Episode 652: Introducing the DAT Book Club!

We’re finally biting the bullet and doing a Dental A-Team book club! See below the books we’ll be reading each month of the year. Don’t forget to play catch-up with January and February’s books.

January: Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin

February: Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear

March: The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness by Morgan Housel

April: Comparisonitis: How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others and Be Genuinely Happy by Melissa Ambrosini

May: Own the Day, Own Your Life: Optimized Practices for Waking, Working, Learning, Eating, Training, Playing, Sleeping, and Sex by Aubrey Marcus

June: The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz

July: The Happiest Man on Earth: The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz Survivor by Eddie Jaku

August: Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine by Mike Michalowicz

September: The Color Code by Taylor Hartman

October: Medical Medium by Anthony William

November: The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday

December: The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann

Listen to the episode to find out the benefits of a book club, the best way to incorporate this into your practice, when DAT will be reviewing the books, and more.

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Transcript: 

0:00:05.6 Kiera Dent: Hey everyone. Welcome to the Dental A-Team Podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent, and I have this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession. With those two perspectives, I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, filler, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled to over 165 different offices, coaching teams. Yep. We don't just understand you, we are you. Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental. And I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A-Teams welcome to the Dental A-Team Podcast.

0:00:52.0 KD: Hello Dental A-Team Listeners, this is Kiera and you guys, I hope today's an awesome day for you. I hope you're loving your life. I hope you are just feeling super grateful and thankful for the life you get to call your own. 'Cause guys, guess what? We only have one life to live, and this is your opportunity to live it to the fullest. You ultimately get to create it and to become whomever you want it to be. So with that, I want you guys to really think about who do you want to become? Who do you wanna be this year as a dental assistant? What type of dental assistant do you wanna be. As a doctor or a business owner or a boss, who do you wanna be? Like, have you really ever stopped to think about who do I ultimately want to become because I know I've done that for myself and this year I wanna be a more consistent boss.

0:01:34.4 KD: That's something I really wanna work on. I feel like I can ping-pong my team left and right, whether they want to or not. And at the end of the day, I don't want them feeling like that. I want them to really feel they are empowered, I want them to feel they know what the heck is going on all the time. So those are some things that I feel are part of what I'm planning to do this year. That's the kind of boss I wanna be. It also can help you if you put it up of like if there's someone you wanna aspire to. So I would just say, guys, we are the luckiest. We get to live our dream of a life and we truly get to create whatever life we want. To me, that just feels so special. That feels like I was like I won the lottery because I actually get to determine who I want to be and what I wanna become.

0:02:16.2 KD: I get to create that. Guys, no one else gets to dictate that for me. Nobody just you. I hope that you take this opportunity to really become who you ultimately want to become. Guys with that, if this podcast has blessed your life in any way, shape, or form, please do me a favor and help us on our mission to reach over 2 million people this year. So the only way to do that is for you guys to like this, subscribe, leave us those reviews and share with your friends. Please do so. I'll remind you guys, I'll be better reminding you. Remember, I wanna be that consistent boss. But I really want you guys to just share this with whomever because I can't share this with everybody. That's up to you guys, and I hope you guys are raving fans. If you're a raving fan of this podcast, please help us out, share it with your friends, post about it on social media, that way we can help grow our mission.

0:03:06.4 KD: So guys, today I just, I've been thinking a lot and the topic that I really wanted to get into is this year I decided to like shake it all up guys. And we're actually doing a Dental A-Team Book Club. Yes, there are going to be 12 books that we are reading this year. I'm actually going to tell you guys them so you can get on board. I'll tell you what month they're gonna happen. And then we're also gonna be changing up our social stories. And we're gonna actually have a book club with you guys. January, I know it's almost over. It's Extreme Ownership: And That's How US Navy Seals Lead and Win by Jocko Willinks and Leif Babin, sorry if I messed up his name. February, we're doing Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones by James Clear. March is going to be the Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness by Morgan Hausel.

0:03:55.0 KD: April is Comparisonitis: A Guide Defining Happiness in a Social Media World by Melissa. This is a hard name. Ambrosini, sorry. Okay. May, is Own the Day, own Your Life: Optimized Practices by Aubrey Marcus. June will be The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz. I am obsessed with that book, so be sure to join us in June. July, oh, you guys, I cannot wait to share this one with you. It is in my top. It might be my top favorite book of my entire life, or it's in my top two or five for sure. This one's called The Happiest Man on Earth: The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz survivor by Eddie Jaku. Guys, I read this book in December, 2022, and I feel like I'm a changed person. So join us in July as well. August, Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine by Mike Michalowicz.

0:04:46.0 KD: I'm obsessed with that book. September is gonna be Color Code: A New Way to See Yourself, your Relationship and Life by Taylor Hartman. October is going to be Medical Medium: Secrets Behind Chronic and Mystery Illness, and How to Finally Heal by Anthony William. November, The Obstacle is the way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday. And December is going to be The Go-Giver: A Little Story about a Powerful Business Idea by Bob Berg. I am so excited for you guys to join us, for you to be a part of this because it's gonna be epic. I used to hate to read. [chuckle] I still kind of do. I'm an Audibler, and I, I'm just excited because this year I wanted to elevate our Dental A-Team consultants, and team. And as you notice, they're not all business. We have literally mixed in all the different types.

