They Don't Come Here Because I'm the Best

0:02So welcome to the Foundation Dental podcast. I am your host, doctor Jim Arnold, and my guest is the one and only doctor Steve Rasner. Steve is an amazing guy. I had followed him way back in the day when I was first a newbie dentist. I used to read all of his articles, was really inspired by his philosophy and his take on practice management on clinical acumen and all that good stuff. But I'd never met him in person until last summer. We were both at the Supercharge Your Dental Practice event in Bermuda of all places. And so finally, I got to meet this guy in person. And, you know, he's a guy who's done some amazing things in his career. Mean, he's lectured in 43 states, five countries, soon to be six.

0:48He has built a $5,000,000 fee for service practice in one of the most economically repressed areas of New Jersey, which is a huge thing that not many people are capable of. And he teaches all of the principles to get 90% plus case acceptance, which again is very unusual. He does it without pressure, without gimmicks, without discounts, all that kind of thing. So without further ado, Steve, thanks so much for joining us. I really appreciate it. Thank you, Jim. I I appreciate having the opportunity to do something with you like we're gonna do in late August in Dubai, and I'm appreciate the opportunity to be on your podcast. No, man. I I appreciate it. It's always fun to chat with you. You know, whether we're talking on the phone or on a Zoom or in person, you just have so much so many amazing stories and so much to teach.

1:43And so I appreciate it. I appreciate it. Always do. You know? And I look at your career and all the stuff that you've done in forty years. And I mean, you you could make a very long list of accomplishments and places you've taught, people you've taught. But with all of that, Steve, what's what's the one thing that you're most proud of professionally? I mean, you know, that's a weighted question with with everybody that Jay has that too. For me, it's taking where I was when I graduated dental school and flashing that forward, to be honest with you, with today, with 2025, like, all the things in between that could've made me give up.

2:27And I know a lot of your listeners and a lot of guys that may not even hear this program the first time it comes out. The truth is is everybody knows and and by the way, thank you for the great introduction. I need your listeners to know right off the bat that Steve Rasner doesn't look at himself as great this or great that. Steve Rasner looks at himself as just a relentlessly hard worker who just never gave up on anything. And I've had so many things happen in my career, including the beginning, which I'll share with you, that I think a lot of people would have given up.

3:10I do. And and here I am, freaking 71 years old. I this is the truth, guys. And I know I come across authentic because I am authentic. I don't literally have to work from a financial point of view. I could be done if I wanted to be done. And I and I and you struggle with that. You know what that you do? You go out with your friends that are your age and they're all retired, or you go on a weekend scheme thing, and you're the only one that has to get back Right. Because, you know, they're they're retired. And sometimes you almost even feel guilty about that you're retired, or you have to explain it to people. Really? Yeah. But the truth is yeah. Like, they'll say, what are you what are you working for? And and the answer to that, it's simple.

4:01I I I was able to develop a organization, my practice. I have two of them Mhmm. That I invested everything I have in it, and I'm proud of it. And it makes me feel good even to this day. You know? And I believe, like, lot of my colleagues that are seventy, seventy one, you know, you don't we're not basketball or baseball players. You don't lose your skills at your mid thirties. And, you know, I still love doing that. I still love being that guy that walks into an operatory and meets a new patient. I still love a great week. I still love a beautiful before and after. And and I've come to complete one eighty on retiring. I think if you love what you do, no matter what you do. Right? Absolutely. You should keep doing it.

4:53I mean and that so that's that. I'll tell you. You mentioned that I have a lot of stories. I'm gonna tell you one right now that's gonna take us back reverse wise as to how I was able to establish the practices that I I'm alluding to. Please do. Because Yeah. You know, I think a lot of dentists just they don't see the path, you know, and they don't understand it. You know, no matter how hard they work, they don't have that that unlock, you know, the the things that made you so successful. And I'm gonna tell you guys things I've never told in another interview just because it's you and it's your show. Thank you. So going back, I I have to give the backdrop to this that I sold to a DSO in 2022. I still own, as we speak tonight, 15% of it, but I, you know, I sold to a DSO.

5:45Mhmm. And it was Dental Care Alliance. I don't mind telling you. And, you know, they they have not and I went on a lecture circuit because I've been on it for twenty six years. And I know some of you watching this saw me bad mouth doing that, and it's true. I did. And I haven't changed my point of view. It's just from an investment from a retirement point of view. Some of this you know this, Jim. Some dentists are incredibly savvy. They bought strip centers, real estate in the nineties or eighties. They made a fortune in Apple or Nvidia or whatever it was along the way. I never did any of that. I just wasn't that guy. Mhmm. So my biggest asset was my practice. And as and as core philosophical as I am about how I think you've reached success and and high levels of success, I still and I didn't want to do that because I knew it was gonna be a contradiction of what I've professed for years and years.

6:57For sure. But, you know, that was my asset, and I wasn't leaving millions and millions of dollars on the table to prove a point. That's right. And and if you don't if you it doesn't get any more honest than that. No. I and let me tell you. Three years after I did it, I'm here to tell you that they probably don't they've been the the parent organization. Probably doesn't care how much I care about my margins on my crown and bridge or Yeah. The final aesthetics on an interior implant or whatever the things that drive me to be who I am clinically. I know they don't care. They care about what I produce in my office. Mhmm. And sometimes, not often, they will implement things from a corporate point of view that make it harder to do what I do.

