Getting Unstuck from Dentistry Pt. 2
III. Sharing is Caring
Ironically, one of the best pieces of advice I received came from our annual American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry conference keynote. The speaker, Ben Nemtin (author of “What Do You Want To Do Before You Die?” and star of the MTV show “The Buried Life”), spoke about bucket lists and the power of sharing with others. If you’re looking to be inspired, I highly recommend listening to his talk here.
One of the most powerful things I did, indeed, was to share with others. I reached out to friends, family, and colleagues to talk about my struggles and listen to theirs. By doing so, I was able to gain valuable perspective on my situation.
I secretly hoped to receive some tough love and a ‘reality check’ to help me snap out of it. But annoyingly enough, the more I shared and spoke about my concerns, the more empathetic nods and encouragement I received. Thanks, jerks.
IV. Getting Unstuck
At this point, I had two options: 1) Continue to prioritize convenience and comfort by diving deeper into dentistry or 2) Take action and get unstuck, even if it was going to be massively uncomfortable and inconvenient. Spoiler Alert: I chose the latter.
I knew I wanted to transition into tech, but I wasn’t sure what specific role or industry I wanted to pursue. I’m embarrassed to admit that I first became acquainted with Product Management through an Instagram ad for a product course offered by Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. Although I didn’t end up taking the course, it sparked my interest and led me down a rabbit hole.
V. Product Management
Over the next few weeks, I set up 2–3 calls a week to learn more about the world of product management. I was particularly interested in connecting with healthcare providers who had transitioned into PM roles or non-clinical roles. Through this process, I met many interesting people doing many interesting things. Some highlights include:
- A pediatrician turned PM working in health-tech
- An oncologist implementing AI in cancer diagnosis
- A dentist turned magazine editor turned Chief Dental Officer
- A physical therapist turned Certified Scrum Master
- Product people starting podcasts
- Product people writing newsletters
- Product people exploring and discovering Web 3.0
- Product people turned developers and developers turned product people.
I discovered a world of opportunities available outside of clinical dentistry and I was hooked.
As I would soon find out, however, breaking into product management was not going to be easy, especially without relevant prior experience. Nevertheless, I now had a clear direction and was excited to explore the possibilities.
Next up, Part 3!
