Anne: Welcome to the Just DeW It podcast. I'm so happy you're here with me today with one of my dearest friends, funniest comrade in arms and boy, can she do an impersonation like no other. Before I get started, let me tell you a little bit about her. Lynda Sherman brings over three decades of clinical dentistry experience to the table. As an Expanded Functions Dental Auxiliary, she has taken the opportunity to dig her hands into many facets of dentistry. Throughout her career journey, she's emerged as a staunch advocate for preserving both smiles and the planet. As a driving force behind Eco Smiles Dentistry, the brainchild behind the eco-friendly dental subscription box Get Mouthy, and the visionary founder of the dental oral care project D.O.C., Lynda is on a mission to overhaul the dental landscape while championing sustainability. When she takes the stage at live events, Lynda's infectious enthusiasm and dynamic presence electrify the room, leaving the audience illuminated by her energy, inspired by her message, and laughing out loud. Lynda Sherman, welcome to the Just Do It podcast.
Lynda: Anne Duffy, it is such a pleasure to be here. You know that anytime I get to chat with you is a good time. Thanks for having me on, my dear.
Anne: You're welcome. Is this the first time you've been on the Do podcast?
Lynda: We have chatted somewhere somehow at one point. Where it was, I don't know.
Anne: Oh, my god, you are so funny. I'll never forget. So sweet. Sonia Dunbar rallied around the troops when I retired from clinical hygiene. And this was back in I think 2020. So four years ago, and Lynda brought in the... And I'll never forget, I've never laughed so hard, cried so hard as when you did the impression of me. And I'll tell you, it was genius, so much so that we brought Lynda back for, I think it was our fourth annual retreat to do an impersonation of me, which I just, you know, adore, and I adore you. You're just so funny, and you belong on all the stages out there. So if you're listening to this, buckle up, baby. It's going to be a fun, fun podcast. You're one person that has really embraced strengths. And I just remember, in fact, that was the fifth annual retreat, I think, is when you had the billboard of your strengths and you were wearing that. Anyway, you have really embraced your strengths. Tell me a little bit about what that meant to you, because if you're listening, you know, our retreat is coming up in November, and we base Dental Entrepreneur Woman, Do Life on Strength Finders. We really have embraced that personality test and really kind of like dipped into it so that we fall in love with ourselves. But I know it really changed your life. Tell me how.
Lynda: You know, I have taken several personality tests before. You know, I think in the corporate world, to get a job, they do that. Nothing resonated like the CliftonStrengths. When we were in that room, I mean, even, you know, Lian and Valerie talk about meeting me the first time because I couldn't wait. You know, my number one is significance, right? And I stood up in that crowd. And that's really when I first started to branch out from dentistry. So it was really great to do that and to understand that moment, that day, to know that one, that significance it explained everything. Everything I have ever felt, every way I've ever acted, anything I've ever done, it explained everything to me. And talk about having something that changes the trajectory of your life, when you have that aha moment, when that light bulb goes off, when you're like, why have I been fighting or feeling this? And you're like, baby, I was just born this way. And it was, I mean, at that point forward, I never looked back. I have fully lived my authentic self. You know, the imposter syndrome that we have, I mean, it always creeps in. But again, this is Lynda Sherman, right? There's a reason that you have that. I mean, in my top five, it explains exactly who I am. So you know what? I just stopped fighting it. And I'm living with a Y.
Anne: Lynda with a Y. That because that's one of the things that happened with me too. And I fell in love with myself and the things that I'm really good at and known for. Sometimes where I felt diminished by those and put down by those. And then you realize, hey, those are God-given talents. So look out everybody. This is who we're meant to be. And I love that Lady Gaga song. We've got to play that at the next retreat. You think you could do Lady Gaga in the egg? I would not put that past you. What are your other strengths? So you have significance, which is one, which we all understand that about you because you walk in a room and you are significant.
