmates into a community of finding out what's working, what's not working, and then I, where can I help you? And it's so rich. It's different than showing up on a Zoom. It's something you just cannot.
Pinpoint. In fact, I just wrote something for the do newsletter about community and it's like belly to belly, right? Like you have to show up in person to really get the whole thing, and you're creating that within your college. And I believe that this will go beyond, I don't know if you know this or not, but I, when I started Dental Entrepreneur, it was called Business Beyond the Classroom, so we only went to dental schools.
Ryan: Really? Yeah. I didn't know that. Yeah. And I've
Anne: had it for like 23 years when I met your mom and dad, I mean, back in the day at the Hinman. Shout out to the Hinman because I think mm-hmm. Also, Ryan, what I see in you is this love and drive for leadership and the Hinman being in that community as a child and, you know, you see so much, of the young people that had parents in dentistry that were members of the Hinman follow in their footsteps. So that says a lot about the Hinman community and that sort of thing, but also just being able to carry that on and you're doing it, you're carrying on a leadership program that will just really help everybody get started on the right path.
And if they make a misstep. It's not the end of the world. Mm-hmm. Okay. You have to pivot. It's so easy. You,know, you know that the road to success in life is not straight. We should Wow. Especially entrepreneurism. It's more like a rollercoaster. But if you have people that you can lock arms with and understand where you're coming from, that is the gift of all gifts.
And you've done that and you started that with your friends. I'm really excited. Who are the two members that you started this with?
Ryan: Yes. So Samuel Cook and Brooks Norton. Samuel Cook, his parents are both dentists. And grew up kind of in the Georgia Dental Association. and then Brooks, although no dental.
Relations. we sit next to each other in our simulation lab. And from the very first day of school, we kind of understood that we had business mindset, and so we would always bounce ideas off each other. And Brooks and Samuel are roommates. So the three of us just kind of got together and thought that we don't wanna wait 10 years to do something meaningful and we thought we could provide this value
to students who are our age. AndWe're students too. It's like, well, I've never run a business before myself. I'm not a dentist. I'm going to be one. But, you know, at least I have the leadership to understand that, okay, well, I see a needAnd although I don't have all the knowledge myself, I don't claim to know all of that, but. I can bring in people who do know. I can facilitate those conversations where, there's no right answer. It's okay. Well what do you think? And, oh, I've never thought about that before. let me build off of that.
So we're all just students we're trying to learn and the three of us just thought that this would be something different and something new that people could latch onto. And hopefully it can continue even after we're gone.
Anne: I know it will. I don't doubt that it's just really, it's needed.
wonderful. And I love the sharing of ideas and just, it'll also help you love dental school because, sometimes it's an island. And you know, the other interesting thing is they don't really, and unless I'm wrong, when you're getting into dental school, it's, I know hygiene is like that.
It's,all grades, grades, grades. these are the little, the soft skills the entrepreneurial skills. Which is exactly what I think an entrepreneur is somebody that sees a need and tries to solve it and tries tofigure it out. That's an entrepreneurial mindset. and so there are going to be some students that are graduating and that they wanna just go have a job, not think about it after that.
But there's others that have this big vision, for their lives. And those. Young people will be attracted to you you'll build your community evenbroader. and I'm thrilled to be part of the SAGE group that can help you. Of course. If you have a question you could ask me. So you, you've been in this, just thriving.
I can see that. I'm gonna say a little prayer for you for your, today. You had an exam today and she was so much, sogracious to jump on our podcast this morning before that. But as you look forward, I mean, I know you're dreaming because your creative, mind, looks to the future.
What kind of dental practice do you hope to build in the future?
Ryan: This one gets me excited just because I am such a planner. It's just in the nature of dental minded people. I perhaps,Though, I'm not sure exactly, where I would love to join my dad in dentistry. Not sure when his retirement plan is, but patients love him, so I can never say goodbye to him, in the practice.
But in terms of the feeling I want in my practice, I want it to be in touch with technology, beautifully branded and relationship driven. like I said, my dad renovated that old. Downtown Alpharetta home to make it this beautiful place. And my mom designed the waiting room to look like a living room.
So it does feel homey. But of course, we want the practice to be grounded in clinical excellence patients to walk in and feel seen and like they're in good hands. I also want a space that is profoundly supportive of the team. The office manager, the hygienist, the assistants, any lab techs, the people who come in, delivery people, a place for people to,grow and to enjoy their work thatthey do feel like they're making a difference.
