Are you avoiding those tough team conversations? You're not alone. Most dental leaders never learned how to navigate confrontation effectively—but what if you could transform conflict into clarity and build a team of superstars in the process? In this powerful episode, international speaker and leadership communication coach Katherine Eitel Belt shares her proven framework for having courageous conversations that strengthen relationships rather than damage them. With 35 years of experience, Katherine reveals why scripting fails, how to create an intentional culture by design, and the secret to making every team member want to say "yes" to your vision.

In this episode...

Katherine Eitel Belt's journey from a struggling 19-year-old dental assistant to one of dentistry's most respected leadership communication coaches began with a courageous conversation that changed her life. When her boss told her he needed "something different," he didn't just criticize—he invited her to step into a higher version of herself. That transformational moment became the foundation for everything Katherine teaches today about having difficult conversations that strengthen rather than damage relationships.

The core of Katherine's approach is the Leadership Conversation Trifecta: a three-part framework that starts with an Invitation Conversation from ownership, followed by regular Coaching Conversations with managers, and finally Courageous Conversations when boundaries must be held. The key distinction? Great leaders don't demand compliance—they invite commitment. When team members walk through the door each day, they're choosing to accept the invitation to work within the practice's vision, values, and standards. This paradigm shift transforms confrontation from something leaders dread into an opportunity to build superstars. Katherine emphasizes that managers often misunderstand their primary role, believing it's about coverage, problem-solving, or resource management. In reality, the number one job of any leader is to build other superstars—critical thinkers and mature communicators who will naturally solve problems and implement systems effectively.

The impact of mastering these conversations extends far beyond individual interactions. With 65% of performance issues and 50% of resignations tied to unresolved conflict, the financial and cultural costs of poor communication are staggering. Yet Katherine has seen teams completely transform when given proper training, becoming the place everyone fights to work and nobody wants to leave. Her golden advice? Before any important conversation, check your judgment and limiting beliefs. Approach with clarity about boundaries and inspiration about possibilities, but always from a place of "flow" rather than "mud"—meaning from optimism and respect rather than fear and frustration. As Katherine reminds us, leadership is an inside-out game, and you don't find great team members—you build them.

In this deeply personal episode of the Marketing 32 show, host Brett Allen welcomes Tija Hunter, a seasoned dental professional whose four-decade journey began at rock bottom—a 19-year-old single mother signing up for Medicaid after her high school sweetheart husband left her. What started as government assistance leading to dental assisting school transformed into a remarkable career that earned her recognition as one of the top 25 women in dentistry by Dental Products Report in 2015, Master status in the American Dental Assistants Association, authorship of "Rockstar Dental Assistant," and now the revolutionary Karma Calendar that's changing how practices manage compliance. Tija's transparent story reveals how mentors like Kevin Henry and Linda Miles (the "grandmother of dentistry") helped her overcome writer's block to complete her book in just three weeks, while her practical frustration with writing the same Walmart calendar compliance notes for multiple practices sparked the creation of a comprehensive digital resource launching November 1st. From traveling weekly between Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and Dallas teaching OSHA compliance to owning a cafe where hidden Jesuses remind patrons to slow down, Tija embodies her golden nugget wisdom: you're absolutely more capable of doing things than you ever thought possible.

In this episode...

Tija Hunter delivers a masterclass in resilience and resourcefulness, beginning with raw transparency about her origin story as a 19-year-old single mother at her lowest point. Her high school sweetheart husband had left her, and she found herself signing up for Medicaid with a baby, facing an uncertain future. The government assistance program offering school for single moms presented dental assisting as an option, which she chose based on positive experiences with her dentist and orthodontist. This seemingly simple choice launched a four-decade career that would eventually elevate the entire profession of dental assisting through education, advocacy, and practical tools. Her journey demonstrates how mentorship and relationship-building create exponential growth—working with amazing dentists who taught her what to do and challenging bosses who taught her what to avoid, all while building connections with industry legends like Kevin Henry and Linda Miles.

