The Dental Desk - Issue #6 : simplebooklet.com

Where did September go? I feel like I blinked and now we’re in October!Maybe it went so quickly because it was loaded with activities. My team and Iwere privileged to be involved with many exciting events this month, including;The Shine Dentistry Golf Tournament, The Edmonton District Dental Society’strade show and the Saskatchewan Oral Health Conference.Each of these events provided us an opportunity to meet and see so manywonderful colleagues, professionals, and friends, after a long break through theheight of covid. It truly is a privilege to support endeavours like Shine Dentistry, U of A’svolunteer student-run organization that provides free, emergency dental anddental hygiene care for the underserved population of Edmonton. If you aren’tfamiliar with this initiative, please visit Shine Dentistry on Facebook to learnmore about this important and worthy cause.Our Edmonton team members, Jessie McCracken and Sara Trenn were joinedby our national ortho rep, Lori William for the EDDS trade show. It was a fun-filled day of visiting with clients and colleagues and networking with manydental professionals.Myself, and Yvette, were joined by our Saskatchewan team, Angi McGarry andLéo Morrison, for the 3-day Sask Oral Health Conference. The 2-day trade showwas bustling and I was delighted to provide a presentation, to local dentalprofessionals, called ‘What’s The Big Deal?’. This lecture is in high demand asdentists across Canada are anxious to learn about corporate, legacy and privatesales. Please feel free to contact me if you would like information on thispresentation.Additionally, we had the honour of sponsoring motivational speaker, DarciLang’s presentation, Focus on the 90% and Living the 90% at the Sask OralHealth Conference. If you are not familiar with Darci’s presentations (andbooks) I highly recommend visiting her website darcilang.com to learn more. Finally, as we approach Thanksgiving, I would like to extend my personal wishesfor a relaxing, refreshing and wonderful Thanksgiving. Myself, and my staff, areextremely grateful for your readership and for your interest in Avail. Happy Thanksgiving!Page 4 - Ask The Expert: What Does Normal Look Like?Page 7 - Booster Talk. (Not The Jab Kind).Page 16 - Rural Practices - Why They Work & Who Should Want OnePage 18 - You Have Sold Your Practice. Now What?CEO's MessageLooking For Featured Practice Listings?www.AvailDentalAdvice.comTHE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 2Founder, CEOAvail Dental Exit Advisory ServicesD A R R E N S H A N A H A NAvail Dental has been a trustedresource in the dental industry since 2012.CLICK HERE

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Over the last several months we’ve been receiving some questions from the dentalcommunity. Our experience in brokering and appraising hundreds and hundreds ofpractices has made us a natural place for professionals to turn with theirquestions. We realized that several people had the same questions and so wethought this might make a great forum for people to ask their questionsanonymously and receive their answers. Therefore, ‘Ask the Expert’ was created.Please feel free to send us an email with your questions toDarren@AvailDentalAdvice.com.Q: This might be a loaded question, but what should my target befor hygiene production in my clinic?A: You’re correct - this is a bit of a loaded question. Hygieneproduction, in very general terms, varies from 20%-40% dependingon the type of practice, the location, the current growth model andany additional specialty work done in the practice. To find out whatyour hygiene target should be for your practice, we recommend abenchmark review. This valuable assessment provides insight intohygiene requirements as well as key spending indicators andwhether they are helping or hindering your profitability.Q: The ‘return to normal’ hasn’t been so normal for my clinic. Areother clinic owners struggling to find a new rhythm too or am Idoing something wrong?A: It’s normal to be struggling during this time. Many practices arestruggling to find their groove. Some have thrown up their hands andsaid ‘it will be what it will be’, but those that have taken this time tobetter understand the spending habits of the clinic, are actuallyfinding ways to improve their profitability - despite the currenteconomic situation. Additionally, staffing challenges arecontributing to the feeling of not returning to ‘normal’. You are notdoing anything wrong. These are difficult times to manage, butchange brings opportunities for growth. I’m happy to take a look atthe areas you are finding challenging and help you to find a solution.CANDID COMMENTARY ON PRACTICE VALUATIONASK THE EXPERTThe "COVID Effect" On Your Practice:Call Us To Learn More.In order to prepare for the future,In order to prepare for the future, you must consider the past.you must consider the past. We can help.We can help. 1-866-Go-Avail1-866-Go-Avail ((1-866-462-82451-866-462-8245))