Lynda: Thank you. Number two, I'm a wooer. So win others over. Yep. My third is competition. Then I'm futuristic and then focus. So I was saying focus is a typo. I don't know how that got in there. But it is, if you give me a project, I do focus on it. But you know what? It was something that recently I talked to another Do, Vanessa Vitaliano. We talked about strengths because, you know what? She embraces them too. And we realized top three really are about connecting with people, right? Like my first one is significance. Then I'm a wooer. And then competition, right? I mean, with competition, there's always an interaction with other people. And you talk about understanding yourself, you know, the whole year that we were down, like, like, for COVID, where we had to hang out at home. And then with, you know, having a school-age child, I'm also at home. It was very, very difficult for me. And now I'm like, it makes perfect sense because my top three and my top five, I'm always just around me. I need people. I need people always, but I'm going to win you over, or we're going to compete, you know, for whatever that it is, or the fact that I'm going to have a good time with you, right?
Anne: Well, also the competition is just an interesting one because I think also you always competing with yourself. I know you like to win that there is that. I've seen it a million times you put a contest out there, even focus is like a dog with a bone. If you want Lynda to get something, she's not giving up like, she'll never let go until she gets it. But also I think you're always striving. I've never seen somebody take on so much learning, to be better, to make yourself better, and I know that that's a wonderful strength to have. I admire that very much. You don't let it go, and focus and futuristic are strategic. I was on a call and we all know Sarah Connell spoke at one of our retreats, and she said focus is the new time. What's the most valuable thing you have in your life? And focus is one of them. And so again, you have started some projects and I want to know a little bit about how you got into the projects. Get Mouthy. Cause I've got an idea about that for you as well. And the dental oral care project, Lynda, what brought you to that? And why are you so focused on it?
Lynda: Oh, this is a long conversation, but let's kind of like quickly bundle it. Now I've worked clinically in dentistry, you know, for decades and I've watched over these years, you know, really kids being in the dental chair and that's not where they belong, right? We know that tooth decay is a preventable disease and it's still the number one childhood illness significance. I want to make a difference. I want to make a difference in the world. So I decided I'm going to start this nonprofit organization, which is called the Dental Oral Care Project. I mean, my journey into entrepreneurship probably started more like in 2017. You know, I was a clinician, loved what I did. That's what I went to school for, right? You're licensed to do it. It makes a paycheck. You just get involved in that comfort of paycheck, but let's branch out. Cause there's a challenge out there, something bigger and better. I started a nonprofit, but I got my tax exempt literally the same month that the whole world is shutting down. So how do you fundraise and get a nonprofit out there? Plus, I really don't know what I'm doing. That's the bottom line. I'm a clinician. I fix teeth all the time. So I thought I was really going to be good at this business world. I'm learning, right? Why I'm invested. So the subscription box came because here I have this nonprofit and I need to fund it somehow. So let's bring in residual income, something I can connect the two together. So I decided to have a subscription box. And when I was looking into this box and going to reach out to those that we know, I mean, as wholesalers, you'll cover more on the back end that we see at the conventions. I realized that this is all plastic. I just have this realization that with this box and all these dental items, everything is plastic and it's still here on earth at home. I'm already recycling. I'm already doing what I can. I'm learning more about it. I'm very conscientious. We compost, you know, I'm already a little crunchy like that. So it just became very natural to be like, here's this box, but I don't contribute to decaying out the planet. While we're preventing decay, right? Here's this box. When you purchase the box, just to let you know from the very beginning, it's called Get Mouthy, right? Get Mouthy. Perfect name for a company for me. So when you purchase this initial box, there's a toothbrush kit that's donated to the nonprofit. There's our connection. On the back end from a business end, it's a residual income that can assist me pulling away clinically and working the nonprofit. Because that's where my heart is. I want to help these children live dental disease free. So with now this box, I decided to make it completely eco-friendly. Again, I couldn't contribute the plastic. So the box is completely plastic-free. It's toxic-free. There are no chemicals. It is 100 percent natural. So whether it's your toothbrush, that's compostable, right? So there's no plastic left here on