Episode 142: Owning Your Expertise and Building a Brand with Intention with Megan Van Noy

In this episode of Beyond the Prophy®, Jasmin sits down with Megan Van Noy for a conversation about stepping into your expertise, building a brand with intention, and navigating visibility in dentistry without losing yourself.

Megan shares her journey of carving out a space that reflects her values, strengths, and voice — not just her credentials. This conversation explores what it means to build something sustainable in the dental industry while staying grounded in who you are.

Together, they discuss:

•  How to move from clinician to industry contributor 
•  The mindset shift required to build a personal brand 
•  Balancing visibility with authenticity 
•  The fear of putting yourself out there 
•  The importance of clarity before expansion 
•  Why ownership of your expertise changes everything 

This episode is for dental professionals who know they have more to offer but aren’t sure how to position themselves.

Connect with Megan:

LinkedIn

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:29

Hey, hey, hey, welcome to the Beyond the Profi podcast. I am your host, Jasmine Haley, and today's guest is Megan Van Noy. She's a mom entrepreneur and founder of Six Figure Practice Builder, helping feed-for-service solo practice owners move from survival mode into true business ownership. She's also the creator of the modern solo mom movement, redefining motherhood beyond martyrdom, burnout, and self-abandonment. Love that so much. With a blend of clear strategy and lived experience, Megan teaches women how to build financially sustainable businesses that honor their energy, leadership, and season of life. Proving success can feel supportive, not punishing. Welcome to the show, Megan.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Thank you so much for having me.

SPEAKER_02 1:14

I'm very excited to be here. Yeah, she's a fellow podcaster, y'all. What's what's the name of your podcast so that people know where to find it?

SPEAKER_00 1:23

My original podcast is the Munch Bunch Podcast. So it is actually a functional therapy-based podcast, which is you know part of what I will be sharing about today. So yeah, then I will we're in the process in the background of building out um the modern solo mom diaries. But it's uh we're in the process. So I love it.

SPEAKER_02 1:44

I love it. Listen, I'm in the process too. I've got four different podcasts, okay? Um, but this is my main one. This has been my this is my baby since 2016. And I come back when I when I'm able to, and I put it on pause, but we leave the episodes up there for you. So I just want the pot the people who listen to podcasts to definitely go out there and support you. Um, but I know I know we are here to talk a little bit about your journey. I find it very inspiring, and I think it's something that help helped me reach a level of freedom myself. And you have built a business outside of the op. And so I would love to know like where you were in that decision-making process, like what motivated you to head in that direction while also being a clinician.

SPEAKER_00 2:34

Yeah, yes. Um, and yes, I promise not to swear on this one. So um, you know, so I started out as a dental hygienist. Um I graduated in 2012. And to be honest, I've always loved hygiene. So it's never, it's never been the actual work of hygiene that got me itching for more. Um, but I am a very ambitious type A kind of gal, as many of us who go into dental hygiene are. Um, you know, and uh I just was sitting there one day and I was like, man, like I want to be able to do more. You know, as a hygienist, as far as like the hierarchy goes, once you're a hygienist, you're a hygienist, right? You can't really, you can't like go up in the ranks. There's no such thing as like promotions. Like I was in a spot where like raises were being like taken back, or the bonuses supposed to start was like never gonna start. You know, we weren't getting health benefits, and it was just like, man, am I really gonna tap out in my career at like age 25, 26 at like $40 an hour and like never do anything more? Like that sounds boring and also sounds limiting, and so I was like, okay, what can I do without necessarily going back to school to get another degree and still be able to really help people and help people where they're at, because that was the other piece too, right? Beyond like the you know, the structure of dentistry, there is the structure of like, you know, your patients need more help, but you don't necessarily know what that help is. Yeah, you don't know why your you know, your period patient or your three-month recare patient or whoever it is, even though their home care is awesome, they keep coming back with bleeding gums. Right? Or someone's like choking while falling asleep in your chair at like 10 a.m. And you're like, are you okay? Right? Or like your gaggers who, yes, might drive you crazy. But you're like, there's something more here that's happening. You know, people, the clenchers and the grinders breaking their teeth and getting so frustrated or using night guards like their chew toys, and they just keep investing in band-aid solutions. So I started Googling, um, and I ended up on Craigslist because that's where you ended up in 20 like 15. Okay, that was normal.