7:54Like, I wanna be clear. They let me use the labs I wanna use. They let me use the supplies I wanna use. But something as simple as changing your software that reflects the radiograph quality that you see. There's nothing simple about that. Oh, man. Yeah. So, you know, stuff like that. And and so the reason I'm telling you that first is that about three weeks ago I want you guys to picture this. I'm sitting at my private office. Now my private office is right across the front desk in my office. And when you look out the door, I often can't see the patient that's speaking. I can see the front desk staff member speaking, but I can't see the person. So I hear her say, my staff member Yeah. Oh, I'm sorry. We don't do that anymore.

8:49And so so that's all I hear. Yeah. I hear these patients say, well, you and this lady sounded like she was older, like, in her seventies or later. And I heard her say, well, you should've told me that before you did the service. And I didn't know who it was, and I didn't need to hear one more thing. I was kind of fuming. And so I said, hey. And I yelled. My door was open. Hey. Could could you guys come down to my hallway? What what's what are you talking about? And so and I'm not saying this to deprecate my front desk staff member. Oh, of course not. He knows I I had this conversation that we're having. I said, what are you guys talking about? What don't we do anymore? She says, we don't give out senior citizen discounts.

9:38And I said, yes. We do. Yeah. Even if somebody told you you didn't, I'm telling you we do starting right now, and that should never have stopped. So Awesome. And and before I did that, she also said, let me get the manager. So the lady was, you know, a little embarrassed and quite frankly, happy she that I heard her. And I the next morning, I called that front desk staff my whole front desk team. I have appointed this guy, so stay with me. Into my office, and I said this. I said, do you guys know of the pet food monthly pet supply place named Chewy? And they said some of them said, Some of them said, no. And so let me tell you about them. Their business is based on supplying your pet monthly food so you don't have to get and other things, so you don't have to go out and get it.

10:37I said, you know what they do? Because if you're in that kind of business, sometimes the pet dies, and you just got an order from that pet supply company that you had a yearly contract with or whatever.

10:52Now what do you think they do when that happens? Because you don't need the food anymore. It's already bad enough your pet died. I said, I'm gonna tell you what they do. They tell you they're not gonna bill you for it, and they tell you that you can donate it to a shelter, do whatever you want, and then they send you a sympathy card. Okay? You know how much Chewy does a year? I said, they do 11,000,000,000 a year. Wow. They don't think it's too beneath them. They don't think they're too big at 11 bill to do something so intimate with one of the with one of their customers, let alone thousands. What I said, I would like to tell you guys that everybody that comes in this office every day in our fee for service practice, that they come here because they know that I'm the second coming of GV Black.

11:49K? The father of dentistry, those of you who blanked out. But I'll tell you something. I think I'm pretty good, but that's not why they come here. They come here because for forty four years, I have treated people with respect and value. It's absolutely the truth. It's why I need four front desk staff members. It is why you're employed. It's why I get paid. It's and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let anybody wreck that by treating people so meaninglessly. Now I realized, Jimmy, that I didn't just give a revelation that nobody ever heard of, but it is absolutely the foundation of what I what I built. It is. I remember I remember buying Nordstrom's books because everybody knows their legendary service or Four Seasons books and like, how do they put this together?

12:49You know? What makes Starbucks Starbucks? Right. Apple or whatever? I remember thinking that thirty years ago and thinking, well, why can't I do that as a dental practice? Right? Mhmm. So that's that's today. That's real time story that and now let me tell you one other thing I did. And by the way, guys, I don't have all the answers. I don't even know if what I'm about to say to you is the right thing or not. Then I said, I used to do something that I want to reinstitute right this second, and here's what it is. There's two parts to it. The first is called the $200 off rule. What the heck's that? I said if you have a patient that has a dispute with their bill up to $200 and you have researched that, I don't want you just to do it Yeah.

13:41And and research it at the second they're standing in front of you. That's what the morning meeting's about. That's why I have four of you, an insurance department. Because listen. Even though I'm fee for service, we allow them their maximum per year. Oh, yeah. Know what that is. Absolutely. Okay. So I said, if you think it's in the practice's best interest up to $200 or 20%, either one of those Mhmm.

14:14That it's our best interest to solve, resolve this issue right on the spot. I'm giving you the power to do that. If you think and that's huge. That's huge. Why and I use do it, Jim. Your team feels some ownership, and they recognize that you don't just trust them, but they are a part of the business. And that's a big deal. That's what creates culture. Well, you know what, Jimmy? I have my heart ripped out about a month ago. I have two practices. I'm rarely, if ever, in my original practice, which is only fifteen minutes away. I just there's only some hours in a day, and I just don't go over there a lot. Yeah. And I found out that a thirty five year family, so a family of six, the parents, the kids, their kids, left us because somebody wouldn't see them.