Earth. But dental floss, I didn't realize until just a couple of years ago, that dental floss is toxic. The dental floss that you're getting from these major corporations that you're all passing on your goody bags, they are Teflon for the most part, which is a forever toxic plastic. And then it is coated with multiple chemicals, mostly petroleum. And when people decide to floss, we know that they really don't floss to begin with. And most of everybody has gingivitis, but when they do floss, they're going to bleed and that's a direct open wound. So what's happening to that plastic and those chemicals? It's going right into your bloodstream. So now you're becoming toxic. If you live in that holistic lifestyle, you care about that. Some people don't get your smokes and get your beer and forget about this conversation. But you know, other than that, if you care, I care. You know, my daughter doesn't do Gatorade. We don't do the blue Superman ice cream at UDF. I'm very particular to what you put in your mouth. Cause it matters. So that's where, with this box. With the dental floss, it's completely natural. It's bamboo, charcoal, candied dill wax, which is from a plant. So it's vegan. So I always say you can floss while you're, you know, in the car at the stoplight, throw it out your window. It's going to be biodegradable, which is awesome. Then the tooth soap is the best product. So get mouthy. I was thinking about when I got mouthy with my mom when I was younger. I had my mouth washed out with soap. I don't know about you, but I remember this one specific time where I'm in the bathroom with my sister, and we're just in there doing whatever. And I said to my sister, so my mother hated when you said, so, you know, like whatever she pulled my butt right out of that bathroom and washed my mouth out with soap. That's what they did back in the eighties, right? I that's totally fine. I'm great. So I'm like, you know what, why not have a tooth soap product? Because that's really having a hard time putting something in plastic. So it is, it's a 100 percent natural product. It's a tooth soap. It's a one by two bar. It only has five ingredients again, all natural. You just wet your toothbrush bristles. You rub it over top of the tooth soap. It foams up really nicely. And you brush with it and it's naturally remineralizing if you understand the benefits of coconut oil. Also, and last but not least, but because that's eco-friendly and I realized in the dental offices, if you own a dental practice, you are wasting so much money by not adapting principles of sustainability. And then I talk more that it's not just about greening your operatory, right? Where you're utilizing plastics when you could be utilizing something that's sustainable through the autoclave, eliminating barriers, which is a big thing too. But in your dental practice, sustainability is also maintaining your equipment, understanding, managing your inventory as well, a first in and first out. I bet you all your dental practices have expired materials that are just stuffed in drawers because your system puts stuff on top of, or you know, the old stuff and the old stuff never gets used. We're talking polyvinyls and composites and cements. So that's being sustainable too. And how about just simply entertaining your existing patient in the office. That's where the money is in the practice. That's not, you know, enticing a new patient to come in. What's sustainable in a dental practice is maintaining an existing patient. So build those relationships. So putting all that sustainability together in a dental practice, I came up with a third company, which is EcoSmiles Dentistry. So let's save some planet. I think I'm done talking now. Go.
Anne: Go, go. Well, everything you just said, though, it just cracks me up in the fact that it actually lines up with the future of our planet. Yes. And of course, we know you have little Savannah, or not so little anymore. The future for her. And then also the focus is you are still on it, girl. You are still on it. You're four years.
Lynda: Right. Like, you know, let's go for it.
Anne: Yeah. Yeah. And then we need people like you in our industry and we need people like you in our world that you're going to find a cause and continue to build on it and to not let it go to the sideline. You know, you, one of our principles, right? I mean, do number nine, start and don't stop. Do's don't retire. So I'm proud of you for that. And I think you're onto something. I was going to tell you, it's so funny because I just heard Amazon has a shark tank going on now. So have, you need to get on that Amazon shark tank. I know you can do it. If anybody can do it, you'll be focused on, saw it in the paper the other day and I thought, Oh, go Lynda Sherman, go Lynda Sherman. But I, I love that. And, as a woman in dentistry, it's great to have a couple of, vehicles for your passion for dentistry. You know, you are an EFTA. So tell me about that. Cause I remember the first time you told me, and some of our listeners don't even know what you do and why you're so, passionate about children and their teeth. As, because we've got hygienists, we've got assistants, but you've got this special lane that a lot of people don't know about.
