SHORT TERM GOALS FOR LONG TERM RESULTS: A simplistic approach towards career growth as a budding dentist.

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Perhaps the boon and the curse of being a budding dentist today is that even though you are exposed to a lot of new and emerging trends, techniques, technologies and treatments every single day, you are also getting caught up in the problem of plenty that these things lead to. To simplify, even though it is “awesome” to learn about new advances in the field of dentistry and their potential applications in clinical practice, it is at the same time equally confusing to know where to start as a budding dentist. The end result is, the budding dentist instead of gaining clarity towards the end of graduation becomes all the more confused when it comes to the seemingly tough to answer question, What next?!

What next? should I pursue post graduation? Register for courses? Learn about implants? Put up a clinic? Start a locum? That TMJ disorder course looks nice and so on. Sometimes you end up missing the good old days when dentistry was just as simplified as silver fillings, extractions, dentures and crowns! Well, the truth is, dentistry is as simple as before, it is the thinking process that has become complicated. For some reason, the bare bones dental practice is not seen as a profitable set up anymore. The focus of the budding dentist today has shifted to beating the competition, gaining a name for oneself and let’s be honest...earning profits! Nothing wrong with it I say, everyone has the right to choose their own goals and outcomes.

The problem arises when it comes to implementing so many things on such a massive scale. When the goal is huge, the demand for the input is huge and short term returns are negligible. So every other budding dentist today has a massive end result or goal in mind that is surprisingly long term in reality. The problem with long terms goals however is the waiting period to achieve the end result. So unless you are intensely motivated every single day of your life and are on permanent optimism mode, there are very little chances that you won’t end up in the deep downward spiral of self-doubt, question your decision making ability and be unhappy in general during the course of your pursuit of the long term goal which kind of defeats the purpose of having that long term goal that was supposed to bring you happiness, content and satisfaction.

So as a budding dentist, I do understand that stepping out into the “real“ world and exploring all these options and arriving at a decision and developing a strategy can seem overwhelming to most. The point of this blog is to tell you that no matter what your long-term goal is, there is a way to reap the benefits of the long term results and at the same time be happy, content, satisfied and above all POSITIVE about your progress in the present as well. How? By being short sighted, setting short term goals that lead you to your long-term quest!

So how do you do that? How do I plan?

It is quite simple. Start from the top down! Start with the end result in mind. Note down the long term goal you have in mind and then break down that long term goal into several short term goals or milestones. For example, if your long term goal is to be known for your ability to deliver life-like restorations to your patients say 10 years from now, instead of focussing on what you will be known for in 10 years time, start focussing on what targets you can set for yourself to achieve as a means to reach that 10 year goal in the next 1 month, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 5 years so on.

The 1 month target (Short term) for your 10 year (Long term) goal could be to attend a lecture and workshop on cosmetic dentistry or composites. The 6 month target (Short term) for your 10 year (Long term) goal could be enrolling for a course in some university or buying the necessary armamentarium etc. The 2 year target (Short term) for your 10 year (Long term) goal could be to have at least 25 documented cases of good restorative work in your portfolio and so on and so forth, all while you carry on with your general dental practice on the side as well. The biggest benefit of this simplified approach to break down a long term target into several achievable short term goals is that it keeps you on track and above all POSITIVE while you are still on the journey towards whatever it is that you want to achieve. Every short term milestone achieved is only a means to further your confidence and belief that you are on track as far as your long term dream is concerned.

Do you want to know the beauty of this approach? Well, it is applicable to every aspect of life and not just your career! Having long term goals is not a bad idea. Everyone should have an ultimate end point in mind, your pole star! The problem is, with so many distractions and expectations today, it is becoming increasingly easy to lose track of your aim and slip into negativity just because something in the present isn’t going your way. The answer to that is being short sighted when approaching the marathon. Set small milestones on the way to your big dream and work on one milestone at a time!

Dentistry and Dental practice haven’t lost their simplicity; it is the thinking of the budding Dentist that has become complicated.

As the famous British master Chef Mr. Marco Pierre White says,

“Perfection is a lot of little things, done right”.

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