Jim Reisman, D.D.S., my husband and guest blogger, wrote this blueprint for AADPA – American Academy of Dental Practice Administration. Enjoy his succinct list for business and personal success.

Success comes in many different forms. Personal and Professional. What will be our legacy when we retire or die? What story will be written about the road we traveled?

Jim Reisman, D.D.S.

What have I learned from 37 years in dental practice, 36 years as a spouse, 30 years as a parent, and 63 years a person?

1.  Never let money be the force that guides your decisions with family and patients. Your patients’ needs and your ability to provide their needed service are what’s important. We need to make good business decisions to be profitable, but as my dad always told me, “take care of people and they will take care of you.” If our patients think we are selling them something, then we will lose their trust.
2. Finding balance in life [like the Pankey cross] is critical to emotional health and success. Seek out your passions, whether it is running, fishing, hunting, travel, or CE. But make time for family! Time for the spouse, kids, parents, and whomever is part of your life.
3. Find time for fueling your soul. Find a spiritual source, whether it is organized religion or communing with nature. Time to pray, reflect, or enjoy the moment is important for the soul.
4. Surround yourself with a team of people who together are greater the than sum of the parts. They are the caregivers to our patients with their smiles and strengths.
5. Your reputation is one of the most precious things you own. Guard it with integrity and honesty. Keep it safe. Make decisions that safeguard it. What can take a lifetime to build can be destroyed in a moment.

My final thoughts.

How will your headstone read? What will be said at your funeral? It can never be about the number of toys in your toy box, cars in the garage, or money in the bank. Success is written by the lives we touch and the memories we create.

Robert Louis Stevenson said it best.  “The man is a success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much; who has garnered the respect of intelligent men and the love of children; who has filled his niche and accomplished his tasks; who leaves the world better than he found it, whether by an improved poppy, a perfect poem, or a rescued soul; who never lacked appreciation of earth’s beauty or failed to express it; who looked for the best in others and gave the best he had.”