Odyssey Management Dental Speaking & Consulting

03/11/2026

Join us on Friday, September 25, 2026, at The Vivos Institute in Denver for a day specifically designed for experienced managers and owners.

Register by May 31st for Early Bird pricing - it saves $120 on your registration!

03/10/2026

Geri Gottlieb and I had such a great time kicking off our “Participation Decisions for 2026 and Beyond” sessions for the Comprehensive Care Club in a March 4 webinar. Thank you to everyone who joined us and shared thoughtful questions.

Next up is the live workshop on March 20 at the Blue Water Convention Center in Port Huron, Michigan. I’m really looking forward to spending more time on this topic and continuing the discussion with those attending.

See you in Port Huron!

03/09/2026

To everyone who sat in on my sessions on February 20th and 21st, thank you for the engagement and the thoughtful questions. I love connecting with people who are just as focused on the business side of the office as I am! See you at the next one!

03/06/2026

Hiring a billing company means trusting them with your patient data, your revenue, and pretty much your entire practice. Before you outsource, there are specific things every doctor should look for to make sure a billing company is truly prepared to handle the responsibility.

In this episode, I break down why proper business setup matters, including HIPAA compliance, secure systems, insurance coverage, and cybersecurity. I also explain why experience and infrastructure are critical, why being fully established as a business is not optional, and why keeping billing operations US based is an important consideration for protecting patient information. This conversation is about doing things the right way, not the fast way, when choosing a billing partner for your practice.

Watch the full podcast episode, Nobody Told Me That Episode 159 My Takeaways From The NADP Meeting, to hear the complete discussion and context behind these takeaways.

This episode is brought to you with the support of Synergy Dental Partners

03/05/2026

Transitioning to consulting or speaking requires a strategic blueprint. Our workshop dives deep into business structure, branding, and the "how-to" of moving Beyond The Operatory.

Update: Our workshop tomorrow is SOLD OUT

Next Steps: If you’re ready to elevate your career, don’t go anywhere. Stay tuned for the announcement of our next workshop!

03/05/2026

Adam Smith works with dental offices to uncover hidden costs and save money, often without changing vendors or disrupting daily operations. He’s all about helping practices keep more of what they earn and run smoother financially.

🎥 He shares even more money-saving tips and real examples in our latest podcast.

Watch the full podcast: Nobody Told Me That! EP 162 #1 Cost Optimization Expert: Revealed Tips to Cut Dental Costs by 28%

You’ll walk away with practical ways to make your practice more profitable starting today.

Thanks to Synergy Dental Partners for investing in education and supporting this podcast 🤝

02/27/2026

Ever had one of those days where you run on empty and make a mistake so obvious that your patient refuses to let you near them? That is exactly what happened to me during one of the most stressful periods of my career. I opened up about a time when I was juggling absolutely everything in the office. I was acting as the receptionist, the financial coordinator, and the dental assistant all at once because we were critically short staffed. When you try to do the work of two or three people, that mental and physical exhaustion inevitably catches up with you. I was definitely burning out, and my brain was struggling to keep up with the chaotic pace of running back and forth between the front desk and the clinical area.

This burnout led to a massive slip up with a patient named Joe. My brain was so scattered from checking the schedule that I completely mixed up the sides of the mouth. I ended up prepping the left side when we were absolutely supposed to be working on the right side. It was a simple error caused by fatigue, but it led to an incredibly awkward situation where the patient told the doctor he did not want me working on him at all. I had to go back in, face the music, and own up to my mistake to help salvage the appointment.

This experience was one of the most humbling moments of my life as a dental assistant, but it taught me a vital lesson. It highlights why dental professionals must advocate for themselves when the workload becomes unmanageable. You are well within your rights to say you need a break because maintaining that frantic pace is not sustainable. It is hard on you mentally and physically, and as my story shows, it eventually affects your performance in the operatory.

💻 Watch the full episode 158 Lessons Patients Taught Me The Hard Way

*To immerse viewers in this true story, certain scenes in this video were recreated using AI-generated video. The narrative is real, but some visuals are artistic AI interpretations.

02/26/2026

We had such a good response to last time that we're doing it again! Join me, Ashley and Lorie next week for another unfiltered management discussion. You never know what we're going to say!

02/25/2026

Let’s talk about the promotion nobody prepares you for. You’re excellent at your job. Then one day, you’re handed the title “Office Manager.” No roadmap. No training plan. And now you’re supervising people who used to be your peers.

In Episode 168 of Nobody Told Me That! I’m joined by Michelle Affanato to talk about what truly makes a strong dental office manager.

We discuss:
👉 Managing former coworkers
👉 Aligning with the doctor on responsibilities
👉 Setting boundaries without losing trust
👉 Building confidence through growth, not perfection

Leadership is learned. And support matters. What was your biggest adjustment when you stepped into management? Let me know in the comments. 👇

Thanks to Synergy Dental Partners for investing in education and supporting this podcast 🤝

02/24/2026

Officially SOLD OUT! We are a week away from the Beyond the Operatory workshop and the energy for this group is already fantastic! Stay tuned because we’ll hold this workshop again. Lots of you are ready for your next step!

02/23/2026

I’m glad to share that MaxAssist’s 2026 Voices of Dentistry is now available. This free ebook brings together perspectives from the people who manage and run dental practices every single day. Inside, you’ll find guidance rooted in day-to-day operations, examples teams can relate to, and ideas to help you prepare for what’s ahead in dentistry. And a few parts from me!

If planning, workflows, and team support are part of your role, this is worth your time.

02/20/2026

Principal sent out a letter recently stating new policies regarding periodical radiographs. They want diagnostic reasons for the radiograph(s) and copies of the radiographs when more than two periapicals are taken. The first one should not be an issue for offices as we should always have a reason for taking a radiograph. That is not new and has always been part of the radiographic guidelines. The second requirement is pretty silly. I'm not sure how this helps anyone. It places a crazy burden on providers and also increases the burden on the carriers. I'm sure Principal has data on this but they'll find out that providers take an awful lot of radiographs everyday in order to provide quality. diagnoses.

Principal referred to the ADA's recently refreshed radiographic guidelines (to include CBCT guidance) as a reason for the policy. I think that's also silly. Nothing changed enough to warrant such a policy.
The ADA has just responded (very quickly) to this letter as the outcry from dentists was very loud. Here's their response: https://adanews.ada.org/ada-news/2026/february/ada-urges-principal-to-reconsider-documentation-for-periapical-radiographs/

What do you think?

ADA leaders from the Council on Dental Benefit Programs and staff met Feb. 20 with senior Principal representatives.