0:05:34.6 KD: We are going from personality to leadership to tactical, practical to financial. And so this one, I really just wanted to get you guys excited to join us. But I also wanna do just kind of like why and how to kick off a book club. Okay? So this will be a tactical, I'll do another one and give you guys kind of my rundown of each of the books after each one. But how to even do a book club. So for us, it's gotta be a set time, okay? And in teams, I often get asked the question of, "Kiera, do you pay team members to do this or do you not?" And the answer is, it's your choice. [chuckle] For you guys, you can decide do you wanna pay them or do you not? And there is no right or wrong. Some offices they're like, we're obsessed about personal development, so we're going to do this.

0:06:16.1 KD: And guys, Dental A-Team just gave you a book club that you can follow along. You can have your teams read. There's a hundred other great books every year we're gonna shake it up. So feel free to, to join along with us and... We'll do it with you guys and learn with you. But that's, the first thing is you've just gotta figure out are you paying them or are you not?

0:06:38.3 KD: Have you guys ever wondered what the true secrets of those multimillion-dollar practices are, who feel like they just have it together? Their teams are awesome, the doctors aren't stressed out, they have raving fan patients and they feel like they've got their lives. Well, if you wanna know those secrets, you better be joining us April 28th and 29th where we are releasing the secrets of the multimillion-dollar practices from lifestyle to relationships to teams.

0:06:58.1 KD: And it is a full team virtual event. That's right guys, you can bring your entire team for one price. Early Bird Pricing is going on right now. Normal ticket pricing is 999 right now guys, I am saving 50 spots. And when they're gone, they're gone. So right now, guys, from today until March 31st, you are going to get Early Bird Pricing. And then when they're gone, they're gone. I'm not promising until March 31st. I'm saying the first 50 offices to sign up are going to get to bring their entire team for nine CE credits. Full team event Friday, Leadership Day on Saturday, speaker lineup, Paul Goodman, Zeke from Swell, Tiffany Traitor, Britney Stone, Dana Moelsa, Tina Foyer. Our whole team is coming in. Plus I'm bringing in financial advisors, CPAs, where they're literally going to tell you the secrets of the multimillion-dollar practice. So right now, head on over to thedentalateam.com/summit 2023 and use coupon code E-bird 2023. That's right, E-bird 2023. You guys are going to get first access to this and I would hate for you to miss it. Bring your team, learn the secrets of the multimillion-dollar practice and become one. Join us this year, April 28th and 29th. I can't wait to see you guys there.

0:08:15.7 KD: Next up is, when is it going to be? So for us, I said for my team, no ifs, ands, or buts, Extreme Ownership is the number one book I want you to read. This year, Dental A-Team's word as a company is ownership. I want my team to elevate themselves and I want them to take on more ownership. So no ifs, ands, or buts. In December, I shipped every one of them Extreme Ownership. So whether it was on Audible, I paid for on Audible or I also put it into a book. So whichever way they liked it, but I shipped all of them that in December, 'cause I said this one is a Non-negotiable Mandatory Book Club. The rest of my book clubs for my team are going to be something that's optional. So this one, we actually have it set up. We sent everybody a calendar invite.

0:08:54.7 KD: You guys can, can do it on calendar or you guys could also just put it in your schedule. But ours is coming up is when we're actually going to do the book club review of Extreme Ownership. Following that, we have set it up as a reoccurring once-a-month book club. And it is going to be on the, I'm pulling this up right now for you guys. It's on the 3rd Monday of every month. And we've just invited people. I wanted to make it where I don't care if people show up for the book club or not as a company, I have given them the opportunity to rise up and to grow themselves. But I don't want this to be something that's forced. At the end of the day, I want people to grow because they want to grow. I don't want to have to force them, I don't want to have to make them, but that's my model you guys, some offices do, some offices wanna have all of their team members reading it and sharing.

0:09:41.6 KD: So we're kicking it off. I'm really excited to hear the insights our team is having on Extreme Ownership. And then after that the, it's the 3rd Monday of every single month we have it set in there and we are actually going to be doing it. It'll be February 20th and then March 20th I think is the next one. It for sure is. And then the third one, of April will be April 17th, right after the book club. But it's in there. So we all know. And then if people want to read the book and come, we're having us talk about our highlights, things that we learn from it, things that we wanna implement and incorporate into our own lives. I'm a person who believes that accountability is always better with a buddy. [laughter] I like to have someone with me. I like someone to help me out. That's why I created Dental A-Team...

0:10:23.6 KD: Guys, do you think I can do this on my own? [chuckle] The answer is I can't. I can't run a business on my own. I can't grow a company on my own. I'm sure I could, but why take the hard route when there are people who have done it much better than I could ever imagine doing it. And I can actually do this with them. That's why I decided to create this. And so for us, let's have some accountability, let's have it to where we know 3rd Monday of every month, here are the books. They're already out there. Here's the time, it's going to be one hour. You guys could do it over a lunch hour. You guys could meet at a coffee shop after work. There's lots of different ways that you can actually create book clubs in your office. But the biggest thing is I want people to grow as people but I can't force them.