SPEAKER_02 5:17

That's definitely a throwback. That's definitely a throwback.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

That was the only place to find jobs, okay. Listeners, all right. In 2015, that was the only place to find jobs. I think maybe it wasn't there like monster jobs too, but like there was monster.

SPEAKER_02 5:31

I think they did have, I don't know. Right? Indeed, maybe indeed may have been another one. I didn't think indeed was out yet.

SPEAKER_00 5:38

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I don't even know if indeed was out yet, but like you found your jobs on Craigslist, okay? And um, so I'm like scrolling, I'm looking, and I see this Craigslist ad that's like, Do you wish that you could do more for your patients? Do you wish you had more autonomy? Do you wish? It was like four or five things about like, do you wish? And I was like, Is this you? And I was like, Yes, yes, yes, what is this weird thing? Like, what is you know, and I clicked the suspicious link and I end up over at because again it was 20, like 15. Um, and I end up on this landing page and it was talking about myofunctional therapy. And I'm like, what in the world is this? Like, what is this? I don't, I'm like, kind of get it, and I kind of don't. And the very first doctor I ever worked for, um he was kind of ahead of his time as far as this airway world, the airway stuff. Um, he's the one who taught me that your tongue should live in the roof of your mouth. Um, you know, at one point I was clenching and grinding so bad, or I'd play with my lingual retainer when I was cleaning teeth, and then I would get like the worst headaches. And um, you know, at one time I was complaining about it, and he's like, Well, where's your tongue? And I was like, Is this an appropriate work question? And he was like, in my mouth, you know, and he was like, Well, did you know your tongue should be living in the roof of your mouth? And that and I was like, My tongue has literally never met the roof of my mouth, like they are strangers, right? So I had kind of like an inkling around like, okay, this is something.

SPEAKER_01 7:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:11

And I reached out and I'm like, hey, I think I'm interested in this. Can you tell me more? And um, I, you know, she emailed me back and we kind of emailed back and forth. I'm like, okay, I'm gonna sit on this for a minute. And then a few months later, she reached out and she was like, Hey, I just wanted to let you know, like, I think this is the last time I'm gonna be teaching this course for hygienist. So, you know, I'm gonna move move more to dentists of like you want in. And I was like, Okay, well, I'm just gonna take a leap of faith. Um, yeah, and I did, and it's funny because actually, like, she has gone on to most, it's all still hygienist, but like that was her vision at the time. And um, so I went through the training, there was only 12 of us, and again, like yeah, let me set the stage of end of 2015, early 2016. It was a um you like it was a teleconference. So you called into the teleconference, and then you downloaded the slides through Dropbox and you followed along. So, like wow, again, this is like we're like dating this whole thing. I've been doing this for 10 years. And so afterwards, I was like, okay, this is awesome. I'm so into it. My parents are like, you can't switch careers at 26. And I was like, Yes, I can. And then I was also like, Well, dad, be my guinea pig. And so my dad had mild sleep apnea. I took him through the myofunctional therapy program. We eliminated his snoring, and like the rest, the rest is history. So that's what got me here. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:49

Yeah. I love that for the listeners, because you know, I'm I'm an educator, and of course, I encourage my students to start tapping in and hearing the stories of other professionals because it helps enhance their career. But some of us don't know what a myofunctional therapist is. So can you let the listeners know exactly what that is?

SPEAKER_00 9:08

Still to this day, I know. Oh, breaks breaks my heart. I know, I know. No, but it's so true. It's so true. Um, so myofunctional therapy is basically it's therapeutic exercises or physical therapy type exercises for the head, face, neck, tongue muscles. So our job is to get the body working for you versus working against you. And we look at root causes like tongue thrust, tongue ties, low tongue posture, and then we help through exercises to build up back to that normal function. So normal function meaning nasal breathing, lips sealed together without tension, tongue fully sealed to the roof of the mouth without clenching and grinding, and then the correct chewing and swallowing. So people who have issues with sleep apnea, clenching and grinding, mouth breathing, um, orthodontic relapse, or they've need ortho, those are some of the big, the big ones, but um, you know, the body wants to work smarter, not harder. And so once we actually get it, we get the vagus nerve calm down, we get you out of fight or flight into rest and digest, and the body's functionally functioning what like actually normal, then everything else really starts to fall into place. So myofunctional therapy, there was a meta-analysis that came out in 2016. I won't go too like nerdy into the research because there's lots out there, but um myofunctional therapy is helps eliminate the AHI in adults by 50 percent, kids 62 percent. Just those things alone can help with the sleep apnea epidemic.