Lynda: I love living in Ohio because Ohio gives us this degree, I guess, or this license. So it's called an Expanded Functions Dental Auxiliary. Back in the day, it was also considered AQP, Advanced Qualified Personnel. Of course, we're licensed. I didn't take, you know, I had to go, you know, to Ohio State University. I mean, it's a CE class. But I had to take a board's exam. So I mean, it was almost a year-long program with the board's examination, and I am licensed through the state of Ohio to practice dental care. But I get to place direct restorations and I also get to use the handpieces in the mouth. So I can do a minimal occlusal equilibration. Not only when I get to put the fillings in, I get to do anything and everything possible. To make the adjustments and polish that restoration, which is so fun. When you're doing like, for dental people, right? Number six to 11, front 16, somebody comes in and they have severe decay because of soda. It's so unattractive, you know, their self-confidence is lacking. They don't want to smile. You know, a couple of hours, we can remove that decay, put some really nice fillings in. They look great. If you're a hygienist or a doctor, you feel the margins. They're nice and smooth because that matters too. But it's so rewarding and it's so fun. I love the artistic abilities behind it. I love that every patient is different. I mean, sometimes I'm just putting a couple of occlusals in like number 30, and I think it's more effort than it's worth. You're not making money on occlusal fillings. You're just not. People like, come on with that. I mean, we've got to do quadrant dentistry at the end of the day, but I really enjoyed that. So in Ohio, they were one of the very first to adapt that. I think when I became an EFDA well over a couple of decades ago, they were one of five states. I know that they have EFDAs in other states, but the permissible duties are different. Sometimes their duties are parallel to like a certified dental assistant. Every state's a little bit different. I do know that there are two states out west that recently incorporated dental anesthesia, able to dispense anesthetic. I think Oregon and Minnesota, but you have to be in your role. Don't freak out if you're a hygienist. I mean, there's a course that goes with it and the board's exam that goes with it.
Anne: Well, let me ask you this though. So, but you're not drilling the tooth. You're actually placing in the filling, yeah?
Lynda: Only, in every state what have you, only a dentist can remove decayed tooth structure and make the initial preparation. So even the crown prep starts still done by the dentist, but as soon as he's done drilling, he is done. Like, if it's a liner, a base, whatever it takes to restore that tooth. If you're putting matrix retainers in, and you're doing the isolation, I mean, whatever it takes, once that hole is created, you got to build the whole thing right back up and then we have to adjust it so I can use the high-speed handpieces.
Anne: That's amazing that you're getting to do that kind of dentistry. I mean, I'm sorry. I envy you and Ohio, because I think there's so many people that need dentistry and it's gotta be extremely rewarding. And I'm just like overwhelmed by that being a hygienist all these years. We felt like we were all that in a bag of chips, but my hat is off to you, my dear, because you're really making a difference and you really know dentistry and what you're doing. I want to switch gears a little bit because I know that you talked about this. You mentioned this earlier about imposter syndrome, and we all have that. I think that was the beautiful part about knowing your strengths because you're like, all of a sudden you own them, right? You're like, okay, got this. And especially with significance number one, you're supposed to make a big difference in the world, and you are. So how does your faith, Lynda, influence your journey towards entrepreneurship, self-acceptance, and overcoming the imposter syndrome?
Lynda: I know that you share a lot of the same beliefs. We answer to a higher power. You know, we both answer to God and that's where faith leads you. And no matter who you answer to, right? We all have our own higher powers, right? But I do believe that there is a purpose to me being here. I mean, I'm not just another ant on the planet. I was a gift.