0:11:04.5 KD: This is where the rubber meets the road. I can encourage them, I can lead them, I can guide them just like I can put it out there for you guys. But if you don't implement and you don't execute, it's never gonna happen. So maybe your first three book clubs are mandatory and you join along with Dental A-Team and you read these books with us. And maybe you have your whole team meet up and you do it on the same time or you create whatever's gonna be best for you guys. And then after that it can be optional. Or maybe you do 12 months of development. Maybe you ask your team to do books that they're interested in. The reason we chose our books is because for Dental A-Team we came up with some IP. IP stands for intellectual property. We're so fancy guys, don't worry.

0:11:45.3 KD: But what we started realizing was in our consulting company there's six categories that we feel make people, people and we've kind of been breaking it down. We have our 12 systems. You guys heard about that? It's very fun to watch you guys in our, our systems operations manual right now. It's been really fun to watch you guys. But we realize that there's our 12 systems that is a systems, the structure of your business, okay? There is money management. That's a whole area, that's its own world. But we decided there are six categories that if me as a person, as a business owner, as an office manager, if I focus on these six areas as a person, we think these are the six that are going to encompass a healthy person. A very fulfilled person, a very balanced person. So those six categories are wealth, relationships and lifestyle.

0:12:39.8 KD: Whole body health, mind and physical, contribution and meaning, leadership skills and practice systematization. Okay? 'Cause we've got our practice in there being systematized us as leaders. Contribution and meaning. That's the fulfillment guys. That's the secret sauce that's gonna make you just love life. Whole body health, your mind and your physical body. How are you doing in those areas? Your relationship and your lifestyle. And then wealth. Okay? You guys are welcome to chime in and say, "Kiera, you missed this one." Or "Hey, these should be combined." This is still in the works. Okay? But what we did is we actually made books in all six of those categories. So under Wealth is Profit First, Die With Zero, the Psychology of Money. And what I did is all these books that I'm reading that I hear from you guys we're popping them into those six different categories.

0:13:23.6 KD: And then what we're doing from there is we pulled books from all those that we're recommending to you guys that we're recommending to our clients and our team's reading them. Because I have consultants and I also have an admin team. I have people that are constantly improving on systematization and I have other people who are much more creative and I wanted a way to bond my whole team together. You have clinical team members and you have admin team members. And so this is a fun way for us to bond together. We'll see how it goes. This is our first one, but so far I've heard great feedback. I've also heard people who are scrambling. I surely listened to Audible Extreme Ownership on 3.5 times the speed. That is a true story. I couldn't hear all of it at 3.5. So some had to drop down to three, some had to go to 2.5, some to two.

0:14:07.8 KD: But the whole book was listened to on that. And then I frantically you guys can see, and I'll chat about this on another one... Here is my Extreme Ownership. I try to not have it as much for you guys, but you can see those are all of my notes. So long, of everything that I took from it. So then what I do is I actually turn that into a Google doc so I don't have to go reread the book. I also made action items for myself. Some of those, just so you guys know again, book club. My questions I'll be asking my team are what are the personal areas they want to improve? What are the areas to improve the company, areas to help our clients? 'Cause it's us as people serving our patients or our clients. And then our community and excuse me, our company and then leadership team.

0:14:50.5 KD: I want them to really take this on. So I'm gonna dive deeper with my leadership team on a meeting because I feel like Extreme Ownership is so deep. [chuckle] And I feel like there's so many pieces to it. So guys, I just wanted to welcome you to Dental A-Team's book club for the year. I'll be doing a deep dive of kind of my thoughts of what my team has. I might do it with consultants, I might do at Solo, but I'll be sure to, to give you guys a synopsis of each book and some of the takeaways that I have for each of them. So put this in your calendar, be sure to join us. We'll also be doing some on social media live so you guys can come. It would be real fun to have your offices there. But I just wanna give you guys some tips of how you can or incorporate personal development within your practices.

0:15:28.8 KD: Get them excited. But remember, I believe that personal development is a choice. I believe it's something that we can't force people to do and that's okay. So encourage them, inspire them to be there with you, and then be okay if they don't want to come. Just be a good example. Sometimes people change just by the examples that you set. Create a little FOMO. I know I would. [laughter] You can even buy a book for the office and leave it in the break room. But again, those are our 12 books. I'll have Alex share that with you guys. You guys can snag 'em on Amazon or anywhere. I'm a huge Audible fan so I hope it's helpful for you guys. If we can ever help you, inspire your team, I think that that's one of my favorite things that we do as a consulting company is we literally are able to come to your practice, change the way your team thinks about things, 'cause we're team members and we can help inspire them and encourage them. So if we can ever be that support to you and your team, reach out, email me, [email protected]. And as always, thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on the Dental A-Team podcast.

0:16:32.8 KD: And that wraps it up for another episode of the Dental A-Team Podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we'll talk to you next time.