Use Lifebook to Design Your Ideal Life as a Dentist

How has 2023 already come to a close?! I can’t believe how fast this year zipped by! It truly has been amazing to see how much fun and progress my family, practice, and I can cram into twelve months. If you’re like me, you’ve been thinking about a new vision for the new year that’s just around the corner. As usual, I’m turning to my favorite visioning tool: Lifebook. I don’t know where I’d be without mine, and I want to take this blog post to look back at my 2023 slam dunks, my 2024 plans, and how I use Lifebook to design my ideal life.

2023 Retrospective

I want to take some time to honor some of my favorite moments of 2023 before I look to the future and the role of Lifebook in designing my ideal life.

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My biggest success of 2023 was to be the covergirl of my favorite dental magazine, Dentistry Today. I never imagined I’d have the honor of appearing on the cover of such a renowned magazine in the world of dentistry. It was a big deal, y’all. I loved that I had a chance to talk about something so near and dear to my heart in my article: how the primary technology we need to upgrade is our belief in the healing power of endodontics!

This was very much a team effort with some incredible women who supported me every step of the way. I’m so grateful to them for seeing, honoring, and reflecting me back to the world.

This summer, I returned to Mindvalley, which has been a huge part of my personal, professional, and spiritual growth. And not just for me, but for my whole family! It has been part of my vision board for YEARS that I get up on stage and speak at Mindvalley… and this year, it HAPPENED!

This was hugely validating for me and my message about saving teeth, but it was also incredibly fun to watch what my kids took away from the experience. They got to see how nervous I was that morning, how I worked through it, and how I stepped out onto the stage with confidence. It was amazing to be able to show them that it’s safe to show up and take the spotlight. They’re capable of accomplishing their wildest dreams (even if those dreams are a little scary).

I’m also excited to have kicked off my Heal Your Practice mentorship program this year. I started with a small group of mentees, and it has been so. freaking. beautiful to work with these women. It’s been absolutely staggering to see the changes they’re making to increase their practice’s production, confidence, time freedom, and ability to feel fulfilled by their work.

I plan to open up access to the program to more dentists and endodontists in 2024, so if you want more information, join the waitlist here.

What’s Your New Vision for a New Year?

You might be thinking, “Sonia… a vision? Seriously? I can barely keep my head above water, much less think about my five-year goals.”

If that’s you, you need a vision more than anyone, my friend!

It is so easy for us to get lost in the hustle and bustle of the day-to-day. There are patients to see, teams to train, professional development to absorb… oh yeah, and real life to live! You have kids, a partner, hobbies, and a social life.

It’s. A. Lot.

I personally found that, within the whirlwind of being a dentist, it’s so easy to lose sight of what I actually want out of my life.

I was in burnout central before I knew things had to change. And I hope you’re able to get more intentional about your life before things get to that point.

Things took a turn for the better and became more intentional when my husband and I decided to attend an in-person retreat at Jon and Missy Butcher’s house. They’re the creators of Lifebook, a visioning tool for all aspects of your life: Health and fitness, intellectual life, emotional life, character, spiritual life, love and relationship, parenting, social life, financial life, career, quality of life, and life vision.

While we were there at the Butchers’ house, we took several days to complete our Lifebooks for the first time. And I’ll be honest with you: Using Lifebook to design my ideal life was a game-changer. For the first time in years, I had a clear, powerful vision of what I wanted. This vision gave me the space to increase my production while reducing my practice days to once a week. 

From there, my life took off in ways I couldn’t have imagined. I launched my award-winning E-School curriculum, gave a TEDx talk, started a non-profit, spent quality time with my family, took care of my physical wellness, deepened my spirituality, and created a beautiful home and life. 

Lifebook helped me realize that personal growth doesn’t have to be daunting. It doesn’t have to be just another thing on the ever-growing to-do list.

Instead, it can actually be a point of laser-clear focus on what I actually want my life to be.

My husband, Vivek, and I are such believers in the process that we decided to become Certified Lifebook Leaders. And now we’re sharing this seriously badass resource with our fellow dentists. Because we dentists deserve to have beautiful, fulfilling lives!

Using Lifebook to Design Your Ideal Life as a Dentist

Lifebook has helped me identify several goals I have for 2024. And I have full faith that I’ll crush ALL of those goals. Because I always do! (Thanks to having a clear vision!)

For instance, 2024 is the year I go big with my message to patients and the general public. It’s the year I write my book and start truly growing my patient audience. The world needs to hear about my mission to #GiveTeethAChance—not just dentists!

2024 is also the year I unveil the next layer of my CE support for dentists through my Heal Your Practice offerings, which are all about creating a practice that supports your life. Love your work; don’t let it rule your every waking moment.

There are more surprises in store for 2024, but I’ll keep them under wraps for now!

What is your new vision for the new year?

You may not know what you want. You may only know what you don’t want. And that’s a great starting point.

If you’re seeking guidance in creating a vision that truly supports your well-being, I encourage you to check out Lifebook to design your ideal life. It’s such a fantastic resource for dentists, because it allows you to create your own beautiful, fulfilling path. 

It’s not going to tell you what to do, because you know yourself best. But it will guide you through the process of constructing a cohesive, clear vision you can keep refining over the years.

Start your Lifebook journey today, and I’ll see you in the new year, my friends!

– Sonia