Who doesn’t want more holiday? How dentists can make it happen

Many of the dental clients we advise - both practice owners and associates – love their jobs and are passionate about dentistry. They do however often express a desire to work less clinical hours so they can spend more time with their family, take more holidays or pursue other interests. Many are held back by the fear that treating less patients themselves is just not feasible and worry about the financial implications.

For dentists who are interested in booking more than the average 4-5 weeks off per year (plus bank holidays), here are some issues to consider and a few suggestions for making it happen.

1. Can I afford to take more holiday?

As financial planners, we’re often able to demonstrate to dentists we meet for the first time that they are wealthier than they think. One of the reasons for this is that dentists often have significant debts and mortgages, so on a month-by-month basis, finances can feel quite tight.

However, provided these debts can be paid off at some point, this reduces the amount of income required in later life. Having a smaller income in later life means your income tax will be significantly lower. This in turn means you might be able to reduce your working hours and earnings now. Understanding the mathematics behind this, is often sufficient to give dentists the financial freedom they need to work less hours and have more holiday or breaks now, and be fit and healthy enough to enjoy it!

Another reason why it can be difficult to appreciate that working less hours could be a financially viable route, is because dentists are often time poor and are just too busy working to explore the possibility of taking more breaks.

To work out if you can afford to take more breaks, I recommend allocating some time to do the numbers and calculate whether you could remain financially secure in the future despite the extra time off. This would involve taking into account your assets, liabilities, future income and expenditure and also factoring in a reduced tax liability.

2. Can my practice survive without me?

If you’re a practice owner, you may think your business literally cannot afford for you to be off work, and that it could potentially fall apart without your presence. From my own experience advising practice owners, I’ve discovered the opposite to be true. Provided you have a clearly defined culture and set of values, your team should be able to make key decisions without you. The more you train and trust your team, the more responsibility they will be willing to take on – leaving you more time for strategy, leadership, and taking time-out to recharge your batteries. If you can build a business where you regularly step away from the day to day clinical and management responsibilities, you might increase your profits.

Clearly NHS dentists and principals with UDA targets to meet every three months, have an additional challenge to overcome. However, with the right goals and motivation, it’s possible to build the processes and a qualified, trusted team to make sure you can hit your targets, satisfy all the LAT requirements and still have 10-12 weeks off every year.

3. Don’t wait for retirement

Many dentists assume they have to work full time, taking only 3-4 weeks holiday a year in order to maintain their lifestyle, keep up their pension payments to provide for their retirement, at which point they hope to finally take a substantial break or a dream holiday when they’re in their 60s, 70s or 80s

I’ll never forget the experience of one of my first clients. I met him when he was already retired. He had spent his entire working life, looking forward to his retirement as it would provide the opportunity for him to play lots of golf.

Unfortunately, by the time he’d sold his business, his health failed him and he wasn’t able to walk a full 18 holes. My advice to clients is to enjoy the journey - make time to invest in hobbies and interests during your career, rather than waiting until some future day.

As Ursula K. Le Guin says in The Left Hand of Darkness – “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”

4. Looking after your physical and mental health

The average dentist spends 7-8 hours a day, 4-5 days a week, in a small room often in awkward positions. Despite what you may already invest in specialist dental chairs and equipment and maintaining a good posture, spending hours every day in one position can lead to neck and lower back pain.

Taking regular time-out and at least one 3-4 week holiday every year is a great opportunity to give your body and mind a break from your daily routine and recharge your batteries. You can then come back refreshed, re-energised and ready for work again.

5. Create a plan

The start of a new year is an ideal time to block out the dates you need for your holidays and breaks this year. If you’re not quite ready to book a full 12 weeks off, you can start building towards it by working out what you need to do differently (such as team training days, negotiating with your principal, organising your finances) and setting aside some time later this year to plan your breaks for 2024.

I heard a great anecdote from a practice owner recently who wanted to plan his diary so he could work 24/7. What he meant was working 24 days a quarter, 7 months a year. I’m not sure I’d ever manage that, but I guess it’s great to have an “end to journey towards”

Thomas Dickson is a Chartered Financial Planner at Wealthwide.

To speak to one of our advisers about creating a financial plan, you can contact Wealthwide here www.wealthwide.co.uk or by email at team@wealthwide.co.uk

Please be aware of the following investment risks

• The value of your investment can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount invested

• When investing your capital is at risk

• Levels and bases of, and reliefs from taxation are subject to individual circumstances and may be subject to change

• The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate taxation and trust advice

• Information is provided only as an example and is not a recommendation to pursue a particular strategy