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Q: I was under the impression that DSO’s were always makingunsolicited offers on practices. I’m not saying that I want to sell,but I haven’t received any unsolicited offers. Does this mean thatmy practice is not attractive?A: It does not mean that your practice is not attractive, or that yourclinic is not a target. It could mean several things; It could mean thatthey haven’t gotten to you - yet, or that your geographical locationmay not be a target for them. It could also mean that what theyassume about your geographical location and clinic operations doesnot meet their needs. If you want to understand more about the‘attractiveness’ of your clinic, for a variety of potential purchasers,we can take a closer look at your location, clinic operations, patientdemographics, production etc, and assess what, if anything, wouldbe needed to catch the attention of DSO’s and other potentialpurchasers.THE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 6ASK THE EXPERT CON'T:Have a confidential question?Have a confidential question?Email Darren:Email Darren:Darren@AvailDentalAdvice.comDarren@AvailDentalAdvice.com

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BY DARREN SHANAHAN Now that we re into October and chatter about the Bivalent Covid boosters are the talk of the town I thought it might be nice to chat about a few things that work as boosters for our physical mental and professional health This isn t the usual self care type article although I agree that all of those self care tips are valuable and valid This article is a bit more cheeky but still valuable One of the first things mentioned when considering physical and mental health is Getting Active I present for your consideration the activity of GOLF Golf is one of my all time favourite physical activities It involves some cardio some strength fresh air and precision It also offers socializing celebratory or sometimes Iconsolatory beverages good natured ribbing or encouragement networking opportunities and bonding opportunities In my humble opinion golf is the ultimate physical mental and professional self care activity mentally and physically Some people like all inclusive s where they are treated like royalty or coastal destinations where they can sit by or play in the ocean or tropical destinations that provide adventure However golf in the Western Canadian climate is limited to at best 6 months of the year So where does that leave us when we both can t golf and can t get adequate sunlight to top up our vitamin D intake I offer for your consideration a winter get away If you can make it a winter golf getaway even better although my wife would argue that a winter shopping get away is more up her alley But seriously how wonderful does a winter get away to a warm sunny location make us feel All of those are truly wonderful but I save that kind of trip for a full vacation When I think winter getaway my mind often drifts to beautiful Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley The weather is perfect the golf is sublime the flight is easy and the airport is a dream When my feet touch the ground in Palm Springs I am almost instantly rejuvenated and that s before I hit the golf course or my wife hits the outlet malls or the wineries in nearby Temecula Oh yes for a short winter getaway to

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top-up our vitamin D, Palm Springs has it all, and my mental and physical health improve. It even improves myprofessional health.Now I know what you’re thinking - how can a winter get-away to Palm Springs improve your professionalhealth? I’m glad you asked. Several years ago, my wife and I started to invest in our professional health during our winter get-away. Wewould have strategy meetings (in the pool). We would have long-term planning meetings (while we playedgolf). We would listen to podcasts (on our way to the wineries) and when the opportunities arose, we wouldnetwork with our colleagues who happened to also be in Palm Springs (at a concert, restaurant or outdoormarket). I would even venture to say that these, nearly yearly, winter get-aways have become paramount to thesuccess of our professional health.So what have we covered? Physical health can be improved with golf (or splashing in the pool or hiking etc).Mental health can be improved by socializing and relaxing and getting some fresh air (enjoying warm weather,shopping, touring wineries etc). And, professional health can be improved by networking, socializing, andbonding (splashing in the pool, shopping, attending a concert, visiting wineries). BOOSTER TALK (NOT THE JAB KIND) CON'TTHE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 8www.AvailDentalAdvice.com

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If you have stuck with me to this point, you’re probably seeing a theme emerge here and you would be correct!My friends, hang on to your hats and get ready to invest in your physical, mental and professional health - byattending our first annual Winter-Getaway CE sessions in Palm Springs (2023). We have partnered with theCollege of Dental Surgeons of Saskatchewan for this amazing, exclusive event which is open to Canadiandental professionals.Stand by for the announcement with all of the details and registration links. Space is limited so register early. We can’t wait to see you for what promises to be an amazing winter getaway for your physical, mental andprofessional health!BOOSTER TALK (NOT THE JAB KIND) CON'TTHE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 9www.AvailDentalAdvice.com

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PALM SPRINGSCE SESSIONS INWINTER IS COMING!The Saskatchewan College of Dental Surgeons (CDSS) & Avail Dental Exit Advisory Services inc. are collaborating on this CE getaway.We are currently accepting a list of interested Doctors while we finalize the details. Tentative details are outlined below, contact Darren for more details.Estimated Timing: February 15-18, 2023The target date of the CE event will take place Thursday, February 16 & Friday, February 17, 2023.Topics Include:CERECSleep DentistryInsurance & FinancialHealth & WellnessPractice ManagementPractice EfficiencyCorp vs Private SaleMarketing and more...If you are interested in learning more, please text Darren at 403-862-7406 to join the advanced notice list.