15:11Somebody corp corp my my office is scared of corporate. Right? Yeah. Because I don't know why because they're rarely in the picture. Yeah. But somehow somebody allowed information to get to them to be scanned. I just wasn't aware of it. Mhmm. And I said, listen. That's we're not gonna do that. K? We're gonna treat people like Chewy cheap treats people. Mhmm. Going forward, I never again wanna hear anybody say I have to get a manager. As soon as you tell somebody that, whether you're in a grocery store, a hotel, or my practice, it just doesn't give off the right vibe. You need to be strong enough and powerful enough that they know they're that important. We're gonna just gonna solve this right on the spot. Now I'm not talking about the person that's been owing us seven hundred hours for four years and doesn't show up for hygiene and just shows up in a problem.

16:09Right. We all know the difference. We have to understand that. Of course. So, anyway so I got I went reversed. How did that all happen? I'm gonna tell you how it happened. So I graduated in 1980. K? So I went to Penn, and I don't know if I've ever said this to you, but I was a psych major as an undergraduate, not I didn't know that. '29. Yeah. So the reason I'm telling you that is I took the minimum requirements because I didn't know what I wanted to be. And I wasn't sure I wanted to be a physician, a dentist, a lawyer. I didn't know. Yeah. So time was running out, and I had to make a decision. So fly to dental school. And when I got into dental school, not only did Penn have really smart guys in my class, but 85, 90% of them were science majors.

17:05So when I got walloped with all those etiologies, physiology, you know, bio whatever. I I don't know. I couldn't even spell them. I was getting I was getting humbled. Yeah. Humbled in the first year. Yeah. And by time I came up for error, I was in the back of my class. And by the time I graduated, even though I did very well in clinic Mhmm. It was late because you know what it's like. Oh, man. That that GPA is hard to bring up after a certain point for sure. Yeah. And and in dental school, it's not like, know, the the separation between the top 20 students and the rest of us isn't 30 points. It could be 10 points. Absolutely. Be at the end of your class, which I was. It's the truth. So guess what happens when you're at the bottom of your class?

17:58You're not getting any GPRs, and you're damn lucky your dad was a dentist in the hometown that you're from, which is how I ended up in Cumberland County, New Jersey. No kidding. I wondered about that. Like, how how you landed there to build a practice when there's somebody else it's not Beverly Hills. You know? You're doing fee for service dentistry in a economically depressed area when most people think that would be impossible. So, like, why have you been so successful with that model when so many other doctors are afraid to even take that leap or make the make the effort to do it? Oh, I I am a be honest with you. To me, it was a pretty natural evolution because when I got out of school, the net effect on me and I know you're into psychology a lot because I watch some of the things you deliver on social media.

18:56I felt like I'd stayed back in school. I mean, think about it for a minute, really. I came from this area. It was a depressed area already. Nobody in the world would have said in 1980, oh my god. I wanna go to Southern New Jersey, particularly Cumberland County, Bridgeton. I'm sorry. Nobody would have said that. Right. Mean, the biggest employer of the of the area was a glass factory that shut down the year I graduated. Oh my gosh. There was just no hope. And I felt like I'd stayed back in school. That's what it felt like. I remember it. Like, how could I be back here? I went to Penn. You know? I graduated. I made it. And I'm back home? You know? I gotta go Never saw that one coming. Sorry. Can I hang up the local bar with my with my classmates from eight years ago?

19:49What am I gonna do? So that motivated me to be the best possible dentist I could ever be. And I became infatuated like many of the people that follow me and and others like me in CE. Mhmm. And I became came in comp you know, and and as you might know, Jim, in the 1980 to till about 1984, there wasn't the kind of CE that we we have today. Okay. There just wasn't. It was more one day courses. There certainly wasn't a bevy of continuums, which is what you need, whether it's endo, ortho, surgery, implantology, whatever it is, you need a continuum like a maxi course, for example, in surgery Mhmm.

20:42Or aesthetic continuum. Sure. And when you take those type of courses, which is what I was doing Mhmm. From the beginning, as soon as they were offered. Which is awesome. Because there probably weren't a lot of people taking them back then, were there? I am thinking so. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. I took Frank Spear and John Coyz Mhmm. When they were still partners. Oh my gosh. That is amazing. And I went out there Wow. 19 times. Jeez. I took them together, then they split during the time I was being mentored by them. Then I took everything Frank had, and I took everything John had. And and so when you when I was doing that and so my number one incur my number one recommendation, it's easy when I'm out there speaking, is I tell our our younger colleagues to live below your means the first ten years.

21:40I know that's not sexy, and it doesn't sound fun. I'm not telling you to rent a dive, but you don't have to buy a million dollar house, which is even that big of a deal, I understand, today. But you just have to have enough control, but that doesn't include investing in yourself. I would tell you, I put that on a credit card. I would borrow to invest in You know, Steve, I had a period of time, I think from about 2001 through 2005 where I was in about three hundred hours of CE a year. I mean, it was too much. I did probably three times as much as as I should have, but I was the same way. I was, like, so focused on being as good as I could possibly be. Went to all the continuum. So I dragged my team all over the country.

22:26I had a few years, Steve, where we spent a $102,100,000 on our CE and our team. And you know what? It made us millions over time because, you know, you don't have to reinvent the wheel. You can go learn from these masters who have figured it out and then, you know, apply what really makes sense for you. You know, what fits your model. And and you did that from man. Like, I I professional. Just like you. I took three hundred hours here. I never intended ever to be a speaker. I'll never forget the first time somebody asked me to share to to speak. I'll never forget what it felt like. Like, I thought I thought it was one of my friends pranking me. You know? Right? So and then when you're at those courses, that's why live CE is such a fundamental cornerstone Mhmm.

