Myo Life
Myo Life is a podcast for bored, burned out dental hygienists (and myofunctional therapists) who are ready to work less, earn more, have total control of their calendar, enjoy geographic freedom and most of all - make a bigger impact for their patients - while ditching the long hours, constant aches and dreaded Monday's. You will learn simple and effective strategies and tools to start and grow your profitable myofunctional therapy practice. Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss a thing!
Myo Life
#35 “From ‘Someday’ to Sold Out: The Power of Going All In”
Let's Connect! Text me here or email me myotrainingacademy@gmail.com
In this episode, Carmen gets real about the mindset that keeps so many hygienists stuck: treating their dream as optional. She shares the turning point in her own story — the moment she stopped using hygiene as a safety net and went all in on her myofunctional therapy business. You’ll hear how letting go of "Plan B" creates the clarity, energy, and focus you actually need to succeed. Whether you’re still working full-time or just starting to imagine what’s possible, this episode will challenge and encourage you to draw your own line in the sand.
"Is It Time To Ditch Hygiene?" is a self assessment workbook to help you get honest about where you are, see what's actually possible in a career you’ll love and to help you decide what comes next!
Hey, I'm Carmen and welcome to Mayo Life. That's short for my outrageous life, which is exactly the kind of life I get to live since I found the courage to ditch dental hygiene and build a life I'm bonkers about as a Mayo functional therapist and entrepreneur. Here you will find all the things Mayo business and how to build a life that you, too, are bonkers about. I'm very happy you're here. Shall we dive in. Well, hello, friend, and welcome back to the Mayo Life Podcast. I am so very glad you're here. We have another great topic today. We are going to be talking about something that I see all the time in the early stages of this journey. You're starting your myofunctional therapy business in the smart way. Okay, so that's on the side or in the margins in between, practicing in the operatory and potentially, you know, a bedtime routine. That part. Doing it that way, the smart way, I am all for it.
Speaker 1:The problem isn't how you're starting. The problem is the way that you're thinking about it. Now, if you have told yourself, if this doesn't work, I'll just keep doing hygiene, I'll just keep doing hygiene, or if I get too overwhelmed, I'll just slow down, or if I don't get clients right away, then maybe this just isn't. For me, my friend. That is not a strategy, that is a security blanket. And the truth is you cannot build something amazing while you're constantly rehearsing your exit strategy. So let's call it what it is Hygiene feels safe. I get that. It's predictable, it's what you've always known. So you hang on to it. Mentally, emotionally, financially, you dip your toe into this business stuff, but you don't commit to learning how to sell your myofunctional therapy services or building your belief or doing the scary visibility stuff, because in the back of your mind you're still thinking well, I've always got hygiene. And here's the catch that energy, oh friend, it leaks into everything, it slows your momentum, it weakens your confidence and it keeps your dreams stuck in someday instead of soon. I've never actually quite told it like this, but actually maybe I have.
Speaker 1:Maybe you already know that I was so miserable in hygiene but not succeeding. It was not an option for me. Now I will tell you this I didn't have a grand vision at first. Okay, I didn't know what was possible. I wasn't trying to build a million dollar business Good gravy. I didn't even know that was possible. I just wanted to make enough money to quit hygiene. Okay, if I could even get close to replacing my hygiene income, even $20,000 less. I would have called that a win and, honestly, I would have probably cut it in half in a heartbeat if it meant that I didn't have to keep dragging myself to the operatory with aching wrists and an aching heart.
Speaker 1:Okay, I didn't know what kind of money was possible, I didn't know how much freedom was ahead, but I knew one thing, my friend I was not going back. In fact, I used to always joke that the only way I was going back to hygiene was if they dragged my dead, lifeless fingers across the parking lot. That was my line in the sand and, yes, the money came. But now I.
Speaker 1:It's not even about that. It's about the life I'm building. It's about the life that I am so bonkers about, the schedule that I own, the purpose that I feel, the joy I wake up with. My husband was laughing at me the other day because I told him when the alarm goes off in the morning, I sit up and I put my feet on the floor and the very first thought I have every single morning is very simple this is going to be an incredible day. Gosh makes me smile just thinking about that. So this isn't about quitting hygiene tomorrow, my friend. This is about deciding that your future is no longer up for debate. It's about drawing a line in the sand and saying hey, this is what I'm doing, this is the business I'm starting, this is the business I'm building, and I am going to show up like I mean it.
Speaker 1:When I stopped waiting for proof, when I stopped saying well, we'll see how it goes when I started treating this like my real life and not my backup plan, that's when everything changed for me. And I see this for my students as well. I see students that have that same exact mindset of well, I'm a little overwhelmed, so I'll pull back, or I don't know what to do, so I'll pull back. So everybody is quitting too early. They're either quitting or they are just knocking it out of the park. Okay, we don't want plan B. So here's what I want you to do today, okay, not next year, not once the kids are older, not once your job feels less demanding.
Speaker 1:Today, my friend, first, I want you to decide what you're doing, what you're building, and declare it. Say it out loud, write it down, tell somebody this is my future career. I'm building a myofunctional therapy practice. And I am all in Number two I want you to stop treating hygiene like it's your long-term plan. Yes, you might still love it. That's awesome. You can be grateful for it, you can let it support you, but don't let it define you anymore. And number three start acting like the business owner that you're becoming.
Speaker 1:Ask yourself every morning what would a booked out, confident myofunctional therapist do today? And then go, do that thing. Okay, even if it's scary. Even well, especially if it's scary, even if it makes your pit sweaty. Okay, you can absolutely build your myofunctional therapy business part-time, but you cannot build it half-hearted.
Speaker 1:Okay, I really wholeheartedly think that you have to burn the mental escape hatch. Okay, let hygiene be a stepping stone, not your ceiling. Stop aiming to see how it goes and start aiming to make it go. I don't remember the exact quote, but gosh, it might have been Tony Robbins that said you know, storm the island and burn the boats, and you know, if you have plan B, then you're not serious about plan A. Those are all true when it comes to business. You can't be half in, you can't be half out. If you want to continue this conversation, find me on Instagram and I want to hear what you think about your backup plan and how you're going to let go of that. Okay, I would love to continue the conversation. That is all I have for you today, my friend, until I'm back next time, go build a life that you are bonkers about, and I will be back soon with more my Off-Functional Business Goodness.