The Dental Hygiene Chronicles was born on February 4, 2020. It was created by a dental hygienist for dental hygienists about all things dental hygiene and beyond.
The heart of The Dental Hygiene Chronicles is dental hygienists and their stories. We all love a good story, especially told by a dental hygienist. It inspires and ignites us.
Recently, a dental hygienist wrote me asking if she could be a guest blogger on The Dental Hygiene Chronicles. She sent me her article and I loved it!
Tequila Cousar is a Registered Dental Hygienist in Columbus Ohio who wrote an ebook www.dentalhygieneboss.com. This is her article, I think you will find it insightful and inspiring. Thank you Ms. Cousar for your valuable and timely contribution to The Dental Hygiene Chronicles and to all dental hygienists reading this.
How Dental Hygienist Must Scale Up In The Crisis
In 2019, so many of us had a big picture of who we wanted to become and how we wanted to show up in our lives for 2020. None of us ever saw our careers coming to an abrupt hault, as we have experienced in the dental hygiene community. In complaince with COVID-19 regulations, dental hygienists were first in line to contract this deadly virus, and the Dental Board mandated that we discountinue working until further notice.
Shock, devastation, appalled and unprepared were most responses to this news. For some, this was your only source of income. How do you handle this? What should you do next? I know that it is hard to unravel this but I hope some of the ideas I give you will make sense and inspire you to take action now! In this time you must be a dental hygiene warrior! While others contract, we expand. Warriors understand while others are divesting, we invest.
We have to be ready for expansion. We have to seize this moment and here is how:
1. Tell people what support you need. Too often, people think they know what we need. This is the time where you let people in your life know how they can help you through this difficult time.
2. You are not alone and not the only one. This didn’t just affect our profession, but this affected millions of other professionals. Until this thing is handled, it will continue to affect individuals and families. Just know that, you are not alone, we are here with you.
3. It is ok to get frustrated but don’t let it get in the way of you moving forward. Listen, you are not ok and that is ok. No one expected this to happen, but you must find a point to move forward in your life. Your family needs you, especially your children. They don’t even understand how historic and devastating this is! But you have to find your peace with it and move forward.
4. Find support- find someone to talk to and let them know how you need them. I know it seems as if I said it twice but your friends and family are a web of support. Some people will try to tell you what to do but if you’re not in that place yet, let them know. Sometimes you just need someone to vent to and that’s ok.
5. This is important, after you have a mindset shift and this tends to happen to people who have been laid off or furloughed, they get out of feeling terrible about things to excitement. You now realize that you have time to start doing other things that you have put on the back burner. This can be really exciting!
6. Take care of necessities. Make sure you have the things you need for living taken care of (such as food, shelter, utilities, etc.). This will open up the availablity for things you can pursue next.
7. Identify what your next steps are. Whatever you wanted to pursue, you now have time to pursue, such as freelancing, a new job, or even being a full-time parent. You must first get a vision of how this looks and start researching and writing out a plan of what you need to do in order to achieve this.
8. Start educating yourself. Depending on your next step, you could join a community or start reading books that will educate you on the “how-to’s” for this particular arena,
Getting laid off was a little different than when I quit my job. In 2011 after the birth of my daughter, my husband and I decided that I would put my career as dental hygienist on hold to be a full-time mom. I was super excited about this decision but very scared. I had no plans or financial backing to support this decision. I went through a lot of what most people are going through now. I didn’t know what was next. There were days that I would cry and ask myself “Did I make the right choice?” One day, I decided that this was a choice that I made and I was going to have to deal with it. So, I picked myself up and started identifying some things I could do from home to make an extra income. I began rebuilding my income, which replaced 70% of the total lost as a dental hygienist. I continued to focus on my skills, became a Certified Life Coach and Business Strategist.
I returned back into the workforce as a dental hygienist in 2018, because my purpose for being a dental hygienist was unfinished, only to be laid off due to CORVID-19. Yes I was as shocked as you were but because I had a plan and other income still functioning, it allowed me to pivot and focus on other skills and talents that I’d developed while away from the profession.
If you are reading this right now and do not have a plan, I get it and it is not your fault. Don’t look at this as a crisis, but find opportunity in the crisis and adapt to what has happened. In light of this situation, a lot of people will be looking for a new job or must start a business. So reinventing yourself is important.
Know that there is power in the pivoting. You have the skills, wisdom, and drive to succeed now! Over the last year, I created an ebook, Dental Hygiene Boss, that I know will help so many dental hygienists at this very moment. This ebook will show you how to dissect your skills and identify a side hustle that fits what you love doing on a part-time or full-time basis. So when and if, you return back to your job, you will have a plan B.
You can get this eBook at www.dentalhygieneboss.com
BIO:
Tequila Cousar resides in Columbus, Ohio, and is a proud wife and mother of 2. She is the owner of Intoxicating Hearts, LLC. She is a Master Motivational Speaker, #1 International Best Selling Author, Workshop Facilitator, Certified Life Coach, and Registered Dental Hygienist, who specializes in personal branding and business consulting. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University and Central Michigan University.
Titles: RDH, BSDH, MHA
Website: www.tequilacousar.com
Email: intoxicatingheartsllc@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tcousar1
Instagram: https://instagram.com/tequila_cousar
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tequilacousar/
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If you are interested in being a guest blogger on The Dental Hygiene Chronicles, I invite you to email Annamarie at annamariepam@gmail.com