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DARREN SHANAHAN We drove out to the Saskatchewan Oral Health Conference last week and although much of the harvest was already done there were still some fields where farmers were diligently working to pull off their crop Autumn always brings to mind the struggles of the farmer and the joy of the harvest to ideally have the bountiful harvests sustain operations in the event of a devastating harvest Farmers gardeners growers are all susceptible to so many factors that can affect the crops rain drought pestilence over fertilizing underfertilizing and the global economic state etc yet when harvest time comes we tend to envision horns of plenty overflowing baskets and full grain bins But is this always the case Usually there is an ebb and flow with harvests Some years are bountiful some years are devastating Always there is a plan Certainly many factors such as pandemic restrictions pandemic recovery staffing challenges inflation and rising interest rates are all affecting the harvest of practice owners Certainly the pandemic adjustments for dental clinics left many owners wondering if they had planned well enough to have their previous bountiful harvests sustain what could have led to more devastating times THE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE 12 Although dentistry and farming are very different careers there are some similarities to consider especially where bountiful harvests are concerned For practice owners harvest time is usually calculated on a monthly basis although yearly financials do provide a window into the big picture of profits harvest The challenge for practice owners is truly understanding their harvest and monitoring that monthly harvest to truly understand their profitability For many the prevailing thought is that they are profitable as long as they can cover their overhead pay their staff and take home a nice chunk of cash However a deeper look at this may reveal that such is not the case Many of our clients are surprised to learn of the factors that are affecting their profitability and the solutions available so they can increase that profitability Continued

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Understanding the profitability of your practice does require a bit of a deep dive, and we are happy to help anyowner that would like to know more about this. Once you’ve learned those tools - which are a bit more complexthan can be covered in a brief article, it becomes much easier to keep track of (and potentially increase) yourprofitably and collect your ‘bountiful harvest’.Once you’ve been able to track your profitability, assuming you’re enjoying a bountiful harvest, the questionbecomes what to do with it? Obviously, reckless spending (although fun) is not an ideal answer. Generallyspeaking, most people choose to invest their bountiful harvests, but invest in what? Should you invest yourprofits back into your practice? Or should you invest your profits into a high-risk, high-reward scenario or abalanced portfolio? What about education funds or RRSP’s? Or maybe you want to invest in your brother’s, sister-in-law’s. cousin’s restaurant (although this scenario rarely has the return on investment you would hope for)?Additionally, your practice is also your commodity. You may have figured out your profitability and you may haveinvested all of your profits back into your clinic, but if you don’t know the over-all value of your practice then howcan you possibly plan for what could and should be your ultimate bountiful harvest?The answer to what to do with your bountiful harvest is deeply personal and multifaceted. There is no quick andeasy, or one-size-fits-all, answer. It is extremely important to lean on your advisors for this and to rely on theirexpertise.This Autumn might just be the ideal time for practice owners to deep-dive into understanding their profitabilityand practice value. We can help and can give you the tools, so that you may enjoy many bountiful harvests in the months and yearsto come. Contact us with your questions at callwithavail.comBOUNTIFUL HARVEST - UNDERSTANDING YOUR PROFITS AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM CONTINUEDTHE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 13

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OUR CURRENT LISTINGS by Darren ShanahanGeneral Plus Real EstateRural West of Edmonton(Ref #1717)$1,794,829$799,148General PracticeRural East of Edmonton(Ref #1712)Gross Income:Clinic Type:THE DENTAL DESK MAGAZINE  | 15#of Ops:77QUESTIONS ABOUT LISTINGS?Call/Text Darren Founder & OwnerCell: 403.862.7406Contact Darren Shanahan for further details on all of our current listings.$1,069,208 + Real Estate$2,412,864Listing Price:www.AvailDentalAdvice.comGeneral PracticeSaskatchewan Rural(Ref #1392)8$1,250,000$1,300,000Gross Income:

