You and I are motivated by desires. Perhaps a desire to be rich and attractive. Or a desire to eat a sandwich or have a shower. A desire to own a flashy car or, more likely, to get the feelings that come from showing others that you own a flashy car. Whether big or small, trivial or essential, desires are the…
This month we focus on posterior composites. Now we like to have fun as we teach at Aspire. That means a positive environment along with trust between us all and and also some room for open, non-judgmental talking. We like to call out the elephant in the room. This particular multicoloured elephant, in a posterior composite, is the value in carving…
‘No plan survives first contact with the enemy’ ? Helmuth von Moltke This quote may have lost a little in translation and has been adapted many times since, perhaps most eloquently by ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson; ‘Everyone has plans right up until they get hit for the first time’. I am not making the case that we consider patients either enemies nor…
We are in the month of love and romance valentines and …learning how to walk the thin line for ethical provision of the ultimate level of dental beauty. On day 5 we teach delegates how to provide patients with ceramic veneers. The day starts with a discussion on the ethics of this type of treatment. We tackle that first as it’s…
I’m going to try to be consistent and write each of these monthly blogs between groups 3 and 4 attending for each day. That way we have a feel for how each session has gone but are mentally focussed on the subject as there is still one group to go. I hope we can keep that consistency throughout 2022 and in…
I always wished the academic year started in January. Month 1, January, through to month 12, December makes clean, orderly sense to me. Usually traits of high orderliness and OCD are something I see in others as I sit at my chaotic desk eating food with my fingers looking at a screen with 200 tabs and 45 windows open. To right…
I’m going to lean on some of my peers for this one, I’m going to stand on their shoulders and try to get this increasingly grubby subject clean. Cleaner, at least. My two heroes for this are firstly Henry Marsh, the world-renowned neurosurgeon, and Martin Luther King Jr. for the other. Ok, I only ever worked with one of them, but…
This is not a manual on how to do dentistry well. It is more of a philosophical piece on the specific role we all have as a clinician and what it takes to be that person. Dentistry for most of us is a business. On one hand we have the need to advertise, promote and sell. On the other, we have…
This is a follow-up blog about learning. Following on from our last post, like a superset in the gym! One of the compelling, enchanting and awe-inspiring aspects of human behaviour is the concept of total mastery. Total mastery is achieved when a person has enthusiastically pursued something they are outstandingly good at with clear goals, industriousness and a sure direction for…
This blog is about learning. Much learning comes from books. There are so many great books to read and so many interesting topics to discover, that there simply isn’t enough time to absorb it all. As such, when someone is voracious for knowledge, they must make choices in what they learn, and then strive to absorb that learning as quickly as…
What is pre-suasion? Pre-suasion is a term coined by the author Robert Cialdini and refers to the process of making a recipient more receptive to your message before you actually deliver that message. How can this relate to dentistry? In dentistry we can leverage the patient’s predisposal to think of themselves as a diligent person, who sees themselves as proactive, preferring…
Imagine that tomorrow there is a global referendum and you are the subject. Tomorrow morning everyone in the world will cast a vote on whether you are a ‘reliable person’ or an ‘unreliable person’. Which result would you prefer? ‘Reliable’, obviously. You want everyone you interact with – your family, your patients, your bank, your regulators – to consider you reliable….
