939: Transforming Dentistry Through Mentorship – Dr. Lenny Hess

The Best Practices Show with Kirk Behrendt

Do you want more control over your life? Then it’s time to invest in yourself and your practice! In this episode, Kirk Behrendt brings back Dr. Lenny Hess, senior clinical director at The Dawson Academy, to talk about the best investment you can make: your education. He shares how the upcoming seven-course curriculum will transform your thinking and lead you to a more fulfilling career and balanced life. To learn more about Dawson’s Core Curriculum and what it can offer, listen to Episode 939 of The Best Practices Show!

Learn More About Dr. Hess:

• Join Dr. Hess on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leonard.hess.7
• Follow Dr. Hess on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drlennyhess
• Register for Dawsons’s Core Curriculum at The Dawson Academy: https://thedawsonacademy.com/courses/core-1-occlusion-smile-design

More Helpful Links for a Better Practice & a Better Life:

• Subscribe to The Best Practices Show: https://the-best-practices-show.captivate.fm/listen
• Join The Best Practices Association: https://www.actdental.com/bpa
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Apple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/best-practices-association/id6738960360
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.actdental.join&hl=en_US
• Join ACT’s To The Top Study Club: https://www.actdental.com/ttt
• Get The Best Practices Magazine for free: https://www.actdental.com/magazine
• Please leave us a review on the podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-best-practices-show-with-kirk-behrendt/id1223838218

Episode Resources:

• Watch the video version of Episode 939: https://www.youtube.com/@actdental/videos

Main Takeaways:

• Build a practice that supports your life. Don't spend your life supporting your practice.
• You aren't just in the tooth business as a dentist. You're also in a people business.
• Dentistry is a marathon, not a sprint. Work on making meaningful changes.
• Don't be afraid to invest in yourself. Now is the best time to do it.
• The Dawson Academy is one of the best places to learn.

Snippets:

0:00 Introduction.

0:43 How Dr. Peter Dawson touched their lives.

4:15 Dr. Hess’s background.

8:58 People will always pay for quality.

10:45 Create the 50/50 balance.

14:16 Dr. Hess’s course demographics.

16:29 The Dawson Academy’s banner year.

18:27 Wear and managing forces, explained.

21:17 Dr. Hess’s philosophy.

25:17 The seven-course Core Curriculum.

29:35 The evolution of dental education.

33:59 The golden age of dentistry, explained.

35:31 Are DSOs taking over?

40:08 The five-year chunk for Dr. Hess.

43:11 Advice for younger dentists.

Dr. Leonard Hess Bio:

Dr. Leonard Hess, DDS, joined the Dawson faculty in 2009 and is now the Senior Clinical Director at The Dawson Academy. He owns Union County Center for Comprehensive Dentistry in Charlotte, North Carolina, and he practices full-time in addition to teaching continuing education courses. He is a member of the editorial board for Inside Dentistry and has had over 17 articles published in peer-reviewed journals. He is also a member of the American Academy of Restorative Dentistry, AACD, ADA, AES, and NCDS.

Dr. Hess began teaching continuing education courses in 2005. The topics include occlusion, smile design, treatment planning, preparation design, and practice integration of complete dentistry. He has taught full-day continuing education courses at the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry’s national meeting, The Greater New York Dental Meeting, AACD National Meeting, Pacific Dental Conference, Ontario Dental Association meeting, and The Yankee Dental Conference. Dr. Hess has also taught courses in Japan, Germany, Poland, China, and Canada.