SPEAKER_02 10:55

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 10:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:58

So that's amazing. So when you once you became in 2016 a myofunctional therapist, like what is the scope of practice for a hygienist? Like, how would a hygienist be able to leverage that level of area of expertise? Because I'm sure I've known because I have people within my journey who I've met and I've seen the work they've kind of done kind of have done in their own professional career, but I think it would be advantageous for anyone that may have an interest in this to understand how you practice. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:30

So I will say there's not a governing body. So people, there's a little bit of like gray area to it, but under the ADHA scope of practice, it says that a myofunctional therapist can take extensive training. Um, and there's a lot of 28-hour plus continuous education courses that qualify within that to take that training and then practice myofunctional therapy. So you are allowed to practice it independently, you're allowed to practice it inside the dental op. Um, it is something that you can do. So I have always practiced outside of the op. Um, the doctor I worked for at the time was not interested in what I was doing. And because I actually started my own practice, he ended up firing me for starting my own business.

SPEAKER_02 12:14

Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_00 12:17

So I had a chip on my shoulder for a few years, but it advantageous for me because I built a six-figure practice in less than three years. Um, and you know, and now I've been able to use that to help thousands of people and help hundreds of practitioners do the same. So there's a lot of introductory courses out there. Um and so, you know, you can do your research and see which one kind of feels like the best fit for you. But once you specialize, you you know, you get your continued education, then you can start your own business, you can start your own practice, and which is what I did. Um, and you build up, build out your referral community, you start talking to your patients, and from there, that's where you can really build.

SPEAKER_02 13:02

So, what would you say are some of like the characteristics of of a person that this would be a good fit for them? Like, you know, entrepreneurship is not for everyone. Um people don't see behind the scenes, they see all the nice wins, but they don't see behind the scenes how much work it is. You know, I often have joked, you know, you quit a part-time job, a full-time job to then take on two full-time jobs. You're working like 80 hours a week sometimes, you know, depending on the season that you're in. And then couple that with having to hire team, payroll, leadership stuff, marketing. I mean, it's a lot, it can be a lot. So not everybody's like met built for that, and that is actually okay. But I would love for you to kind of share what you've seen as some good characteristics for for anyone that may be interested in that.

SPEAKER_00 13:52

Yeah, they say entrepreneurship is the biggest personal growth development journey there could be. 100%. Yeah, 100%. I would agree. I don't even know everybody says it, I don't even know who started it, but I would 100% agree. So it's definitely for people who want to take on the challenge, right? Like somebody who was like me who's like, I am not satisfied just being clocking in and clocking out every day. You know, I am type A. I like to be in charge. I like to be in charge. I don't like to be told what to do. So I want to be my own boss because then the only person telling me what to do is myself and my multiple personalities. So um, you know, so definitely, and somebody who understands that it's not just the quick wins. Right. It's the someone who understands that instant gratification is not for entrepreneurship. And that this is a little cheesy, but I just like I seriously adopt this. Like, there's no such thing as failure. Like everything's an experience, everything's trial and error, there's no such thing as getting it perfect, and that is something I've had to like learn over and over again for 10 years. So definitely somebody who is okay with that, right? And who can take the lead, who can who wants to get out there, who wants to create relationships, wants to talk to people, doesn't want to just hide behind their computer screen. Um, and it can be for introverts too. It's not only for I've got a lot of clients who are introverted. They we just help them create their marketing plans in their own way, right? Yeah, so it's not introverts versus extroverts, it's you know, what kind of freedom do you want in your life? Because everybody turns like throws the word freedom around, right? Like, I just want to have freedom. Well, what does that mean to you? Right? Because to me, it means that I have a you know, a five-year-old who's finishing up preschool this year. I can drop her off every single morning, I can pick her up at 12 or 1 o'clock every single day. I can I can also get her the resources she needs around speech or around play therapy or whatever it else, swim lessons, gymnastics, at like 10 15 in the morning because if I'm able to make my own schedule the way that I want to make it. If I was back in hygiene, like I wouldn't be able to do the things that I can do for her. You know, um, but the trade-off is that doesn't come with a steady paycheck. And you have to be okay with that. And once you have the systems in place, you can pretty much create your own steady paycheck. But those first few years or those first few months while you're believing in yourself, like there's gonna be some times, and and that's okay. So I think it's the people who are okay with that, you know, and the people who are like, you know what, I can get out there, this can be messy, and we'll figure it out as we go. Like it doesn't have to be perfect to get going.

