Ask Fancy Anything(within reason)...

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Did you take any business classes before or after dental school? Or did you just kind of figure out how to run your business from how it was already being run?
 
hellofuturedentists said:
Did you take any business classes before or after dental school? Or did you just kind of figure out how to run your business from how it was already being run?
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I did take some basic business classes in undergrad. And read up a lot about investing.


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dentovermed said:
Classic.... Bringing up the DAT scores. Lower the arrogance feralis. Just lower it. Columbia students are already talking about this on Facebook...good luck
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Dentalnerdz said:
I agree shut up about your stupid DAT scores already on like every thread on here. No one cares.
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Let's not derail this thread into a flame war.

Here, I'll ask a question:
@fancymylotus , how did you decide to go general vs. specialize?
 
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best books you'd recommend for investing and overall business skills?

I'm also thinking of taking a free online intro to finance and business course before dental school.
 
Incis0r said:
Let's not derail this thread into a flame war.

Here, I'll ask a question:
@fancymylotus , how did you decide to go general vs. specialize?
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Honestly it came down to us buying another office right before I was going to apply for a speciality residency, and my parent needing me to help run things.


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wildcherry said:
Thanks for this Fancy!

Do you feel that basic Dental school teaches you all you need to be a successful dentist in today's environment? I ask because 2 dentists that I know well often go to seminars or weekend courses here and there to learn new procedures or stuff like Fast Braces. One of the dentists I shadowed basically told me that "dental school doesn't really teach you anything", which I assume means that it's not enough if you want to be successful in the field. How do you feel about this? Do you feel a need to constantly be adding to your skills as a general dentist, or do you think what you learn in dental school is sufficient to have a stable career?

Relative to other healthcare professions, do you think Dentists have to reinvent themselves and their practices more?
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Dental school is what you make of it. If you want to do the bare minimum requirements in clinic and get by, you can. You can also do as much as you can, same in residency, and really learn and experience the most possible.

I was dealing with an imploding relationship in dental school so there's a lot more I wish I did, but I worked really hard in residency and because of that my directors let me do procedures etc that I probably wouldn't have gotten to otherwise


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lazyindy said:
best books you'd recommend for investing and overall business skills?

I'm also thinking of taking a free online intro to finance and business course before dental school.
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I like the white coat investor stuff

Everyone has a different plan and approach to these things. Some people love playing stocks. I don't


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Are you as hot as Anjali Ramkisoon? I kid. 🙂

In terms of networking during dental school: how helpful are those ADA or related major events? Do you think networking is more important than getting research publications and volunteering in school to establish a (successful) career as a dentist and perhaps, a faculty position in dental school?
 
lazyindy said:
best books you'd recommend for investing and overall business skills?

I'm also thinking of taking a free online intro to finance and business course before dental school.
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Would you mind sharing the link to this course with me?
 
darklordzz said:
Are you as hot as Anjali Ramkisoon? I kid. 🙂

In terms of networking during dental school: how helpful are those ADA or related major events? Do you think networking is more important than getting research publications and volunteering in school to establish a (successful) career as a dentist and perhaps, a faculty position in dental school?
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Just coz were both Indian girls doesn't make me as crass as her

Networking is important. I know a lot of people were involved in asda in school- as far as research goes, you don't necessarily need to be involved to get in on a project you like. Many faculty are open and approachable about things like this.

While I wasn't involved in asda at all, I am now pretty involved in NYSDA and the ADA.


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lazyindy said:
best books you'd recommend for investing and overall business skills?

I'm also thinking of taking a free online intro to finance and business course before dental school.
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Read Rich Dad Poor Dad - while Kiyosaki is a controversial figure, the book is worth its weight in gold, and it completely changed the way I view money.

Also go through the JLCollins stock series: http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/ for a nice (and in my opinion, entertaining) primer on investing.

For business, read "Dental Practice: Get in the Game" by Michael Okuji.
 
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fancymylotus said:
Honestly it came down to us buying another office right before I was going to apply for a speciality residency, and my parent needing me to help run things.


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What specialty were you considering, and why?
 
Are you really here to help us or do you just like the attention? Be honest 🙂
 
BioDoc said:
Are you really here to help us or do you just like the attention? Be honest 🙂
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I debated doing this thread for awhile honestly.

But like I said before, it took the help of many many people to get me to where I am now, so I'm trying to do my part and offer advice and help where I can


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fancymylotus said:
I debated doing this thread for awhile honestly.

But like I said before, it took the help of many many people to get me to where I am now, so I'm trying to do my part and offer advice and help where I can


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I'm just joking with you. Thanks for doing this!
 
Incis0r said:
Read Rich Dad Poor Dad - while Kiyosaki is a controversial figure, the book is worth its weight in gold, and it completely changed the way I view money.