Do you want more people to like you…or would you prefer to be less liked? Are you someone who finds it easy to make other people like you? Are you actually even remotely likeable? I mean really likeable, not just liked by your mum and three ‘fwends’ you chat with on Facebook. Likeability is a little bit more abstract than the…
When we meet another human being, we make judgements about them. We may not want to, but we do. Your conscious brain works slowly, thinking methodically, and we may foolishly think our conscious brain is the boss. Not so! Your subconscious works a billion times faster, and we make all sorts of instant decisions, inferences and judgements on every situation we…
As we move on through this blog series on persuasion psychology it will become increasingly important to reiterate a few fundamentals. Always act in the patient’s best interests. Be honest with them and do not try to coerce or manipulate them. We can use persuasive psychology to help make and keep them happy and healthy. Nothing else. I have to make…
In rule 1 (‘social proof`) we established that the eons of struggling to survive against predation, starvation and extinction meant that natural selection was a harsh and tight filter. The genes that made it through included methods for humans to instinctively work together, influence each other, behave with solidarity to one another and gave a psychosocial framework, previously unknown to us,…
What makes someone think that the pinnacle of contribution they can make to the world, at any particular moment, is to offer up a picture of their face? I’m not trying to be mean; this is meant as a parody introduction – and I have to write this so the following hurty words don’t earn me the label ‘bad man’. With…
As the year starts, look in the mirror and ask yourself this question: “If this year was the last year of my life, would I be doing what I am about to do?” The question is a reminder of the value of your time, the value of your attention, the value of your presence. It’s a question to help you realise…
“Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.” Brené Brown This is not a ‘humble-brag’, although no matter what I do it still reads a bit like one: When you give a lecture and people send you personal messages of thanks…well, it really means a lot. It feels…
“The common denominator of success — the secret of success of every man who has ever been successful — lies in the fact that he formed the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do.” The Common Denominator of Success is as timely and inspirational as it was when it was first delivered in 1940. Though it was written…
An ambitious dentist may feel like they never have quite enough time, for their vision is vast and time is brief. It’s week 8 of the Covid-19 lockdown and if you’re anything like me you will probably have found yourself, at times, with more time on your hands. I gave a webinar last week on ‘happiness’. One of the pernicious ingredients…
I had a conversation last week with a young gentleman. He is working in a mostly private practice and I vaguely know his principal from previous educational events. He wanted to talk about his state of mind as he is – without any warning, and for apparently no reason he could think of – becoming anxious. Worryingly and increasingly so. Perhaps,…
It has been written before, but the problems you are facing are the same as those faced by every other dentist. You worked hard to get where you are, you passed the exams and you got through the interview. So why, for some, does this feel hard? Why does it feel like the plan hasn’t come together? Why do you feel…
The Power of Stories You may or may not have seen the latest Star Wars movie. Raheel hasn’t seen the first or any of the others. So, excluding him, this was for many the ninth instalment in a saga. Started in 1977 and ending in 2019 – some 42 years later. A saga close to many viewers’ hearts. Now opinion about…
Our work isn’t always easy. Sometimes it’s downright hard. But mostly, with experience and skill development and communicative puissance, it can be a wonderful career; and nearly every dentist I know is someone kindhearted, good and diligent. They are honest, clever and trying to make their way in the world like everyone else. Nevertheless, a collective reality check – a parody…
Before working with Raheel, I spent most of my professional career in the company of scared, insecure, aggressive, opinionated men who felt threatened by the challenge of others’ intellectual prowess. They would happily belittle, ignore or even fight back against people who questioned their opinion. I am sure some of you came across tutors like this during your undergraduate career. A…
The alarm clock wakes you up. Its insistence is almost violent. It’s certainly not welcome or nice. Your first thought, your first moment of recognition of your re-emergence into this world from a still incomplete sleep cycle, is a deep internal “Oh no”. You reluctantly remember this noise is a command…and you are compelled to obey. The command is not something…
It has been an incredibly interesting Christmas break for me this year. I managed to have two whole weeks off and spent virtually every moment of it with my family, which, frankly, was wonderful. Aside from that, I have never, NEVER, had so many contacts from dentists offering positive feedback on their professional and personal development, reporting where their career…
Think about feelings. Watch others and process their feelings. Begin to be able to feel their feelings Emotional intelligence begins with what is called self and social awareness, the ability to recognise emotions (and their impact) in both yourself and others. This has to start with self-awareness. Are you aware that you point your finger at people when you talk…
Many of our delegates want to talk about money. They, like you and me, often want more. In fact, on reflection, I have never heard of a dentist complaining because they earn too much. I’m sure I never will. They start one of our diploma courses and, midway through, things are looking brighter. Their schedules go up. Their principals are more…