I want a warmth that some offices medical or dental, sometimes I feel like lack.I guess behind the scenes be as a well-oiled machine as possible, hopefully through my leadership. But I just want a dental practice that doesn't just feel like a service. I wanna feel like, a second home to these people.
It's about, designing a smile, um.That's your entryway to the world. That way you speak the way you feel, people can see that through your smile. So I can't wait to just hopefully, make such an impact on these people's lives. And through that I will feel so fulfilled.
I.
Anne: you're destined to put your own mark on it, aren't you? Yes. Yeah. when you put your sign out there, Ryan O'Donnell, you know, it is like, I love that living room aspect of it. Please come into my home.
your dental home. Yes. And you know what that's gonna do? If you're listening here and you're young, or even if you're anywhere in your career. That's how you get patients in the door. That is the magic that will give you a very thriving dental practice because everybody wants to refer to someone that they feel comfortable with.
And again, you want perfection, so you're gonna get it. 99% of the time we'll cry. But the,other part is really what builds a practice, builds a career, builds a home, and you are the perfect person for that. I love it. So congratulations for finding your, vision that you have already.
And I know that that'll continue to change as you create it. But tell me this, because there's a lot of young dentist, men and women that are listening to this podcast, what piece of advice would you give to a new dental entrepreneur?
Mm-hmm.
To a third year dental student. Okay. Or someone that is still in dental school looking to graduate into this broad world. Yeah. Of dental practice.
Ryan: I think I would say that. There's no right way to do this. Whether your friend has,is doing a startup or being an associate or taking a break for a few months before practicing it's what you want and to lead with the intentions you have.
Even, writing out your values or writing out how you would see yourself. Practicing and then slowly going off of that, there's no one mold that works because everyone wants a little bit of a different life. Iwant something specific and I'm gonna go for it. There's no reason why I shouldn't, just because someone else does it a different way.
I think the question is. Does it work for you? 'Cause dentistry can be whatever you want it to be. And starting that is just giving yourself permission to imagine a little bit more.
Anne: Oh my gosh, I love it. I'm so excited for you. I,feel like. every college student should feel that way about their life, their career, no matter what it is.
But you're right though, dentistry, and I hope that everyone knows this. There is so much opportunity to make it your own. Yeah. To stamp your name, Ryan O'Donnell. Dr. Ryan O'Donnell on the front door.
Ryan: I know my sister would laugh at this, but the books I like to read are either business books, motivation books, or like personality something or other, and I'm the kind of person that read those books and then just redesign my five-year plan just for fun.
but I know that the plans that I have written down. If I don't write them down, they're not gonna get done. Like I said in my,I had a psychology degree at the University of Georgia and biology, but focusing on my psychology.My professor in our senior class, she had uswrite out this plan and you had to write down exactly what was happening and,not just, okay, I get a job.
it's. Okay, I'm buying a house now. I'm learning to sew now. I'm learning to scuba dive now. And I had all of that written down on my plan. I am such a proponent of planning like that because you see it in a much more digestible way.
Anne: Mm-hmm. And
Ryan: that way I don't look back on the past, four years or.
I had three years of college, and now four years of dental school, it's like, well, did I do anything else besides study?
Anne: yeah,
Ryan: I will have that done. And so I hope to do that as I graduate too, because I don't want life to get away from me. I wanna take as much time and as much advantage of.
These new experiences, including my first podcast.
Anne: Oh my gosh. Now, nowCheck the box. Yeah. And And I know that you'll be checking many boxes in the future, and we will bebehind you all the way supporting every move you make. So thank you. What a lovely podcast today, Ryan.
good luck on your exam today and the rest of the week. I hope that you will come back and visit. Us very soon. and also make sure that if you wanna know more about Ryan and the dentist Entrepreneur Alliance, there is a beautiful article in our summer edition. We have Ian McNichol on our cover.
So check it out on dental entrepreneur.com. And if you're a woman in dentistry, uh.Please enjoy dental, entrepreneur, woman, and check that out. Do DW Life. We've got a retreat coming up in November and your mom and your aunt, came, for one of our retreats and we loved having them. I just,adore your mom and your dad and all of your family.
You guys really are. outstanding humans and, it's a joy to know you, Ryan, take care. How do we find you? How does anybody find you now?
Ryan: Yes. So I am on Instagram at RK O'Donnell. And I love meeting other students, future owners, hopefully, and anyone who's thinking creative about dentistry.
I'm always down to chat.
Anne: Oh my gosh. That's fantastic. All right, everybody, have a great day. Thanks for joining us. And remember everybody out there, don't forget to keep doing you. Thanks Ryan. Have a great day. You too.