Also go through the JLCollins stock series: http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/ for a nice (and in my opinion, entertaining) primer on investing.

For business, read "Dental Practice: Get in the Game" by Michael Okuji.
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thanks!!
 
lazyindy said:
thanks!!
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NP- you're going to be starting an amazing journey by reading Rich Dad Poor Dad which is, in my opinion, one of the best books ever written. Kiyosaki has also written other books like Cash Flow Quadrant, but start off with RDPD. I hope you like it.

I'm big on investing and financial topics, so if you (or anyone reading this) ever have more questions in that arena, feel free to shoot me a PM.

Okugi's book on buying/getting set up in/running a dental practice is dry, but a wealth of excellent information.

Also, @THS might be able to make some excellent recommendations.
 
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Cool of you to do this. Sorry if it's too personal, but what's it like working with your parents? I know for some that would be a dream and others can't imagine it. 😀
 
BioForLife said:
Cool of you to do this. Sorry if it's too personal, but what's it like working with your parents? I know for some that would be a dream and others can't imagine it. 😀
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If it was with my mother, it would be a nightmare.




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do you think dental student and or undergraduate students with high grades, 90+ or B+, become the better dentist?
 
Hey fancy! Thanks for taking the time to do this!

Based on your experience, what would be the max loan you believe one should take out for dental school? Some of these schools are nearly 500k with accumulating interest!

Also, based on the salaries of yourself/peers, how long would you say it would take to pay them off while living modestly but still comfortably?

Lastly, I saw you mentioned the avg salaries for a place like NYC. Hear anything about places in Maryland/DMV or Texas areas? I know they say not to go into the field for the money, but with the loans these days, salary kinda worries me :/

THANK YOU AGAIN!
 
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WorriedPreDentStudent said:
Hey fancy! Thanks for taking the time to do this!

Based on your experience, what would be the max loan you believe one should take out for dental school? Some of these schools are nearly 500k with accumulating interest!

Also, based on the salaries of yourself/peers, how long would you say it would take to pay them off while living modestly but still comfortably?

Lastly, I saw you mentioned the avg salaries for a place like NYC. Hear anything about places in Maryland/DMV or Texas areas? I know they say not to go into the field for the money, but with the loans these days, salary kinda worries me :/

THANK YOU AGAIN!
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Go where you get in- if the only place you get in requires you to take on a huge debt load, do it. If that place happens to be close to your family or kids or whatever, do it. You will pay that off and be able to have a life.

Most people I know are almost done paying their loans off- by almost done I mean at least 50% done- and they're anywhere between 3-5 years out

Don't know average salaries outside of this area, but the obvious advantage to Texas etc is a significantly lower cost of living


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1. Are you in the city or the boroughs?

2. My wife loves bags and shoes. Sadly, I do not make money enough to buy her things like that which make her feel good.
Where do you get the good deals?

We have kids too so we need to really stretch the buck.
 
schmoob said:
1. Are you in the city or the boroughs?

2. My wife loves bags and shoes. Sadly, I do not make money enough to buy her things like that which make her feel good.
Where do you get the good deals?

We have kids too so we need to really stretch the buck.
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1. Neither. Im in the county that Touro is in

2. Most fancy designer brands don't go on sale much but New York City does have a plethora of sample sales

Target is my favorite store I can buy work inappropriate bright pink lipstick, bows to stick on my dog, video games for the boy, etc.


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fancymylotus said:
youre welcome! people like @orgoman22 and the sdn community at large are the ones that got me into and through professional school, happy to help however i can
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How many volunteering/shadowing hours do dental school applicants usually have?
 
Yazo said:
How many volunteering/shadowing hours do dental school applicants usually have?
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From what I've seen, the sdn averages are greatly inflated. Most people don't have thousands of hours. Probably more like a few hundred, unless that included a dentistry related job they held


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Are specialties dying from what you are gathering? I loved the shadowing experience with both my oral surgeon as well as my pedo...Is it worth the 2-6 year investment these days? Potentially picking up another 150k in loans? Although not interested (yet) I should ask about ortho and endo as well...

It seems like GP's are picking up more and now there are corporate everywhere...Should that be a fear for a specialist? Should that be a fear for GP's?
Are those days gone where they are making 200+ working 4 days a weeks?
 
I know Endo is tough to get into right out of school, but what advice would you give for someone to accomplish it? How hard of a time is it to get into a stipend program? I'll be D1 in August
 
Hi Fancy thanks for doing this!
1) If you don't have a parent to practice with (or any established practice for that matter), would you recommend specializing instead of going general from a financial or stability point of view?
2) What do you think the future of dentistry will look like in 5-10 yrs? One dentist told me that if Sanders won and implemented everything he wanted to, some dentists would have a net loss on certain procedures. Maybe midlevel providers may rise as well? Specializing seems to be a safer option especially with increasing prevalence of corporate dentistry. Can you talk about that a bit?
3) I have pretty good stats (4.0, 25+) but am worried about how I will perform in dental school. Sometimes I don't feel competent (classes may be easy, haven't been challenged or something). How would you recommend preparing for dental school in the future or at least shaking off this anxiety? Any helpful habits to pick up or to use in dental school?

