Page 103 - The Dental Entrepreneur

The Dental Entrepreneur

“Credit cards are the worst investment

you can make. The money I save by
not having debt is better than any

return I could get in the stock market“

Mark Cuban

CHAPTER 14

Beginning Money Management Principles /Monitors

This is the section that will have a giant impact of the success of the self employed
entrepreneur. This section should be read and re-read because it will make the difference
between you floundering for part or all of your career or have you making the correct decisions
regarding the massive amount of money that will pass through your hands in your career.

How Profitable is Dentistry?

Dentistry has always been a very profitable business. Despite very little training in business,
dentists have been able to make substantial livings with considerable margins in the private
practice of dentistry. Since the recession of 2009, net incomes are decreasing for the first time
and dentists are beginning to look at a variety of methods to better manage their businesses.
Wall Street has also taken notice of the large profit margins in dentistry and also the very poor
business acumen of the average dentist. It is a great opportunity for “Corporate Dentistry” to
build a better mousetrap and wrestle away substantial amounts of the profit and turn the
dentist into an employee. There are many misconceptions about the money making potential
of a dental practice and a seasoned veteran will tell you that “dentistry is plain hard work with
modest financial returns.” With that in mind, lets begin our straight talk conversation about
money.

Very few individuals become independently wealthy practicing dentistry regardless of how
many toys they appear to have. If you expect big bucks quickly, you will find dentistry
immensely unfulfilling, frustrating, and an overall miserable profession. I relay that story

Page 97