The Karma Calendar's origin story exemplifies practical innovation born from frustration. After spending three consecutive weeks handwriting compliance notes on Walmart puppy calendars for different practices—documenting when to test water, check plaster traps, and perform various maintenance tasks—Tija asked her girlfriend a "stupid question": Can I print a calendar with all this stuff on it? The answer launched a trademarked, copyrighted product that evolved from paper-only in 2022 to the comprehensive digital platform launching November 1st. The calendar addresses a critical gap in dental practice management: the beautiful aesthetic practice with perfect front office protocols and full schedules that unknowingly has a back office falling apart, creating ticking time bombs that could result in the nightmare scenario of appearing on the 5 o'clock news with patient infections or regulatory violations.

The calendar's evolution into a subscription-based comprehensive resource platform demonstrates Tija's commitment to continuous value delivery. Starting at just $159 annually, subscribers gain access to OSHA, HIPAA, and infection control checklists, maintenance protocols, front and back office resources, consent forms, morning huddle frameworks, insurance verification processes, and specialized content like waterline treatment protocols and the $40 spore test log book. The digital format enables dynamic content addition throughout the year as Tija encounters new challenges in her weekly travels between Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and Dallas teaching practices. Her closing golden nugget—that we're far more capable than we give ourselves credit for, rooted in faith in both ourselves and God—perfectly encapsulates how a Medicaid recipient single mom became a Master in her field and industry change-maker.

In this inspiring episode of the Marketing 32 show, host Brett Allen welcomes Anne Duffy, the unstoppable founder and CEO of Dental Entrepreneur Woman (DEW), whose 45-year dental career has been defined by championing women in leadership and creating opportunities where none existed. What began as a righteous anger response to a friend's devastating 360 review—where her smile was called "insincere" and accused of plotting against the company—transformed into a movement that now brings 250 women together annually for personal and professional development. Anne's journey from Ohio State dental hygiene graduate to corporate wife moving 10 times with three kids to accidental entrepreneur building the largest female dental professional network marketing group, and ultimately to media mogul with multiple publications, demonstrates her core principle: "Just do it—you don't need to know everything before you say yes." Her story reveals how a martini-fueled back porch decision to create Dental Entrepreneur Woman became the seventh annual retreat at the Ballantyne Resort, serving women across all dental career paths with the foundational pillars of love and leaning into God-given strengths through Gallup StrengthsFinder 2.0.

In this episode...

Anne Duffy delivers a masterclass in purpose-driven entrepreneurship, revealing how authentic anger on behalf of a friend became the catalyst for building one of dentistry's most influential women's communities. Her journey defies conventional entrepreneurial planning—from graduating Ohio State dental hygiene in 1974 to moving 10 times as a corporate wife while taking 6 state boards and raising 3 kids, to building the largest female dental professional group in OxyFresh network marketing, to buying and rebranding Dental Entrepreneur magazine, and finally to the martini-fueled back porch decision that launched DEW. This trajectory demonstrates her core teaching that waiting until you know everything guarantees you'll never start, while taking action before you're ready creates opportunities for growth and discovery.

The DEW community's explosive growth from 100 first-retreat attendees to consistent 250-person sellouts reveals the desperate need for women-specific professional development and peer support in dentistry. Anne's insight that even successful practice owners feel isolated—unable to call competitors down the street to share struggles or celebrate wins—explains why word-of-mouth organic growth sustained seven years of retreats without traditional marketing. The community's founding principles of no scarcity mentality, no gossiping, giving benefit of doubt, and the newest addition "the answers in the ladies room" create psychological safety for vulnerability and authentic connection across all career paths from hygienists to lab owners to marketing professionals to interior designers, united only by current or past dental industry connection.

The retreat format itself represents innovative thinking about professional development, eliminating traditional breakout sessions in favor of table-switching that ensures participants meet maximum people while keeping sponsors integrated as full participants rather than isolated vendors. The foundational pillars of love (in response to Anne's friend's devastating review) and Gallup StrengthsFinder 2.0 (which changed Anne's life 17 years ago) provide structure for personal and professional growth without pursuing continuing education credits until recently. The addition of Dress for Success partnership for donating suits and purses demonstrates how DEW extends impact beyond members to support women reentering the workforce, while the inclusion of 219 "DUDEs" (men supporting women in dentistry) acknowledges that transformation requires allies across gender lines.