It’s been interesting to watch vendors become more aggressive during these challenging economic circumstances.  There are so many messages telling our practices to “buy” something or “buy into” someone’s philosophy.  These powerful messages are designed to influence us to make very short-term, emotional decisions—one’s that are not usually in our best interest.

One of my favorite new gadgets is the Apple I-phone.   Apple has done a phenomenal job marketing their product—most people are immediately attracted to the massive touch screen, instant email, web surfing, music, and sleek design.  It’s definitely one of the coolest gadgets in decades. While we like the idea of what this “tool” can do, we don’t deliberately consider if it fills our particular needs. In fact, several people I know have swapped their I-phones for a “simpler” device after using the I-phone for over a year. Most people don’t use all the additional features enough to justify its cost. The lesson is fairly simple—dentists need to be deliberate—not only as they buy products, but as they determine prudent courses of action in life.

In financial services, we see much of the same. There are many products and multiple financial services that dentists do NOT need.  Most dentists own several financial products and utilize multiple financial services, yet they haven’t considered whether those services actually fill their particular needs.

Before we “buy” or invest our money in anything, we need to have a good plan.  We’ve all heard that when you go to the grocery store, it’s important to go with a list—this way you don’t end up walking out of the store with things you don’t need.  When constructing your financial plan it’s important to make conscious choices about personal finance and not let someone else make those choices for you.  Plan first—then implement.  As dentists make more deliberate financial choices, they will achieve meaningful results and stand out among their peers.