From Survival to Strategy: What the Business Detox Taught Me About Leading Dental Teams

By: Sarah Beth Herman CEO, Dentistry Support® Host, No Silver Spoons™ Founder, The Expansion Mastermind & Dentistry Support Academy®

When I started in the dental field, I was just seventeen years old. I didn’t know then that it would become the foundation of everything I’d build later — five companies, thousands of clients, and teams across the globe.

But here’s the thing that most people don’t know about me:

My first business wasn’t in dentistry. It was a hair salon. And it failed. that failure — as messy and painful as it was — is the reason I am the CEO I am today. It’s the reason I built Dentistry Support®, and the reason I lead with compassion, accountability, and truth.

That story became the heartbeat of Episode 89 of my podcast, No Silver Spoons™, and the start of my new series, Keep Going.

This is the story behind the Business Detox Action Plan, and why I believe every dental professional — whether you’re a dentist, practice manager, or team lead — needs a leadership reset that’s honest, sustainable, and human.

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How My First Business Failure Became My Leadership Education

When I bought my first business, a salon in downtown Denver, I thought I was buying success. I thought owning something — anything — would mean I had made it.

Instead, I walked straight into the hardest, most humbling education of my life.

I didn’t understand contracts. I didn’t know how to read financials. I didn’t even have a lawyer. I was driven by hope, not by systems. Within months, the dream collapsed — and so did my pride.

But here’s what I learned: failure gives you data. If you pay attention to it, it gives you strategy.

That salon taught me how to ask better questions, how to look beneath the surface, and how to keep going when embarrassment and loss could have made me stop.

Those same lessons became the foundation of how I built Dentistry Support® — a company rooted in structure, accountability, and truth-telling.

What This Means for Dentistry

Dentistry is filled with leaders who never planned to be leaders. Most of us started chairside, behind the front desk, or in a treatment room — and one day, we just became “the one in charge.”

But leadership in dentistry isn’t about knowing how to manage people. It’s about understanding how systems, boundaries, and communication create sustainable success.

When I began hiring, training, and leading hundreds of team members, I saw the same pattern repeat across the industry:

• Dental burnout was rising.

• High-performing teams were still emotionally exhausted.

• Leaders were operating in survival mode.

A 2023 study in the British Dental Journal found that over 45% of dental professionals experience high levels of emotional exhaustion and nearly 40% experience depersonalization — two key indicators of burnout (Myers & Myers, 2023).

Another study by the Journal of Dental Education highlighted that lack of leadership training and role clarity were major contributors to stress in dental environments (Rosen et al., 2022).

That’s why I created the Business Detox Action Plan — not as a worksheet, but as a mental reset for dental professionals who need to find their footing again.

What the Business Detox Action Plan Really Does

The Business Detox Action Plan is the companion digital product to Episode 89 of No Silver Spoons™, and it’s simple on purpose. It’s designed for people like you — the ones who don’t have time for a 40-page workbook but still want meaningful change.

It takes 15 minutes and focuses on three categories that impact every dental leader:

Category	What It Means	Example in Dentistry
People	Who is costing you disproportionate energy or trust	That one team member who drains morale or constantly resists direction
Patterns	What habits or workflows keep breaking	Repeated billing errors, unconfirmed appointments, or last-minute scheduling chaos
Processes	What systems still rely on you instead of structure	Manually checking insurance eligibility or verifying AR balances daily

You don’t need more to-do lists — you need clarity. You need a detox from the things that are quietly breaking your energy, your leadership, and your progress.

That’s what this tool does.

It also introduces cognitive and behavioral science concepts — like implementation intentions and cognitive appraisal — to help you lead with your nervous system, not against it.

For example:

• Instead of saying, “I need to do better with collections,” you set an implementation cue — “If it’s Friday at 3PM, then I’ll review unpaid claims.”

• Instead of thinking, “I failed,” you reframe through cognitive appraisal — “That process broke because it wasn’t supported. Now I know what to fix.”

That’s how high-performing leaders operate — with structure, reflection, and self-compassion.

Why Accountability Matters

If there’s one thing I’ve learned after nearly 25 years in this industry, it’s this: Accountability isn’t about control — it’s about clarity.

That’s why I built the Keep Going broadcast channel on Instagram and the GoodPods community.

