I am a huge fan of my next guest. CJ is a former Nurse turned Audiologist turned Ear Wax Remover. As an Audiologist, CJ found herself lonely on the job, frustrated, and miserable with all the driving she had to do. She felt her clients didn’t see the value in what she had to offer, nor did they appreciate her. When she realized her normally happy-go-lucky side was missing, she knew she had to change. That’s right. CJ removes ear wax for a living, and she loves it! CJ created her own career change– twice! Although she is not a...
Welcome my next guest, Kristen. Kristen practiced dentistry for seven years before she took some time off to raise a family. After 12 years out of the field, she found herself at a crossroads when she suddenly needed a steady income. So she got back in the game! Although she had kept an active dental license over those years and even pursued her Fellowship in the Academy of General Dentistry, she became well aware of how much dentistry had changed in those past 12 years. That didn’t stop her though. She eased her way back in and discovered that dentistry...
This week we have a super-duper HUGE change coming to Lolabees… I have recorded my first podcast! You may be wondering why podcasts now? Well, I figure since I am interviewing guests, why not hear directly from them! On your commute, your next workout, or while you’re cooking yourself dinner you can tune in and get to know someone new. I’m excited to welcome my first podcast guest, Applonia, aka Apple! Apple is a business student from Toronto, Canada. She completed her first year in dental school in the US before she decided to take a leap and change course....
Who is ready to meet the next Lolabees guest? Today I present my first interview with a very inspiring person from the dental community. He has a great story to share and some very valuable insights that I know will help you. In fact, he has so much great information to share that I have divided it into 3 parts. The first describes his story and background, the second shares his challenges and triumphs, and the third offers a few tips and a few fun facts about him. Meet David. David was born in the North East of England near...
Welcome to the new Lolabees! In 2011 when I started this blog, it was simply a distraction, a way to open up my world. I was stuck in my career, without any idea how on earth I was going to change anything. I knew I needed to stop practicing dentistry, and for many reasons I was too afraid to take action. This blog was merely a step, an attempt to do something different and to bring more creativity into my life. There were no expectations or pressure. I just needed something new to shift my stagnant energy, and that’s exactly...
Tell me there has been a time in your life when you desperately wanted change, but doing it wasn’t so easy. It actually happens to me quite often. As much as I love change, sometimes it’s hard for me to get it going. I was recently reminded of my habit to resist change, as my gym membership ran out this week. It’s not just any gym membership. I’ve been going to this gym for 16 years, and it’s time. I’ve wanted to make this change for months, actually years, but it wasn’t until recently that I became committed to taking...
Life loves to test us with different challenges, doesn’t it? It happens every day. Sometimes we roll with it and don’t even notice, and other times it really throws us for a loop. Recently I got caught up in one of life’s little tests. A few weeks ago, I was at a stop sign turning left. The driver behind me felt entitled to ram past me because he was turning right. There was not room, so he deliberately sideswiped the right rear of my car. Then, as he passed, he had the audacity to give me the stink-eye, as if...
I recently had very similar discussions with a current client and a prospective client. They both know they need to change something in their careers. One has a strong sense of what she’d like to do next, and the other just knows she doesn’t want to continue in her field anymore. What they share in common is a desire to change from within, as opposed to looking externally for the magic pill that will make all their challenges go away. They recognize that this is the key to making lasting and positive change. One expressed that she knew she could...
In my last post, a Lolabees Friend shared a wonderfully thoughtful comment that got me thinking about a lot of things. One thing in particular stood out. At the close, he said: All I can say at this moment — 4 weeks after taking a break from dentistry — is that just now I am beginning to feel like I can take a breath and relax. Really live. Pursue some interests I truly have a passion for. And for the first time in a long time, say “I really don’t care.” His experience is not surprising at all. What strikes...
There’s an interesting cultural phenomenon that happens in dentistry, and I wonder if it happens in other fields. There is an unspoken rule that we all have to love our jobs and have to constantly show the rest of the world how happy and successful we are. It’s a lot of pressure, especially when some of it feels like a lie. Many dentists spend their whole lives hiding the real struggles we experience. Sure, we can bitch and make jokes with our colleagues about some of our annoying challenges, but we can’t be real about just how much we may...