23:23In 2025 as it was in nineteen eighties to become different. So it was easy. This is the answer to your question. It became easy for me because, you know, I'm at Frank Spears for three days and I had done that, you know, as I said to you 19 times between him and Coy's. You know, when I'm at lunch or at night, whatever we're doing and you're meeting other really, because not everybody's that passionate. Oh, gosh. Not at all. You don't have to be. You're right. I'm not at all here to criticize those that aren't under this is this is my path. Hey. To each their own. You know what mean? The great thing about dentistry is there's 50 different ways to practice, and you can do the procedures that you wanna do. And I love that.

24:06It's why I went into dentistry instead of medicine because there are so many different paths. And it's like, what works for you? Let's talk about that because that's a thing that I bring up when I speak. Nobody it's the un I call it the unspoken secret about the dental profession because if you and I were physicians, primary care physicians there was actually an article written by this in 2012 called the million dollar mistake, becoming a doctor.

24:36Okay. Million dollar mistake. When was that written? When was that written? 2012. You can look at them. Yeah. I will. So what it talked about is what the life of a primary care physician's like after investing the years, the money to get out finally and have their own practice.

24:58Now you know how long the physicians and what they have to go through. Absolutely. And then what they if you're a primary care physician, you have to then I forget the number of hours per day of notes they had to transcribe and how many patients they had to see.

25:18And the average income, which is famous now, is less than our income. Yeah. Right. So here's like I said, it's called the million dollar mistake. So here's what's never so, obviously, there are some PCPs who changed their course. Right? Like, a minute. I I don't wanna do this. I wanna do plastic surgery. I I I have a friend, a high school friend that was a primary care physician and became a cardiac okay. He became a cardiac surgeon and then a oncologist. He became three things. Well, guess what? They don't take continuums to do that. They have to go back Yeah. For to go if you're a primary care physician, you know how many years more you need to be to go back in and become a plastic surgeon? Many? Oh my god.

26:09That sounds painful. Listen. I run an institute, an implant institute, and I'm a GP. Yeah. I didn't go back to school for seven years. Yeah. I took a bevy of of continuums like you were talking. Three hundred hours a year Yeah. Every year. 100,000, way more than that per year for so many years. It seemed like that's just normal. Yeah. I used to select my courses like you would in college. I remember doing in in November, December for the spring and in the summertime for the fall and winter. I love that. Remember doing it. I love that. So I remember those days where I had so many things on the calendar. It's like, oh my god. I can't fit anything else in, but you gotta plan ahead, you know, and get get the education you want.

27:01So in doing that, I would meet people. We would talk. We'd have lunch, dinner, whatever we were doing. And you would invariably find out, for example, what lab they use. Something as basic as that. What are you guys charging in Illinois for a crown? You know? Yeah. I mean, of course, you gotta remember, I don't know when the Internet really came on strong, but, obviously, it's much easier today because there's a million groups that you can correspond with.

27:28But what lab use just every I mean, what do you what do you do with this problem or that problem? Yeah. Absolutely. You know what? I always found that I learned as much, like, after the the eight to five course or whatever. I learned as much from, you know, like, eight to 1AM as I did during the day because that's when you're having real conversations. You know? If if you're in a bigger course, it's not easy to ask those questions. It's not easy to have that back and forth because there's too many people there. But if you can get that one on one time with people you really respect, those are the conversations that I think really move the needle. Yeah. You know, look, those we all are in we all are in awe of those special practices that we hear about, and how do they get to to be that person?

28:24Look. First of all, oh, there's a lot of social media today that's not good for your for your head. For sure. Yeah. And and I don't wanna be an old saying, but you do wanna be the best version of yourself. And and what else can you really do? Right? That's it. But what you don't wanna do is look the other way when there's an obvious problem in your office, let's say, for staff. Because just as one example. So there's a lot of a lot of avenues to what leads to a great practice like I've been blessed to have. And and one of them is leadership. It's being vigilant. Yeah. And I was always vigilant, Jim. I always would not put things off if if I thought they needed it. In fact, I would be I have a call meeting. I still do.

29:20Yeah. That very day, the the problem became obvious to me, whatever that was. Yeah. Because avoiding it, it's not gonna get any better. You gotta address it, like, directly in the moment. Yeah. You know? And so, you know, morning meetings became something I became really good at. And look. Everybody not everybody. Everybody has a version of what a morning meeting should be. Many people poo poo it. Many because you know what happens to a lot of practices also? They get successful. This happened in my own town. And then they put them on automatic pilot because it's hard to put out an empathy all the time required for high levels of success. But, you know, at the end of the day, I've been working four days. Now I work three now, but I work four days for about twenty years up till up till three years ago or two years ago.

30:17I don't remember when I went to three days. Mhmm. I didn't think it was a big price, Jim, to do what I'm telling you. Yeah. I didn't think it was a big price to take a lot of courses. In fact, I I liked it. I still like it. Of course. Absolutely. Like, getting out there, there's always something new to learn, you know, or somebody new to meet, you know, different conversations. It's just whenever I felt like I got in a little bit of a rut or just this routine that was not fulfilling, I had to get back out there. And whether I was learning something or just having great conversations with people I I vibed with, I always came back energized and, like, ready to go again. And, you know, you probably don't even know how unusual that was for you and your team that you developed and worked with all those years.