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So, what I’m saying is that manyreally wonderful business andlifestyle opportunities can be foundin rural settings. Among thoseopportunities, the rural dentalpractice.Many dental professionals aresurprised to learn that rural practicesare among the most profitable in theindustry. But how can that be?Perceivably there is a smallerpopulation to draw from, so how canthese practises be so profitable? Well, another thing about rural livingis loyalty (and reasonable leaserates). Rural patients tend to remainvery loyal to, and supportive of, theirdental professionals. (And it’sdifficult to avoid the treatment youneed or the cleaning you’ve beenputting off, when you live down the ContinuedYVETTE SHANAHANFull disclosure - I’m a small-town girl(although not ‘living in a lonelyworld’). I was born and raised in avery small Saskatchewan town and, Imust admit, my heart remains in thatlittle town. I loved every second Ispent in rural Saskatchewan -crickets, grasshoppers, mice andeverything else.Rural living is definitely a lifestylepreference. Your neighbours becomeyour friends, your family and yoursupport system. It seems likeeveryone knows your business, butit’s rare that anyone wants to do youharm. If you fall on hard times andrun into a problem, your communityrallies around you and providessupport in ways you can’t evenimagine.Life in a rural setting is busy andbustling, but rarely overwhelming. It’s rewarding and comforting,exciting and competitive, relaxed andrewarding, progressive yet practical.There is familiarity and respect - it’snot uncommon for the town’sdentists to be recognized andreferred to simply as ‘Doc’.And there is a commonmisconception, among urbancentres, that rural life doesn’t offerthe same creature comforts of urbanlife. In fact, most rural centres (whichsupport medical and dental offices)often have lively restaurants, movietheatres, shopping, competitivesports and arts and culturalprograms. My best friend in highschool was a competitive dancerwho won awards all across Canada -and our big sports rivals, the ReginaPat Canadians and Yorkton Terriers,routinely won nationalchampionships (we won sometimestoo)!

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street from your hygienist or pass your dentist on the street every day on your way to work)!Additionally, rural dentists have the opportunity to show community support through getting involved withthe local high school football team, or providing mouth guards for the local minor hockey team. Yourvisibility and involvement in the community will usually directly translate to your bottom line.The challenge you may find with rural practices can be staffing. Sometimes it can be difficult to find andretain hygienists and assistants. The flip side to this is that if you are able to find hygienists and assistantswho plan to live in the community, then you can build your team from these long-term staff members.Bottom line - if you are in the market for a practice (and you plan to work in the practice you purchase), thenmaybe you should consider a rural practice. You will be surprised by the many benefits you can find inowning and living in a rural community, and you will be delighted by the opportunity to grow and sustain avery profitable practice. So, take this small town girl’s unbiased advice and picture yourself ‘living your best life’ in a rural setting! Forsome, this will be the best decision they ever made.RURAL PRACTICES - WHY THEY WORK AND WHO SHOULD WANT THEM CONTINUED

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goals and creating a crystal-cleardesign for your ideal life, which iswhy my firm is called Ideal LifeExperience. We complete all thedesign work on the front-endbecause it’s my belief that“prescription before diagnosis ismalpractice.” You cannot make investment orfinancial decisions in a vacuum. Ifyou have not first designed your ideallife all the rest is just silliness, itreally is malpractice. You see punditson TV and in magazines spewingadvice, yet none of them know yoursituation, so how can it beapplicable? The truth is that it isn’t.DESIGN is creating something ONPURPOSE for a PARTICULARPURPOSE. Think about Da Vinci’sstatue of David. Continued DEAN KENDALLYou are likely contemplating how toinvest your money? But asking whereyou should invest your money is thewrong question. The right questionis, what are your most deeply heldvalues? What are your life goals?Only in the context of those answerscan you make wise and soundinvestment decisions in the contextof the ideal life you wish to live.You need a grounded design for yourideal life and only then can you beginto start living into it today and not insome imaginary future. Without atrue design for your ideal life, youcan’t possibly determine when you’llbe able to retire, how much you’llreally need, or even where your ideallocation will be. Where you investand how you invest are radicallydifferent depending on the design foryour ideal life.In my experience, business ownersdo not think about and are not trulyprepared mentally for the next phaseof their life. They have beenoperating their business(es) fordecades and with that comescontrol, power and authority. Themoment you exit, the purpose of yourlife has shifted, everything you knowabout your life changes in an instant.Are you prepared for that? That is why I insist that every one ofmy business clients goes throughwhat we call The Financial RoadMap® experience. It prepares you forwhat is next and provides a crystal-clear mental image of what the nextchapter of your life needs to looklike, sound like and feel like.We spend a significant amount oftime determining your most deeplyheld values, your most important

