The Dental Lighthouse with Dr. Jason Tanoory

Jason Tanoory
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Let’s talk about everything Dental! We will answer questions and discuss just about anything from motivating kids to growing your patient base!

  1. 1D AGO

    135: Case Acceptance: Simple Fixes That Work Immediately

    In this solo episode of the Dental Lighthouse Podcast, Dr. Jason breaks down why patients say “I’ll think about it” and how to turn that into a confident yes. Drawing from real coaching conversations and decades of clinical experience, he shares practical, no-fluff strategies you can implement tomorrow to improve case acceptance. You’ll learn how to schedule the right patient the right way, stop overwhelming people with too many options, use visuals that actually make sense to patients, and create urgency without sounding salesy. Jason also dives into the power of hygienist preheating, being the second opinion as the doctor, explaining the “other side of the problem,” and when ballpark fees build trust instead of killing the case. If your practice is presenting dentistry but struggling to get it scheduled, this episode is packed with simple fixes that work immediately.

    43 min

  2. FEB 11

    134: More Calls, Fewer Patients: What Dentists Are Missing in 2026

    Phones are ringing more than ever, but fewer new patients are actually getting scheduled. So what’s breaking down? In this episode, Dr. Jason sits down with marketing strategist Ryan Gross to unpack a trend dentists are feeling everywhere in 2026: increased call volume paired with declining new patient conversions. Together, they break down why this is happening and why it’s often not a marketing problem at all. They dive into the real data behind today’s dental consumer, including why financial questions, insurance concerns, and immediate availability are now driving patient behavior. Ryan shares the KPIs every practice should be watching, what healthy call conversion actually looks like, and how small operational gaps quietly kill growth. You’ll learn: Why more calls do not automatically mean more patients The key marketing vs. operations metrics that actually matter How availability impacts conversion more than ad spend The most common phone mistakes teams make around insurance and cost Practical benchmarks for call answer rate, new patient conversion, and scheduling windows When to fix systems instead of spending more on marketing If your practice feels busy but growth feels harder than it should, this episode will help you identify exactly where patients are falling through the cracks and what to fix first. Listen in and get clear on what’s really driving patient acquisition in today’s market.

    40 min

  3. FEB 4

    133: Stop Holding Bad Meetings and Start Leading Better Ones

    In this episode, Dr. Jason breaks down why meetings get such a bad reputation and how to turn them into one of your most powerful leadership tools. He walks through the core meeting types every practice should consider, how to structure them, who should be in the room, and why agenda discipline matters more than you think. You’ll learn how to avoid meetings that turn into complaint sessions, how to use data to drive real decisions, and how to create clarity and accountability without burning out your team. From weekly team meetings to leadership huddles to one-on-ones, Jason shares practical frameworks you can adapt to your practice size and leadership style. If meetings feel like a waste of time in your office, this episode will show you why and what to do differently starting now. Listen in and learn how to stop holding bad meetings and start leading better ones.

    30 min

  4. JAN 28

    132: Why Your Best Employee is Burnt Out

    Your best employee is reliable, loyal, and gets everything done. They are the one you trust. The one who picks up the slack. The one who always figures it out. And they are probably exhausted. In this episode, Dr. Jason unpacks a real coaching conversation with a high-performing office manager who finally said the quiet part out loud. She was overwhelmed, burning the candle at both ends, and running out of capacity. This episode dives into: Why building your practice around “unicorns” is dangerous How great employees quietly absorb the work of two or three people The hidden cost of constant training, onboarding, and fire-fighting Why burnout is usually a systems problem, not a people problem How late-night texts, constant urgency, and chaos steal time from families The power of one-on-ones, daily check-ins, and real communication Why assigning time to your calendar is not optional if you want sustainability If your practice “works” because one person is holding everything together, this episode is your wake-up call. Great teams are built on systems, clarity, and protected time, not quiet sacrifice. Listen in if you want to keep your best people healthy, engaged, and actually with you for the long haul.