SPEAKER_02 17:39

Yeah, absolutely, absolutely, and there's a little bit of excitement that comes with that, you know. If you feel excited about that, of creating, being a creator in that way, and and staying consistent enough to see it through, that's huge. But I I will say that the first the first year in business where I made six figures, I was like, wait a minute, this was too difficult. Like, why did it have to take this long? Now, the reason why I was always at that cusp and couldn't make it, and then I got a coach. And then when I grew to multiple six figures, I got another coach. Yep. So I would love to kind of hear a little bit about why you've chosen to help other business owners because I think again, you had mentioned the systems. The systems were huge for me. Um, learning how to delegate, learning how to build a team, knowing how to be more strategic about my pricing and how that impacts everything. So would love to hear what that transition looked like for you to do that because that's a whole nother beast in itself, not just with patients. Now you're working with business owners, and I know that that is not for the faint of heart either. Yeah, all of it, everything you just said.

SPEAKER_00 18:53

So um, okay, so I finished my um I finished my training, and at the time, um the the gal who was running the course was like, Hey, I need an associate. Would you be interested? I said yes. Um, actually, my practice has four associates currently as well. Um, and then I started to kind of like dabble in her course too, and like teaching. And I did a lot of like the QA's and I did a lot of the graduate stuff. Um, and after I had my daughter, it just was all too much. Um, and so I had to step back, just focused on my practice. I like rebuilt my practice on my own again, um, because we had kind of merged and then we un-merged, and um I had people reaching out to me. They're like, Megan, where are you? Megan, we miss you. Megan, answer questions, help us. Yeah. And what I realized, and I didn't realize as much I was doing this until it was pointed out to me, is I wasn't talking about the like actual skills of my functional therapy. I was always the one like, okay, here's what you're gonna do to get out there, here's what you're gonna do to buy to get your patients, here's what you're gonna do. And there's been this gap in the field, and it's not the introductory course's fault. That's not what they're designed to teach. They don't say they're teaching business, they are saying they're teaching you the skill set, dental hygienists, dental school, all of that. They're not teaching you the business, they're teaching you the skill set, and that's what these courses are doing. And so there's this huge gap in between finishing your certification course and actually running the business. Everybody's like, okay, but how? You know, I remember having one girl reach out to me, and she didn't take that course, but different course, and she was like, Hey, so I just finished my course, but like, how do I collect a payment? And I was like, wait, what? Like, and then I realized I was like, okay, if this field is ever going to move forward, we need people to be successful. Yeah, and nobody else's success negatively impacts my success. The more the word can get out there, the more people are gonna find me too. So why not help people run their businesses? Yeah, and so I launched my business course in the summer of 2023, and that's the six-figure practice builder course. So I, you know, I love helping patients, and it's just kind of the same thing as it was with dental hygiene. Like, I loved helping patients, I love helping patients in Mayo, but I'm like, I'm ready for the next challenge, I'm ready for the next thing. Like it's addictive and I can't stop it.

SPEAKER_02 21:34

And like it will never stop. It will never stop, my friend. I'm on another project right now. I'm on another project.