31:04It's hard to do that, guys. I mean, it is. It's it's easy to hit a slump, and I'm I I wanna be very clear. I've hit many slumps. I mean, it never lasted. Yeah. But it is scary to I remember when I went from insurance to fee for service. And it wasn't a one day thing, and I would never recommend that. You know, again, I'm one Any of the process. Right. I'm one guy's opinion. And I think it's really important, whoever we listen to, that you don't buy in and drink the Kool Aid on on any one person. It takes four points of view. That's right. And, you know, my view was because, you know, I remember going to Blue Cross Blue Shield people in my community because we always get a sense, don't we, of all the teachers were Delta Delta Dental in my area, and all the frontline workers at the time were Blue Cross.

32:06And I remember being scared to death. I'm sure. Tell them I'm not taking them anymore. Right? Yeah. But you first of all, you have to have something worthwhile to offer. Do you know? I mean, I still tell that in my morning meeting. Like, what are we gonna do here today that's going to affirm to those people walking in the door that are gonna be paying us more than anybody else in the area? Because we're not taking we're not in network. So they're gonna reimburse less. Gotta pay a lot out of pocket. Yep. Right? So you better offer something different, something that differentiates yourself and makes it worth their while in terms of perception. Yep. Being on time. Yeah. It's your clinical work, you can't just wish to do clinical work.

32:57And by the way, it doesn't just get better because you practiced twenty years instead of five. Mhmm. You know? There's things you have to know that you just can't know on your own, how other people do things. So everything counts. It counts for you to be vigilant, as I already mentioned in this podcast. Like, you can't look the other way if you have an abusive staff member, and I bring that up because we all have one at one time. Sure. Right? Yeah. What an awful experience that is. Right? And you can't you can't look the other way. You want to because usually, that staff member is very talented at something. That's why they do what they do. Right. I'll never forget it, and I'm sure you don't either. I remember being taking a task that I had to do something.

33:45I didn't want the first time I heard that person disrespect another colleague in my office. But I knew I had to do something, and eventually, I did. And there was never one time that I didn't feel I did the right thing and was more respected by everyone in the office. And we all lifted to a higher level because I made the move. You have to make that move, doc. Nobody else can make it for you. That's right. That's right. So You know, leadership is a lot tangent. I'm sorry. Oh, no. No. That's great. I you know, leadership is such a funny thing. You know, you go through dental school and you're not really learning about business. You're not really learning about leadership. You're not really learning about communication, all that sort of thing.

34:31Some people have it more than others just kind of naturally, and some people have to have to learn it. You know, they go through the process or it's just experience over years. You've kinda figured out what works and what doesn't. You know, when when you talk about 90% case acceptance though, plus, I mean, that's unusual. I mean, I don't know I don't know of anybody who talks about that. And do you attribute that to great communication skills? Do you attribute that to having a great team? I mean, at the end of the day, all comes down to leadership, but how have you been successful with that, and and what are other doctors missing do you think as a general rule? Well, number one, I I am I do I have had extraordinary success for a very long time with people presenting a treatment plan and having a patient say yes.

35:25And in my world, that only means yes if they paid me. Mhmm. I gave never was, oh, this is great. I'm doing this the first thing in January. That means I didn't get it. Yeah. And that's okay too, by the way. That's fine. But if I I would just honed in on it, and so how it really worked for me was this. And and the answer to your question why others might struggle is they are lacking in any one of the three or four steps I'm gonna lay out real quickly. One is we had a great well, it's case acceptance starts with your branding. Mhmm. So if you're for years, Jim, I branded an appointment today. I did that. That was that was our shtick. An appointment today. Well, guess what that attracted? People that haven't been to a dentist in a long time, they had emergencies.

36:18Yeah. Right. Patients are the greatest patients that seek Frank Spear, John Coy's, Pete Dawson comprehensive treatment plans. Mhmm. They seek root canals, extractions Right. One tooth dentistry. And I didn't know it. All I knew is, damn. This works. People are calling me. So it's You know what? I always found that those emergencies, when you can get them out of pain or you can take care of them in a timely manner, they will stick with you. Right? Yeah. They'll stick with you from time to time. I think that's if I if I was teaching marketing, that would not be the market I would go. I the market, without a doubt to me, twenty five I mean, forty five years later, is confidence and trust. That a, you can trust me.

37:09What I you can trust my work, and you can trust what I'm going to tell you. You can trust that I'm not going to upsell you. All those things. And you have to earn that the second you walk into that room. Okay? And, obviously, that's beyond the the scope of this particular podcast, but it's something I intend to share out in Dubai because case acceptance is everything. You could be the greatest dentist in the world. If you don't get enough case acceptance, you spend your days doing single crowns. Oh, man. In a maloccluded dentition. And there are a lot of dentists who have great skills, you know, in terms of what they've learned to do clinically. But without those communication skills, I mean, they're not gonna do much dentistry.

