Time out.

Earlier in this article, I emphasized that leisure and time away from work are not only important in and of themselves, but that they're important to our work. Again, I draw from my own recent experience of a few days vacation in Florida. The "time out" didn't just allow me to relax, it also gave me a healthy perspective on my work and a freshness in pursuing my goals, something that's very difficult to achieve when you're fully immersed in day to day business matters. Dr. Lagstein underscores this point: "I've recently begun using my time away from the office as a direct adjunct to the practice. It seems that my most creative thinking and planning for the practice occurs when I'm furthest from the operatory," he says. "My outlook is enhanced in a way that can't be emulated when I'm consumed with the day-to-day challenges of dentistry. And yes, this has a direct impact on my production; but contrary to what most people would expect, it has increased--not detracted from--my annual net revenue." Dentists who are already achieving this balance should be applauded, but for those who are not, I encourage you to find the way to start doing so. As Bruce O'Hara rightly says, "Prosperity/leisure is not an either/or choice: in the 1990s we must create the means to have them both, or we will wind up with neither."