SPEAKER_00 21:41

Then it's the other brand I'm in the middle of building. Like, good lord. Yeah. And so it's like, I'm like, okay, how can I help people? How can I actually serve people? How can I serve these clinicians? And you know, I started this course and like I did a bait around, you know, the first one, and everybody had such success that it was like, oh man, we got to keep going. We got to keep going. And it's my favorite thing in the world. I love it. I love getting the messages that I get that's like, oh my gosh, I'm having my first 10k month. Oh my gosh, they got this many referrals. Oh my gosh, this person, they just handed me their card and they said yes. Like, what the heck? You know, or oh my gosh, I told somebody my new prices and they didn't even blink. I'm like, yeah. Yeah. And those are the things that just light me up every day. And I'm like, you know, or even the things of like, hey, I've been doing this and now it's not working. What do I do? And I'm like, okay, let me put my like problem solving hat on. Let's figure this out together. So, you know, being able to help these, you know, solo practices, these solo clinicians, these people outside the op really build their businesses, it's like it's such a fun puzzle for me. And then just to see the wins, they feel like my wins. And they're just so fun. And so we've expanded. It to outside just my functional therapist because really any fee-for-service clinician who's working outside of insurance or who's you know not relying on the the social media or the session by session calendar, like that's that's who I can help.

SPEAKER_02 23:22

Yeah, yeah. I love that. Um, it it made my heart sing to be able to help uh people um without being paid, but it was even more satisfying to get to a place of knowing that they are paying so I can keep doing more meaningful work, you know. So a lot of times, you know, when I first started entrepreneurship, I would say things like, I just want to do it from my heart, and you know, I just want to do good, but that doesn't keep the lights on. And when you get in business and you realize, wait a minute, is it coming? What are you kidding me? Like, I gotta figure out a way to be able to take care of my family. It just lights your fire underneath your butt, basically. So like you get with the program and figure out how are these other companies able to continue on. Well, they have to learn how to financially uh bring stability for the hills and valleys of entrepreneurship.

SPEAKER_00 24:17

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, one of my biggest rants that I give my students, and they love when I die on certain hills, but one of them is like that your business is not a nonprofit, quit treating it like it. Yeah, yeah. You know, and you know, there's there's value in charging because people take it more seriously. The worst patients I've ever had are the patients who've gotten the discount, who have like the extended treatment plan, who've you know taken advantage in every possible way. And the best patients I ever had have paid me the most obscene amount of money.

SPEAKER_02 24:49

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:54

You know, and it's like once you can understand that, and also you understand the value that you give, then like everybody can sleep at night.

SPEAKER_02 25:06

Yep, absolutely. So if we were to go back to like when you first started your career or even in the season of life that you're in right now, what's one word of advice you would give yourself? Don't stop.

SPEAKER_00 25:20

Yeah, don't stop. And also, like, you can do anything you decide you want to do. I love that. I love that. Hard things are gonna happen, life things are gonna happen.

SPEAKER_01 25:31

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 25:32

Yep. In the last 10 years, my dad had a traumatic brain injury that put him in a coma that he wasn't supposed to wake up from. I'm a survivor of an intimate partner violence uh relationship. I'm a single solo mom with a second baby on the way. I had emergency back surgery in November 2023. Oh my goodness. Oh, yeah. I, you know, different podcast, different day, a whole story.

SPEAKER_01 25:56

Right.

SPEAKER_00 25:57

Like we've done it all.

SPEAKER_01 26:00

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02 26:01

Mm-hmm. And it's pushing forward. Yep, and you keep pushing forward. Yes, that's so good. That's so good.

SPEAKER_00 26:10

At the end of the day, I'm always gonna have me. I'm always gonna have my back. I can always bet on myself. And so why would I put the like the hands of myself into somebody else's hands?

SPEAKER_02 26:22

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So as far as the listeners, yeah, if they want to get in touch with you, where can they find you, Megan?

SPEAKER_00 26:32

I would love if they would. Um, so I do have, you know, because we were talking about multiple businesses, I have my personal account, which is at immegan van Oy. And then if you are a clinician looking to build your practice at I'm at solo practice builder, or my website is my name. It's MeganVanoy.com. And if you want to look at the six-figure practice builder, it's MeganVanoy.com backslash SFPB. So I guess if you need help with your mouth breather and you need help, you can Google Northwest Myofunctional Therapy and we could help you there too.

SPEAKER_02 27:10

All right, yes. Well, thank you. I love that you're a multi, multi passionate entrepreneur, just like I am. And I'm just I'm really grateful that you took time today to share with the audience. I really am appreciative.

SPEAKER_00 27:23

Thank you. I'm grateful for you having me.

SPEAKER_02 27:26

Of course.