38:00They're not gonna do the stuff that they really wanna do. Yeah. So I I brand when I say brand, whatever I'm using, rate I use radio because you and, again, it's a scope for another conversation. I love to come back someday. Oh, yeah. You can't do, say, marketing in a rural area like I'm in. You can't use that in New York City. It's cost formidable. You just can't. There's other things you can do. Exactly. Yeah. Comes out of your market and what you can yeah. What you can afford. Right? Wait. I'm in a local newspaper. I'm in a local free giveaways, and I'm on the radio. And we brand trust through our words and through our messaging, and we and and we brand confidence too. And, you know, part of that comes from being in the same area for forty five years, etcetera.

38:52So why am I telling you that? Because emergency patients don't call me as much as they used to, and I'm fine with that. Mhmm. The next step is, do you have a great screen in place? Being successful at a high level in dentistry means that you don't work on everybody in the community. Not not everybody wants not that I I don't do comprehensive dentistry all day long. Mhmm. I'm just saying to you that there are people who simply you just want their tooth pulled. You simply just want one tooth dentistry. And we have ways of determining that, which you should. Yeah. Absolutely. Will be process is critical, isn't it? Yeah. So then they come in finally. And then there's a very, very tight wrapped protocol on everything from how long they which isn't long.

39:50They spend in the reception room, how they're greeted, how they're who takes them back. Yeah. What's going on before I get in there? And then a lot of what I say, honestly, is I'm just look. I can't dunk a basketball, but I'm real good at meeting people. And and you said it in this podcast, not everybody has equal skills. That is a skill you can develop. And and part of it, for example, is looking people in the eye. Mhmm. Smiling a lot. You know, I know I did something I noticed over the years. Like, I don't naturally some people just break into a lovable grin. I don't. I can, like, remind myself, hey. Good place to but I am am crystal clear on how I communicate to people. I'm crystal clear on having them lay their guard down.

40:48Okay? And I want them to let their guard down even if they don't accept my treatment. Because if their guard's up, I we can't even have a really meaningful conversation. Listen. You take somebody that walks in your room that really has a lot of dental needs. And and by the way, little things like, we really do have this significant other in that first visit. Oh, hell yeah. Three percent of the time. Yep. Seven out of ten times. That's not one out of three. It's seven out of 10. And I want them there because I know and and there is something I could really share with a lot of your listeners in a more intimate situation that you know, I can't tell you all this in in in in a short amount of time, but there is a way to let people understand that we that you're there for today is to educate them and give them information.

41:48If they decide to move forward today Yeah. Yay. I'm happy about it. If if if they don't and they leave with a and this happened to me this week, Jim. I gave a visitation. I thought I had them. You know? And I and I know that sounds weird. I thought I have. Yeah. I No. Absolutely. You feel really good about it? Man, they're in for sure. Yeah. He looked at his mouth. He'd been treated by what I call a good old Joe, doctor good old Joe, m o d, m o u s e, in his mouth. 16 surface amalgams. Oh my god. A couple of missing teeth, root canals that desperately needed full coverage, gingivitis, said he went regularly. Could've been lying, but I don't think he was. Yeah. You know, sat there with a poker face. So much so that a couple times, I said, so what are you thinking?

42:46I'm I'm just curious. I'm looking at your face. Yeah. Yeah. I'm kidding with his wife who is sitting in the corner and has said, you not you not liking on me? Like, I'm also a chameleon. I wouldn't say that line to other people. Yeah. You gotta know you gotta know the right time and place. And that's all about reading reading who's sitting next to you. And after about forty minutes, I thought this guy because then what we do is I say something like this. And I realize your listeners aren't getting all of this. But I say, here's what's gonna happen next. You remember Michelle because you met her before I came in the room. Because Michelle, who does the screen or whoever does the screen, rescreens them in the office because often the information is is deeper and better in the office for whatever reason.

43:40K? Well, here's what's gonna happen. She doesn't know what I'm thinking when I'm looking at you because I didn't know. But now I'm I have a pretty good idea with you. I can't always do this. What I would do if I was you? And you didn't know what it cost. I know you so I'm gonna hand this off to her. Take her about twenty minutes. Come in here fifteen minutes. Gonna get you anything. And she's gonna go over it. And whatever you wanna do, you're gonna do. I'm not pressing you. Yes. Blah blah blah. Now sometimes they have a this guy actually had a had a toothache, low level, four, definitely an endo. And I had already told him that. Mhmm. He when I sent in my Michelle, which that day was a Michael, he's the other person who does it.

44:31Mhmm. It looked like somebody set a firecracker under his butt. That's what he passed around him. And I was shocked. Oh, Jesus. Am I down to that? Sometimes you do everything right, and it's just not right. Yeah. Hey. Yeah. I mean, a 100% is impossible. Just like perfection is impossible. You know, it's the pursuit of excellence, and part of that excellence is helping patients make good decisions about their oral health care. And you know what? Sometimes they're gonna say no. And, you know, you you just you can't win every single one of those. That's for sure. That is great. But you know what, though, Steve? I mean, you I'm sure you've seen this a million times over your career. So often, as long as you, like, leave things on a high note and there's mutual respect and, you know, there's no pressure, you know, their their chart used to go in the stack.

