473: The Money Tool Roadmap - Dr. Barrett Straub - a podcast by ACT Dental

The Money Tool Roadmap

Episode #473 with Dr. Barrett Straub

Do you ever wonder where your money is going? Do you want a better grasp on your financial health? If you do, you need ACT’s newest resource, the Money Tool Roadmap! And today, Kirk Behrendt brings back Dr. Barrett Straub, ACT’s CEO, to talk about how this tool will help you understand profitability, manage your cash flow, and create more true profit. To learn more about the Money Tool Roadmap and how to get it, listen to Episode 473 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Understand the sweet spot of profitability.

Habits are more powerful than willpower.

Learn to save early — and save a lot.

Don't make decisions based on fear.

Know the meaning of true profit.

Quotes:

“It’s a very stressful day when you don't have financial margin, you don't have extra money in the bank, you don't have a rainy-day fund. When you're in those positions and collections dip, that gets really stressful.” (3:57—4:10)

“There's not a clear line between these four, but there are roughly four financial life phases. The first is, you're out of school. We call it high uncertainty and high debt. Most dentists graduate with a lot of debt. They're going into practice, they're going to buy a house, they have a new family, they're buying cars. They're starting to enter real life. So, high debt. Then, they have uncertainty, ‘Where will I practice? What's my earning potential? Will I be fast enough, clinically? Will I be able to sell dentistry?’ We think we’ll be good dentists, but there's still high uncertainty. Both, that high debt and that high uncertainty, cloud our decision-making.” (8:36—9:18)

“I, in that [high debt, high uncertainty] phase, said to myself a couple times, ‘I'm going to see if there's any money left over at the end of the year. And if there's any extra, I'll invest it.’ And guess what? There wasn't any money left. And then, I did it for another year. And then, finally, I learned an important lesson.” (9:19—9:36)

“The next phase is phase two. High debt, still, but a little bit lower uncertainty. So, maybe you've been out of practice a few years. Maybe you're a brand-new practice owner. You're starting to figure it out a little bit. But you’ve still got, especially if you just bought a practice, your debt even increased because you've got a practice loan. Maybe bought some equipment to upgrade the office. So, now, you’ve found your speed. You're getting a little more confident, dental wise. Your debt load just went up, so you still have that stress. Again, that's a very easy phase to say, ‘I've got too much debt. I'm going to wait a few more years. In a couple years, I'll have enough money to start really investing.’” (9:36—10:22)

“Phase three is moderate debt. So, now, we’re paying off some of the debt. Maybe you've been a practice owner for a handful of years. The dentistry is getting easier. The uncertainty is getting low now, but you still have moderate debt. Now is where, often, dentists take the next step in practice upgrades. Maybe you buy a CEREC. Maybe you buy a CBCT. You still don't know where your money is. You still say, ‘Boy, I'm paying a lot of tax. I don't see this money.’” (10:24—10:53)

“Phase three is where you're like, ‘Shoot. I'm 38 years old. I thought I'd have a lot more money saved away. I thought I'd be doing pretty good. I have some, but I need more.’ Then, you say, ‘But in a couple more years, I'll really be able to sock it away.’” (11:14—11:36)

“Then, you get to that last phase, your late 40s, maybe early 50s. You really got low debt, really low uncertainty. You've got dentistry figured out. You're rolling. And then, you go to your financial advisor. It’s like, ‘Okay, let's start nailing this down, when I can retire, and all that,’ and your advisor says, ‘You can't retire for a

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