Things I learned at the National Leadership Conference

This past weekend I had the privilege of attending ASDA’s National Leadership Conference in Chicago. There were hundreds of attendees, a few predentals,  and lots of great speakers. The weekend started with Kevin Brown talking about The Hero Effect, teaching us about being our best when it matters the most.

Although I’d participated in a large number in ASDA events in my first year, I felt like I didn’t quite understand why this organization just kept feeding me at lunch and learns. However, as I started documenting as the Social Media Manager I’ve come to realize the wide breadth of benefits ASDA brings to the school. This conference furthered that understanding and makes me appreciate the efforts of those involved in organized dentistry.

The single greatest takeaway from this weekend can be summed up in one word though. “Relationships.” The way you interact with everyone, your patients, your employees, your peers, and your friends can have a profound impact on your day to day life. For example, people take criticisms and compliments differently, taking the time to learn and understand how to best communicate with your employees can help make a stress-free workplace. In addition, meeting peers at conferences like NLC can open doors into future residencies, referrals, or even jobs.

Although I have a million things to do before the end of the semester that should’ve taken precedence over traveling to Chicago, this experience reminded me of why I wanted to become a dentist. The people. I’m not certain that in 20 years I’ll still enjoy designing RPDs or drilling a PFM on 13, but I’m confident I’ll still enjoy working with people, especially if I get to work with people like the ones I met this weekend.

Fun fact: Every other school hates AXIUM just as much as we do

Jeff grew up in Loveland, went to undergrad right up the road at Colorado State University and is the current Social Media Manager for the chapter. His favorite part about his position in ASDA is “the ability to take pictures of people and have it not be weird.”  Jeff enjoys sitting next to Kate, telling Dr. Sutton that CR is a myth, and participating in well thought out discussion in IPE.