45:20You know? And I remember Paul Hommelny used to talk about this a lot. He's like, you'll be amazed by how many people will circle back. It might be a year later, might be five years later, but all of a sudden they show up and they're like, I'm ready. You know? And and so you just you just never know. A no today might not be a no two years from now. I have people that refer to me consistently Yeah. That I never treated. They came through, and my fees were too much. But remember, I tell my team, the last thing I'm gonna say to you right now about this is the one thing we wanna happen today more than anything is anybody that comes in here today that I speak to or the hygiene team speaks to and we give our recommendation, we need them to leave with a very good feeling whether they committed or not.

46:10Either way. Yeah. Absolutely. That if you threaten people, you're gonna upset with them. Never never had like, you know, there's courses out there, Jim, that say if they say this, you say that. You know? That never resonated with me, man. Like, scripting just I mean, the conversation is the conversation, and authenticity is about is in that relationship and how you communicate. And as soon as you start, you know, what do they call those? Overcoming objections. It's like Yes. Oh. I mean, you can certainly talk about, you know, the the pros and cons, you know, I mean but at the end of the day, it's gonna be their choice and they have to feel comfortable. And if you put pressure on them, then they're not gonna feel comfortable and they're gonna feel they're being sold to.

46:57And there's you're gonna lose that whole element of trust that, you know, you're so good at developing just by being you. Right? Right. I'm sure your team is is pretty well trained as well, and you probably have hired people who have those kinds of personalities as a general rule. Yeah. I I have. I will say that and I'm sure this is echoed by many of you listening is that it's been much more challenging for me. Probably my biggest challenge Yeah. Since COVID. I don't know what happened. I love to hear a theory that's gonna come out someday, but I don't know what happened. But since COVID, there's a less committed staff member population Yeah. That I've run that I've run. Right. Right. Which is just wild. I mean, I know I think statistically speaking, somebody estimated that about three percent of hygienists left the profession during COVID and didn't come back.

47:54I don't know if it's really that high, but I do know of a Honey? Hell of a lot of practices that can't even find a hygienist. So that's tough, man. I mean, you get good people, you figure out how to take care of them and make sure they never wanna leave because, you know, it all comes down to those relationships. And that relationship capital is so important, you know, beyond just being well trained, but the relationships with one another, with patients, with you, I mean, they're they're priceless, really. I think it's important for your listeners to remember that I hear us. I hear you and I right this second. And this sounds arduous, man. I mean, it sounds oh my god. This is so hard. Well, it isn't hard the tenth time you've done something like this.

48:41Exactly. Exactly. You know, it yeah. And, you know, with fee for service dentistry, I mean, I had so many people because I did it my whole career. We're like, oh my gosh. You're so lucky. You're so lucky and all this kind stuff. I'm like, but you know what? It's actually harder to do because the level of communication has to be up here. Like you said, they're gonna spend more money out of pocket, and so you've got to figure that out. You know? You can learn it. And like you said, after, like, 10 or a 100 or a thousand times, it just becomes a part of you. And it's it's just Like you with your workouts in the last year. Right? I'm sure the first three weeks wasn't like it is now. Right? That's for damn sure. Today today is three hundred and forty nine days in a row, by the way.

49:27I'm coming up on my 50 birthday. In sixteen days, I'll hit one full year. So pretty excited about that. I'm jealous, and I'm in awe. I I I'm I'm it's not me. Yeah. Agree to do that. Look. You said you're 71, but you're, like, 71 going on 50, really. I mean, you're you're incredible. Your level of energy is, I think, unmatched. I mean, guys twenty years younger that you can't keep up with you and what you do. Well, I you know, like I said, the reason I said the last statement about how the it is a lot because I don't want anybody listening to think that they're not capable. And I know you've heard this in many, many ways. The only person stopping you is you. This is no way that what I've accomplished is unique only to Steve Rasner.

50:17He other than my relentlessness relentlessness to never give up no matter what I have. I mean, I had four back operations. I'd can't lung cancer. I mean, I lost a son. I mean, there's a lot of things that happened to me that broke my spirit, you know, at at times. And, you know, things happen to all of us. You know? And so, you know, they're saying you only get one life and you gotta decide what you wanna do. Some of you are not thriving in dentistry because you are not on the right path. Mhmm. You know? Or you and that path may be changed, for example, just by committing commit for one year to CE. See if it changes a thing. You're not gonna go broke with one year. No. See if that revitalizes you. You have some million things that we could talk about, but we need more time.

51:12And I'm gonna have more time in August. I wanna I yeah. I wanted to change change the gears here for, you know, the last little segment we do together. You know, one one thing I said in the intro was that you've spoken in 43 states and five countries. And, obviously, number six is coming up in Dubai, which is gonna be amazing, our Dubai Luxury Dental Retreat next month. I can't wait. Just ten ten doctors. There are four of us there, helping them not only make the most of their practice, but to find balance in life and to increase the value of their practice and then plan for an eventual transition. I mean, there's just so much gold there. But, Steve, you like, all this travel you've done around the world teaching and and speaking, what's what's, like, the coolest moment you've had, like, to date?

