Made With Love: How Intention, Culture, and Leadership Shape the Future of Your Dental Practice

What’s holding your practice back—poor systems or something deeper? In this episode of The Dental CEO Podcast, Dr. Scott Leune sits down with entrepreneur and leadership expert Seth Madison to explore how embracing love and intentionality—yes, love—can transform the way you manage your dental team, elevate the dental patient experience, and define a sustainable, fulfilling dental practice culture. This isn’t fluff. It’s a framework for building practices people want to work for and patients choose to return to.

About the Podcast: Why Dentists Listen Differently Here

The Dental CEO Podcast, hosted by Dr. Scott Leune, goes beyond clinical tactics and practice metrics to focus on leadership, mindset, and the business of dentistry. Each episode dives into conversations that challenge the status quo, helping practice owners build a business that aligns with their values and goals.

About This Episode: What If the Secret to Growth Is… Love?

This episode features Seth Madison, founder of FutureSight Labs and co-founder of Impact Eleven. Named one of the top 50 keynote speakers in the world, Seth brings insights from decades spent helping leaders prepare for change by reconnecting with what matters most—people. Together, Scott and Seth explore what it means to build a business made with love, and why this philosophy may be the most powerful strategy for long-term success in dentistry.

Learn more about the host and the guest

• Scott Leune is a practice growth strategist and founder of multiple dental ventures. His approach blends operational excellence with a sharp focus on leadership, culture, and innovation in private dental practices. Check out all the webinars hosted by Dr. Leune.
• Seth Madison is a business futurist and leadership advisor. Through FutureSight Labs, he helps leaders and organizations develop the mindset and skills to adapt, grow, and connect deeply—with their team and their audience. His philosophy centers on intentional human connection as a competitive edge, especially in a tech-saturated world.

Key Highlights

1. Dental Team Management Starts With Vision and Development

Scott emphasizes that most team turnover stems from a lack of connection and investment. He advocates for every team member to have clearly defined personal, professional, and financial goals—what Seth calls “PPFs.”

These goals should be:

• Established annually;
• Reviewed quarterly;
• Supported through weekly or monthly check-ins;

Why? Because you can’t grow your practice unless your people grow first. That means creating pathways for skill development, financial advancement (e.g., through bonus plans), and even supporting personal dreams—like traveling, fitness, or family milestones. For Scott, this isn’t optional leadership; it’s required stewardship.

2. The Dental Patient Experience Must Be Designed for Storytelling

Dr. Scott Leune believes that patients who leave your office without a story are unlikely to refer others or stay loyal. What turns a dental appointment into a memorable experience?

• Choreographed environment: Lighting, scent, sound, comfort features like weighted blankets or headphones
• Human connection: Staff remembering personal details and continuing meaningful conversations
• Clinical trust: Using technology like AI imaging or smile simulations to make patients feel informed and respected
• Intentional empathy: Taking time to listen, validate, and personalize the care experience

When these layers are in place, you create advocates—not just patients. And as Scott puts it, that story patients carry out into the world is your best marketing.

3. Your Dental Practice Culture Is Your Brand Infrastructure

Scott makes it clear: you can’t fake a positive dental practice culture. It starts from the top, and it’s defined by what the team sees, hears, and feels every day.

If you want your team to create amazing patient moments, they first need to experience that same care internally. From onboarding to performance reviews to daily interactions, leadership must reflect the same values they expect to see in staff.

Scott warns that burnout, indifference, and turnover are signs your culture is broken—or nonexistent. A choreographed patient experience is only sustainable if your team believes in it and is proud to deliver it.

4. Intentional Leadership Is the Antidote to Burnout and Mediocrity

Too many dentists are stuck in what Scott calls the “black hole of commoditized mediocrity.” These practices:

• Accept every insurance;
• Run overloaded schedules;
• Focus only on speed and volume;
• Deliver care that feels transactional;

Scott urges practice owners to rethink their time. Leadership isn’t something you “squeeze in”—it’s a role that requires structure. That might mean:

• Starting your day later to hold team check-ins;
• Leaving early to invest in family and personal health;
• Scheduling time weekly to reflect on practice improvements;
• Dedicating energy to team development and patient experience design;

Without this, the business may be productive—but not profitable, not joyful, and not sustainable.

5. Legacy Comes From What You Leave in Others

A recurring theme in Scott’s conversation with Seth is legacy. As Scott reflects, “Leadership means leaving a part of yourself in the work, in your patients, and in your people.” Your brand is not just what patients see online—it’s the sum of what your team communicates every day.

Do your current or past team members speak of your practice with respect? Would they call you a mentor, a coach, or someone who helped them grow? If not, it may be time to realign your leadership with the idea of love—not sentimentally, but operationally. As Seth puts it, “You can’t lead without love.”

Read more helpful articles on Scott Leune’s blog

Final Words:

This episode is more than a conversation. It’s a challenge to rethink how you define success in your practice. Love, in this context, means investing deeply in people—your team and your patients—and intentionally creating systems that reflect care. From dental team management and patient touchpoints to practice culture and leadership habits, every part of your practice can carry your fingerprint.

If you’re tired of running a practice that feels transactional, chaotic, or unfulfilling—listen closely. Because the next level of growth might not require more hustle. It might require more heart.