    26 min

  5. JAN 21

    131: Why a Full January Does Not Mean a Healthy Practice

    January is busy. The schedule is packed. Production looks great. And a lot of dentists walk around feeling pretty good about it. Here’s the hard truth. A full January does not automatically mean you are running a healthy practice. In this episode, Dr. Jason breaks down why early-year busyness is often borrowed momentum from last year, not proof that your systems are working. Patients delayed treatment. Insurance reset. January always feels good. The real question is what happens in February and March. Jason unpacks: Why January production can create a false sense of security The difference between being busy and being sustainable The KPIs that actually predict future schedule health Why rushed hygiene and new patient exams quietly kill future production How avoiding discomfort now creates bigger problems later What “experiencing the pain now” really looks like in treatment planning This episode is a reminder that strong months are built on fundamentals, not luck or seasonal waves. If you want a full schedule all year, not just a great January, this conversation is for you. Listen in, slow down, and make sure your current success is something you can actually maintain.

    18 min

  6. JAN 14

    130: Rip the Band-Aid Off: One-on-Ones, Raises, and the Conversations Leaders Avoid

    In this episode of the Dental Lighthouse Podcast, Dr. Jason Tanoory takes you behind the curtain of a real coaching call with a fast-growing practice owner who knows the truth every leader eventually faces. Growth breaks systems before it breaks revenue. The practice is thriving. Revenue is climbing. The team is growing. And yet the wheels are starting to wobble because the hard conversations keep getting postponed. This episode tackles what most leaders avoid until it hurts: How to start one-on-one meetings without opening the floodgates to surprise raise requests Why avoiding clarity feels kind but actually creates resentment How to set expectations around compensation without being reactive What sustainable leadership looks like in a 3.5 to 4+ million dollar practice How to hold people accountable in real time without embarrassing them or damaging trust Jason walks through practical frameworks for one-on-ones, compensation timing, accountability conversations, and follow-up systems that actually stick. No theory. No leadership buzzwords. Just real talk from inside an actual coaching session. If you are growing fast, leading a bigger team than you ever have before, or feeling the quiet tension that comes from conversations left unsaid, this episode is your sign. Rip the Band-Aid off. Your team will thank you later.

    32 min

  7. JAN 7

    129: Rules of the House, Posting the Speed Limit & Maintaining Accountability | Part Two

    Part Two gets real practical, real fast. J.D. pushes the conversation past “feedback is important” and straight into the messy scenarios leaders actually face: buying a practice with an existing team, inheriting an old culture, and trying to introduce a new set of expectations without lighting the place on fire. Jason breaks down: What you’re really buying in an acquisition (hint: cash flow and culture… and sometimes baggage with a name tag) Vision vs. core values: what’s non-negotiable from the owner, and where team buy-in matters How to roll out “rules of the house” when your team is 5 people vs. 25 people Why early-stage owners struggle most at 2–3 locations and what Jason would do differently (spoiler: build a monster flagship first) How peer-to-peer accountability should work up, down, and sideways in the org chart What to do when feedback is given well, but it’s not received well How leaders avoid collecting everyone’s “problem monkeys” and instead coach people to handle hard conversations themselves When something isn’t “your lane,” how to escalate it the right way, and the leadership question behind it all: Is this a hill I’m willing to die on? If Part One was about posting the speed limit, Part Two is about enforcing it, especially when you’re new, growing fast, or inheriting a team that’s been doing 55 in a school zone for years. Listen in if you’re building a culture that actually wins, not just one that looks good on a poster.

    35 min

  8. JAN 3

    128: Rules of the House, Posting the Speed Limit & Maintaining Accountability | Part One

    What happens when the rules are not posted and everyone is driving at a different speed? In Part One of this episode, Jason Tanoory is put in the hot seat by returning guest J.D. for a real, unfiltered conversation about feedback, accountability, and leadership inside a dental practice. This is not theory. This is lived experience. Jason breaks down why feedback is not optional if you want a healthy team, why avoiding hard conversations is actually selfish, and how unclear expectations quietly destroy culture. They dive into the difference between competency issues versus behavior issues, why one is easier to coach than the other, and how leaders can create an environment where feedback is expected, received, and acted on. You’ll hear practical language for tough conversations, why “posting the speed limit” matters more than being liked, and how core values only work when they are clearly defined, consistently reinforced, and actually lived out. If you’ve ever struggled with giving feedback, receiving feedback, or working in a practice where the rules feel fuzzy, this episode will hit close to home. Part Two goes even deeper. Start here.

    25 min
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Let’s talk about everything Dental! We will answer questions and discuss just about anything from motivating kids to growing your patient base!

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