52:01Like, I'm sure there are a lot of them. It might be hard to narrow it down to one, but what's the coolest experience? Yeah. Coolest one was in Italy. Now I've spoken twice in Italy. And one time I spoke there first of all, at that time, which was a good fifteen, eighteen years ago, Not that this matters, but you asked me and it's just what comes up to my head. Everybody in the audience was dressed like they were going to a high end cocktail party. They all had sport jackets on or suits. Wow. These were high end guys, man. And there was so much attention to detail in preparation of me and made me feel such incredible value. So for example, as soon as I would leave at a break, there would be not one, there'd be two interpreters right next to me.

52:55I don't speak Italian. And it was like, not one. There was two. And then they took me out to dinner every night, and there was interpreters there. And they took me out to dinner with their families. And and Wow. Yeah. It was really you know, I I really it was a really special time for me in the in the world of speaking. But I I do have to tell you that I'm much more excited. I mean, Italy is ridiculously beautiful. Yeah. It is. I'm sure I'll go back. But I am I bought who hasn't thought of going to some of the places you have in your videos? Oh my god. And I do believe I am a guy. Listen. Look at me. I don't even wear a wedding ring. I can't stand jewelry. I can't. But when I go away, I go five star. Yeah. It's the way I am, and I can't wait.

53:51Because I know you have great taste, and I saw what you're looking at. And, you know, you combine that with you know, I I realize what an investment it is to anybody that's gonna make this trip. And I'm sure Elijah, myself, you, and Jeff also understand it. And you're gonna get sick of talking to me. It'll be you that quits on me first. I love it. Well, you know, that's that's what I've always loved about small group education. You know, either as a student or an educator, it's just really nice to have real conversations, you know, and have that sort of unfiltered opportunity to interact, you know, really one on one. Or, you know, in a small group setting when, you know, for four or five hours, you know, we've got an agenda, but it's loose enough to where we're having conversations with people in real time.

54:44You know, it's like, hey. But my situation, what do you do about this? And it's I I just I really love that. And I love that when we're done with our session, the conversations continue. You know? As we're, you know, taking our, you know, Mercedes Sprinter, you know, to the Burj Khalifa, you know, we'll continue talking. We'll talk over dinner. You know? It's just so many opportunities to not only not only learn in the sessions, but to ask all those questions that you wouldn't have been able to ask otherwise, you know, and have ongoing conversations for five days, which, you know, I mean, again, the investment, yeah, I mean, it's significant, but when you think about how much you and I have spent on education of ourselves over the years and the return on investment we got from that, and and we know one conversation, one idea, news one new strategy can be 10 times, a 100 times, you know, whatever that is.

55:36So No. I'm I'm pretty sure that there's gonna be some long term connections and friendships that come out of Dubai that transcend much more than in just five days. Oh, There's no question about it. You know? Somebody that you respect, that's your friend, and you got to know, and you could pick up the phone. And it it it just it's nice. It's a it's a cool thing. It it really is nice. And, you know, to do it, like you said, five star. I mean, this Ritz Carlton Dubai is Forbes five star, and it just got rated number seventeenth best resort in the world. I mean, you know, there are a million of those poles and all that kind of thing. But a friend of mine sent that to me. I'm like, yes. I knew it was good, but to see that in print is really nice.

56:24It looks amazing. It does. So yeah. We'll do some cool VIP excursions activities, and we've got some really good restaurants lined up. I and, you know, I went in April and checked it all out to make sure. Because you don't wanna, like, see something online that looks really good and then you get there and are disappointed. So, you know, in this case, having vetted all of them, I can personally vouch for the the level of quality everywhere we're going. Well, I have trust and confidence in your in your taste. Just like appreciate that. Just like I hope my my pay I just like I know my patients have with me. Trust and confidence. That's where it comes from. I I love that, Steve. And you're such a you're just such a good role model for so many of us.

57:05And and the the things that I really respect most, though, are just your humility and your authenticity. Because there are a lot of people who have accomplished a lot less than you that have egos that are bigger than the room. And, you know, to each his own, but I think your approach is what makes you relatable. It's what gives you credibility. And it's why you've been successful with patients and successful in educating dentists. And here we are like at the end of the podcast almost, and we haven't even talked about your Lionhearted Dentists podcast, which I wanted to get into. I wanted to get into the Rasner Institute and the amazing surgical courses you teach. I wanted to get into a whole bunch of other stuff, But, you know, we'll do this again, you know, for sure because it's always a great conversation.

57:54Yeah. Well, I agree with you. It's been a an honor to be part of this, and I really look forward to meeting some people that are watching right now across the ocean and and plus wherever the buns exactly.

58:08I'm not even sure. Well, you know what? I'm I'm so I'm so excited about every every aspect of this. You know, meeting some new people, you know, building some great relationships, learning from one another, and just enjoying this, you know, really once in a lifetime kind of experience together. You know, like you said, the friendships and relationships that come out of that, I think, will be significant. So I'll I'll say this. Anybody who is interested, wants to learn more about it, they're welcome to text me personally at (219) 241-4698, or they can go to luxurydentalretreats.com/dubai and, you know, read a whole lot more information, submit an application, and then we can have a conversation about it.

58:50But, you know, I hope hope there are at least one two people listening that, you know, are as excited about it as we are and decide to make that take that leap. See you there. Alright, man. Steve, it's great talking with you. It's a pleasure, and look forward to seeing you soon. Alright. Thanks for thanks for your time. Thanks for having me. Bam.