Anne: You are still a gift and you're a gift to everybody listening. We are all gifts. We are all made 100 percent exactly how we're meant to be here, how we're meant to act, how we're meant to look. I just learned to embrace that, whether it's my strengths, my maturity, camaraderie with others, being so comfortable in my own skin, and it feels good. And it feels so good that I like to encourage everybody else. I'd love to share a message. However, that is, I'm really being comfortable in your own skin and however, that looks, find your joy, find what makes you happy and go for it because it's only your life. Why are we so worried about what you think of me? Because you might not be my friend. I might even know you. Like who really cares at the end of the day? Like I need to live for me, because this is the skin I'm going to be in from the day I was born to the day that I die. And life is so fun. And why hold back? I mean, I know people that do hold back from being authentic to themselves. Are you never good enough? Darn well, you're good enough, right? I mean, we are good enough. And I want to encourage everyone. I mean, whether it is putting that swimsuit on, and that can just simply be a metaphor. But you will find me in a swimsuit. I don't care who we are in front of. It could be the Do Retreat, a smiles at CR. I don't care who's in the audience. You know what? I personally enjoy the water so much and the ocean so much that if there's any opportunity to soak my toes in the water, I'll put my freaking swimsuit on. And if you want to judge me, you can judge me because I know darn well, you're really not even judging me. We're always our own worst critic. But you know, even if it's stopping the car to run in the field of sunflowers, because you know darn well that’s going to bring you joy for that five minutes. You know what? Do it. Why are you in a hustle? To, you know, go to the next stop. Also, you know, I think there's something that I want people to be honest with me. So let's be honest back. We're born this way and it was fully intentional. So accept it.
Anne: Yeah, accept it and share it. Right. I mean, like don't hide it under a lampshade. We own it, right, Lynda. We own what we do. And I also think, you know, you've been so brave and so courageous following your dreams. That's your competition. So what advice would you have for somebody right now? That's like scared? You know, we're entrepreneurs now. You know, we all have the side gig. So you have a job that pays you a little bit. You have another side gig that pays you a little bit and you know, build on top of that. But what advice would you give somebody listening to one of those women out there that are saying, I'm not sure I can do it. What would you say?
Lynda: Oh, you know, like Marie Forleo says, everything is figureoutable without a doubt. Entrepreneurship is a huge struggle. Like I said before, I was so strong in dentistry clinically from an admin side that I thought this entrepreneur journey was going to be a piece of cake. There are so many pieces to the puzzle, and you do not have one. I mean, you are missing pieces in that puzzle even before you open up that box, but everything is figureoutable. With today's technology, the answer is just in a keystroke. I mean, seriously, I have registered two trademarks on my own. They both had office actions by figuring it out. And I had to figure it out. I invested the money, but I wanted it, you know, and have I failed? Absolutely. You know, I failed, and it is what it is. Nobody's perfect. If you honestly think you're perfect, get over it. I want to be perfect. I do, but I'm still not perfect, and that's okay. But you're going to fail. It's a gift. It's a gift.
Anne: And we have other gifts than I do. And you know what, it's just so beautiful in that regard, you know, and like we say, Do, you just keep doing you because we all have such something special to offer. And the nice thing about Do is we have each other to bolster us up, to hold our hands, to push us up and not let us quit because that's what's going to change the world, Lynda, is someone like you, with your amazing strengths, futuristic and focus and competition and woo, winning others over and number one significance. So we adore you. Every Do I know adores Lynda Sherman, Lynda with a Y. Listen, if you are looking for somebody fun to have on your stage, to open, to bring some life and laughter to your conference, please reach out. And how would we reach out to you, Lynda Sherman?
Lynda: The best way to reach out to me, I think, is just simply get on my website, which is lyndasherman.com. Remember, it's Lynda with a Y. L-Y-N-D-A Sherman, s-h-e-r-m-a-n dot com. And from there, if you're interested in any of the nonprofit, Get Mouthy, EcoSmiles, they're all connected. They're reaching out to me personally. I mean, that's the best way to find me is lyndasherman.com, and I would love to connect. So please reach out for whatever reason that it is. It's always fun to connect with others.
Anne: You will always find a friend when Lynda Sherman. So thank you so much for being here today. I'm excited. I hope that you can get on that Amazon. I think that Get Mouthy is going places. I love that. That's the way the world needs to go, and you're bringing it and that's so super neat. So anybody that's listening to us today, as you can tell, we really believe this, but we really are going to let you know that the most important thing you can do in your life right now is to keep doing you. Thank you, Lynda Sherman. I'll see you at the next conference. Bye, dear.
