Lynn D Carlisle, DDS

Dentists can no longer get by with just hanging out their "Shingle" and being good technical dentists. Bob Barkley, DDS often referred to the importance of being a decathlon dentist and in having excellent dentist-patient relationships. He said the best dentists were good (not great) at many aspects of practicing dentistry.

This article includes a movie review, a review of "Hey dad? You wanna have a catch?" and a link to Kirk Behrendt's article on the 10 common characteristics of the top dentists he has worked with.

One of my favorite movies is Field of Dreams. Do you remember the line from this 1989 movie starring Kevin Costner; "If you build it, they will come"?

The dental equivalent is "If I put my name in the phone book, do some advertising, post a website and if I'm good enough technically, they will come".

This thinking might be good in movies, but it fails miserably in the current dental market. Bob Barkley often referred to the importance of being a decathlon dentist. Barkely said, the best dentists are like decathletes, they are not world class at all 10 aspects of practicing dentistry, but they are very good.

Kirk Behrendt wrote about the 10 characteristics of top dentists in his article. The 10 characteristics of top dentists who thrive in practicing fee-for-service dentistry.

Work on building your dental decathlon events and dentist-patient relationships. If you become adept at being a decathlon dentist with excellent dentist-patient relationships, then "If you build it, they will come".

***If you haven't seen "Field of Dreams" rent it. If you have, re-rent it. Netflix: Field of Dreams . It was notable for bringing tears to strong men's eyes as they remembered when they were young "Having a catch" with their dad. Click on Hey, Dad? You Wanna Have a Catch? to read a great article on "Having a catch".

A brief synopsis of the movie: "A struggling Iowa farmer (Costner) obeys a mysterious voice in his cornfield that tells him to replace part of his crop with a baseball diamond resulting in the magical meeting of baseball heroes from the past. Mystical forces are at play here as ghosts of other sorts are confronted."

Oh, one more thing, remember to play catch with your sons and/or daughters. I just did this with my three grandchildren - it is timeless.

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