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Da Vinci had a complete and perfect picture of David in his mind’s eye before he ever picked up a chisel.Ferrari engineers never produce one of their exceptional automotive sculptures until the design has beenperfected through many revisions.Most of us spend more time planning our vacations than we spend planning our ideal financial future andideal life design. We spend more time planning and worrying about our retirement money than we spenddesigning how we’ll spend that money to make our lives extraordinary. After all, what is the point of savingyour entire life for retirement without a real plan for how we will spend our time and money when we getthere?The way most people think about money is I’ll just work hard to accumulate a big pile of money then I’ll beable to retire and do whatever I want.This strategy is dead wrong because you cannot start with money until you know how much you will need for eachspecific purpose. You don’t know how big of a pile to build, and if you’re working too much or too long, as manydentists do, you are trading something – your priorities (health, family, relationships, etc.) for a huge pile of moneythat you may not need.Money comes last, your vision for your ideal life comes first. What people need to become truly wealthy and stress-free is an Integrated Aligned Overarching Strategy.The ability and knowledge to create and document a robust Integrated Aligned Overarching Financial Strategy andthe faith, patience, and discipline to keep you from blowing up that strategy at some fleeting moment is essential tosuccess.This goes way beyond an “investment plan” which is simply one small component of an Overarching FinancialStrategy. An Overarching Financial Strategy defines in writing exactly how you will reach your goals. It covers every area ofyour financial life (tax minimization strategies for every stage of your life, legal including wills, trusts and estates,money management including debt design and real estate management, every kind of insurance, and financialplanning to tie it all together with your values, vision and goals) and is updated regularly (at least annually). Your Overarching Financial Strategy provides a clear picture of how to move forward and address all significantfinancial issues in a single living document.Continued...YOU HAVE SOLD YOUR PRACTICE. NOW WHAT? CONTINUED

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Create the greatest probability that you will accomplish all your goals which require money andplanning to achieveCoach you how to begin “living into” Your Ideal Life immediately, especially your non-financial goalsEnsure that you make smarter choices about your money in all areas of financeBe highly proactive so that no opportunities are overlooked and no financial issues blow upEnable you to relax about your finances, knowing that your team has your back and is proactivelyworking on your behalf to enable you to move ever closer to living Your Ideal Life The result of these comprehensive services is that you experience a process that will: Note: This may be the most important paragraph in this article:What is the scarcest commodity on Planet Earth? It is not gold or diamonds or money. It is TIME! Time is whatwe all have too little of, yet we are willing to squander precious YEARS of it NOT achieving our goals becausewe are simply too lazy to do our homework on our financial lives and the advisors we choose. This is anenormous waste of human potential. You can be living Your Ideal Life much sooner than you imagine, but youmust take action right now to get it on track. The ultimate goal of this entire process is to enable you to be FREE to use your precious time in the waysthat you choose on your most important priorities. The definition of true wealth is complete control overyour time. Money is just an enabler of that control. The advisor’s job is to ensure you have all the money youneed to live life exactly as you choose. The outcome is people are much calmer due to newfound confidence in their future, always knowing if theyare on track or off track and making course corrections to achieve each of their goals. They are activelyfocused on living their values and living into their Ideal Lives right now.You Don’t Have to Wait until you sell your practice!You can start living your Ideal Life right now. In fact, I’ll bet you that as soon as you have your design onpaper, you’ll begin making immediate changes to get there.If you are ready to get really serious about living your Ideal Life and getting your financial house in perfectorder, please call me at 403-543-7226 or email me at dean@ideal-life-experience.ca to get started. ***YOU HAVE SOLD YOUR PRACTICE. NOW WHAT? CONTINUED

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YOUR TRUSTED INDUSTRY PARTNERDid you know that for over 2 decades, our Founder, Darren Shanahan, has been in thedental industry as the "go-to" for other industry professionals and leaders? Every phone call that comes into our office is about a dental or healthcare clinic. We don't work in any other industry.We provide owners with a "firewall" to protect them from all of the pitfalls we know are out there throughout a transaction because we know how to prepare the deal and navigate the waters. We're here for you.Meet Our TeamDarren ShanahanCEO & FounderYvette ShanahanCo-FounderLogan ReynoldsTransaction SpecialistJennifer LarocqueTransaction ManagerMorgan MinkusTransaction SpecialistQuestions?Call 1-866-Go-Avail (1-866-462-8245) orvisit: AvailDentalAdvice.com

The Dental Desk - Issue #6

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