These spaces are where leadership conversations happen in real time. It’s where I drop early-access links, encouragement, and mini check-ins to remind you that you’re not alone in the process.

When you join, you get:

✅ Early access to weekly digital downloads

✅ Monday reminders when new episodes drop

✅ Real accountability from people walking the same leadership path

✅ Encouragement to build better systems, not bigger burdens

Leadership doesn’t grow in isolation — it grows in community.

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The 12-Week Program: From Chaos to Clarity

The Keep Going series leads directly into my 12-Week Leadership Program for dental professionals and entrepreneurs.

This program was created for leaders who are ready to go deeper — those who want to turn reflection into rhythm and strategy into results.

Over 12 weeks, we focus on:

1. Mindset Recovery: Understanding your triggers, mental load, and self-talk.

2. System Strategy: Building processes that protect your peace and profits.

3. Leadership Communication: Learning how to guide teams clearly and kindly.

4. Sustainable Accountability: Setting up habits that stick without burnout.

By the end of those 12 weeks, your calendar, your boundaries, and your confidence look completely different.

You start to lead like someone who has learned from their story — not hidden from it.

Why I Keep Sharing the Embarrassing Parts

Every time I hit “record” on a new episode, I have that same thought: Do I really want to tell people this?

Because let’s be honest — some of it’s embarrassing. Some of it’s hard. Some of it’s ridiculous.

But here’s what I’ve learned after mentoring hundreds of dental professionals and CEOs: the part of your story you’re most afraid to tell is usually the part someone else most needs to hear.

That’s why I created No Silver Spoons™. Because there isn’t one.

There’s just the story you live, the lessons you apply, and the decision to keep going even when it’s not pretty.

Ready to Detox Your Leadership?

If you’ve been running your practice or team on fumes, this is your sign to pause and reset.

Start with Episode 89 of No Silver Spoons™ — Keep Going: The Business Detox Story That Changed Everything. Then, grab your Business Detox Action Plan here:

👉 https://stan.store/sarahbethherman/p/get-my-business-detox-action-plan-nowUse

code KEEPGOING for your listener discount.

Then join our accountability community:

Instagram Broadcast Channel: @nosilverspoons_podcast

GoodPods Group: “Keep Going” under No Silver Spoons™

It’s free, it’s supportive, and it’s where we learn to lead better — not just harder.

Because leadership doesn’t get easier when you hit a number or hire a team.

It gets easier when you learn to recover, reflect, and rebuild faster.

And that’s what this season, this download, and this movement are all about.

Keep going. 🩶

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References

1. Myers, H.L., & Myers, L.B. (2023). Burnout in dentists: The role of personality, work-related stress and social support. British Dental Journal, 234(3), 135–142.

2. Rosen, D., et al. (2022). Leadership and professional identity formation in dental education. Journal of Dental Education, 86(8), 987–995.

3. Antoniadou, M. (2022). Leadership and Managerial Skills in Dentistry: Challenges and Opportunities. ResearchGate Publications.

4. American Dental Association. (2023). Workforce insights: Mental health and leadership in dental practices. JADA Online.

5. Gonzalez, C. (2021). Transformational Leadership Development Among Dental Teams. Baylor University Institutional Repository.

6. Grant, A., & Parker, S. (2022). Reframing work design theory: The cognitive mechanisms of reflection and resilience. Academy of Management Review.

7. Kaur, R., et al. (2023). Cognitive Overload and Emotional Fatigue in Healthcare Leadership. Healthcare Management Review.

8. American Psychological Association. (2022). Cognitive appraisal and leadership resilience: Strategies for adaptive recovery.

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Disclaimer:

To learn more about Sarah Beth Herman, the author of all free training content you can read her bio here. These materials are intended to provide helpful information to dentists and dental team members. They are in no way a substitute for actual professional advice based on your unique facts and circumstances. This content is not intended or offered, nor should it be taken, as legal or other professional advice. You should always consult with your own professional advisors (e.g. attorney, accountant, or insurance carrier). To the extent, Dentistry Support ®has included links to any third-party website (s), Dentistry Support ® intends no endorsement of their content and implies no affiliation with the organizations that provide their content. Further, Dentistry Support ® makes no representations or warranties about the information provided on those sites. You can view our privacy policy and terms and conditions by clicking those pages in the footer of our website.