Thanks again.
 
akakakakak said:
Are specialties dying from what you are gathering? I loved the shadowing experience with both my oral surgeon as well as my pedo...Is it worth the 2-6 year investment these days? Potentially picking up another 150k in loans? Although not interested (yet) I should ask about ortho and endo as well...

It seems like GP's are picking up more and now there are corporate everywhere...Should that be a fear for a specialist? Should that be a fear for GP's?
Are those days gone where they are making 200+ working 4 days a weeks?
Click to expand...

I don't think they're dying so much as people are having to adapt. Group practices mean less referrals out.

If you're a high producer in a practice that gives you a lot of procedures, even as a GP it's possible to hit the numbers you mentioned


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dentistreason said:
Hi Fancy thanks for doing this!
1) If you don't have a parent to practice with (or any established practice for that matter), would you recommend specializing instead of going general from a financial or stability point of view?
2) What do you think the future of dentistry will look like in 5-10 yrs? One dentist told me that if Sanders won and implemented everything he wanted to, some dentists would have a net loss on certain procedures. Maybe midlevel providers may rise as well? Specializing seems to be a safer option especially with increasing prevalence of corporate dentistry. Can you talk about that a bit?
3) I have pretty good stats (4.0, 25+) but am worried about how I will perform in dental school. Sometimes I don't feel competent (classes may be easy, haven't been challenged or something). How would you recommend preparing for dental school in the future or at least shaking off this anxiety? Any helpful habits to pick up or to use in dental school?

Thanks again.
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1. No

2. I go back to what I've said about either getting into a situation that makes sense for you as an associate, or starting something on your own or with partners. A smart business owner > a dumb associate. Trump is better for my taxes. But he's a clown. **** sanders.

3. The best advice I can give regarding this is to learn how to schedule yourself wisely and use your time in the best way. Undergrad scores ARE NOT always a predictor for dental or any grad school success. Remember that a large chunk of your preclinical year grades come from sim lab based classes- and hand skills come easier to some. I was one of the ones who was great at exams but used to cry into my crown preps and waxups. Not even joking. It took hours and hours and help from lots of people to get through that for me.


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fancymylotus said:
1. No

2. I go back to what I've said about either getting into a situation that makes sense for you as an associate, or starting something on your own or with partners. A smart business owner > a dumb associate. Trump is better for my taxes. But he's a clown. **** sanders.

3. The best advice I can give regarding this is to learn how to schedule yourself wisely and use your time in the best way. Undergrad scores ARE NOT always a predictor for dental or any grad school success. Remember that a large chunk of your preclinical year grades come from sim lab based classes- and hand skills come easier to some. I was one of the ones who was great at exams but used to cry into my crown preps and waxups. Not even joking. It took hours and hours and help from lots of people to get through that for me.


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Thanks for the answer. Anything you can do to improve hand skills before dental school?
 
dentistreason said:
Thanks for the answer. Anything you can do to improve hand skills before dental school?
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I honestly don't know. I played musical instruments for years, I know others are artists etc, but I think it's really just something that some people pick up faster than others


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fancymylotus said:
I honestly don't know. I played musical instruments for years, I know others are artists etc, but I think it's really just something that some people pick up faster than others


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One more question. Say your debt is really low or you have no debt. Would you do the same things as people with debt after dental school? I heard corporate is usually picked up by people who want to pay debt fast.
 
Did any of your classmates have a hard time finding jobs? Your situation is probably not the norm, so for regular students with no family ties in dentistry, did a lot of them have trouble finding full time jobs?

I would hate to have to move to middle of nowheresville to work after school 🙁
 
dentistreason said:
One more question. Say your debt is really low or you have no debt. Would you do the same things as people with debt after dental school? I heard corporate is usually picked up by people who want to pay debt fast.
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I would still work as much as I could initially- whether that was in corporate or just being an associate at a few different offices. Pay whatever debt you have down. Build an emergency fund. Max out retirement accounts. Get life insurance early and disability insurance as well obviously and lock in those lower rates. Save towards the down payment on a practice or a place to live.


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Dentalnerdz said:
Did any of your classmates have a hard time finding jobs? Your situation is probably not the norm, so for regular students with no family ties in dentistry, did a lot of them have trouble finding full time jobs?

I would hate to have to move to middle of nowheresville to work after school 🙁
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Yes- most people worked at a few different offices and not just one single one full time


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fancymylotus said:
Yes- most people worked at a few different offices and not just one single one full time


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Were these new grads looking for work in NYC specifically?
 
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