Orthotown June 2023 - 35

BY DR. CHRISTOS PAPADOPOULOS
" W
ell, team, it looks like the fi rst day of
PapadopSmiles Orthodontics will
have to be tomorrow, unfortunately,
and not today, " I said one cold January
morning last year. Th at day was supposed to
be our fi rst day in my newly built clinic.
Our startup team was excited to meet each
other. I was ready to lead. We had been counting
down the days until we could open our doors in
my hometown of Saint John, New Brunswick.
However, even though my startup is in Canada,
an offi ce temperature of 45 degrees was still too
cold for us to be working! Th e heat in my newly
built practice wouldn't turn on, so my team
members went back home and I stayed at the
clinic, waiting for the contractor.
I had received some great advice from mentors
and colleagues about the ups and downs of practice
ownership, but I certainly didn't anticipate
encountering this issue on our fi rst day. Fastforward
a year later and I'm happy to say I can
look back on that day and laugh ... but you can
imagine the disappointment I felt at the time.
Becoming an orthodontist and opening a
practice in my hometown had been a dream of
mine ever since I received orthodontic treatment
as a teenager. After fi ve years of associating at an
orthodontic service organization, where I gained
tremendous experience both clinically and from
a practice management perspective, I fi nally
made the move to turn that dream into reality.
Shortly before I made this decision, I was advised
by one of my friends and mentors, who said,
" You will never feel truly ready, and if you wait
until you feel 100% ready, you will never do it. "
I am grateful for that advice and a subsequent
nudge that helped me make the decision to go
forward. I started my practice in 2022.
My goal for this article is to provide insight,
encouragement and advice to those considering
a scratch practice, although the information can
easily be applied to existing practices too.
Although I'm still learning, 18 or so months into
my startup journey, I can share many pearls with
my colleagues both north and south of the Canadian
border-the least of which is to ensure the
heat is working the night before your opening day.
Be prepared to adjust your sails
Failing to plan is planning to fail. I've carried
that piece of advice with me since high school,
and it certainly applies to starting a practice
from scratch. Although it's important to make
a detailed and methodical plan when opening a
new practice, it is of paramount importance that
you remain fl exible along the way.
You need to be ready to correct the course of
your ship at a moment's notice. Th e changing
winds and challenges of entrepreneurship can
be suddenly strong or persistently subtle, but you
need to be ready for them and adjust your sails
accordingly.
For example, I had interviewed candidates in
the summer of 2021 to begin work later that fall,
but because of construction delays, we could not
open our doors until January 2022. Th is changed
the timing of my hires, my marketing strategy
and purchasing offi ce equipment, among many
other things. Adaptability is your greatest ability,
especially in a startup.
Make a list and check it twice ...
and then check it again
Th e diff erence between something good and
something great is attention to detail. Paying
attention to the little things will produce the big
JUNE 2023 | 35 | ORTHOTOWN.COM
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Orthotown June 2023

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