Let’s get real for a minute. Do you ever look at your production numbers and feel a nagging sense of frustration, knowing you’re capable of more? Do you find yourself blaming external factors—the economy, insurance, your team, or a lack of new patients?
Those things matter, but I want to challenge that perspective. After years of practicing and mentoring, I’m convinced that for most dentists, the biggest limiting factor isn’t external. It’s internal. It’s your mindset.
Understanding and cultivating what I call the “Production Mindset” is the single most powerful lever you can pull to dramatically increase your production, your income, and, counterintuitively, your professional fulfillment. Shifting this one thing can change the entire trajectory of your practice and your life.
What is the “Production Mindset”?
Consistently high-producing dentists—the ones who are not just chasing dollars but are deeply engaged and fulfilled—share a common approach. They don’t view the workday as something to simply get through. They aren’t seeking comfort or hiding in their office between patients.
They see the day as an opportunity.
If they have $4,000 scheduled, they don’t just settle for that. They are actively and ethically looking for ways to add necessary treatment today. When an opportunity arises—a patient in hygiene mentions sensitivity, or you spot unscheduled treatment during an exam—they seize it.
They don’t automatically think, “Let’s just schedule that for another day.” They demonstrate mental flexibility and ask, “How can we make this work now?” They understand that treatment completed today is far more certain than hoping a patient returns weeks later.
Think about it: we’ve all seen a doctor who, when a colleague is out sick, manages to absorb the vast majority of two schedules. They operate at a higher capacity because the situation demands it. What does that say about our typical daily capacity? We all have another gear we haven’t fully engaged.
The Financial Power of “One More Procedure”
Here’s an incredibly powerful reason to push past your comfort zone, especially later in the day.
The production you generate in the morning primarily covers your fixed costs: rent, utilities, staff salaries, supplies. You’re essentially working just to get back to zero.
However, every dollar of production you generate after you’ve covered those fixed costs carries a significantly higher profit margin. That extra crown prep you work in at 4:00 PM when you’re feeling tired isn’t carrying the same overhead burden as the first one you did at 9:00 AM.
The last production of your day is almost always the most profitable. Understanding this leverage—that the effort at the end of the day pays exponentially more—is a powerful motivator to stay engaged.
How to Cultivate the Production Mindset
This mindset can be learned. It’s a muscle you can build through intentional practice.
1. Set a Daily Intention
Before the day begins, take two minutes. Don’t just review the schedule; set an intention for your mindset. “Today, I will be fully present. I will actively look for opportunities. I will embrace challenges.”
2. Become an “Opportunity Tracker”
Keep a simple notepad. Throughout the day, jot down instances where same-day treatment opportunities arose. Did you seize them or defer them? This isn’t for judgment; it’s for awareness. Awareness precedes change.
3. Challenge Your Comfort Zones
Identify one habit that represents comfort or disengagement (e.g., checking non-essential emails between patients). This week, consciously replace it with a production-focused activity, like reviewing the next patient’s chart in detail or making a quick call to a patient with unscheduled treatment.
4. Aim to “Impress Yourself”
At the end of each day, ask yourself honestly: Did I give my best effort today? Did I do anything that, looking back, genuinely impresses me? This isn’t about comparing yourself to others; it’s about competing against your own perceived limitations.
But What if I Don’t WANT to Work Harder?
This is a fair point. But “working harder” in this context isn’t about burnout. It’s about increasing your focus and effectiveness during the hours you are already at the office, away from your family.
Choosing comfort over focused effort has a real cost:
- Lost Financial Growth: Are you okay leaving hundreds of thousands of dollars unrealized over a year?
- Delayed Life Goals: Every bit of focused efficiency brings your dreams of financial freedom or more time off closer, faster.
- Stagnation and Vulnerability: In a competitive market, practices that operate below their potential are more vulnerable.
You dedicate a huge chunk of your life to this profession. Doesn’t it make sense to make that time as impactful and rewarding as possible? The Production Mindset is the engine that drives you toward your bigger goals.
