DR. CHRISTIAN COACHMAN, the influential founder of Digital Smile Design, has launched a weekly podcast, Coffee Break With Coachman, in which he sits down with noted dental figures. He recently spoke with Kirk Behrendt, the founder of ACT Dental and one of the industry’s leading speakers and consultants. Among the highlights:

Behrendt: At age 24, I just decided to go on a journey and see what was out there. I ended up landing in Scottsdale, [Arizona], and there’s a lot of opportunity there. I got to be a part of one of the biggest coaching companies, and it was so much fun.
Coachman: Focusing mainly on dentistry, or consulting, or what?
Behrendt: I bounced around to a lot of different things. I went to the Pankey Institute. I’d never heard of it. I thought it was a peculiar name. Then I went to the Dawson Academy. I had a mentor, and he told me, “You’re going to watch a dentist talk for three days, and he’s 64 years old.” I was like, “I’m 24. I’m not going to watch this!” Because what I know now is that when you’re in your twenties, you have it all figured out—and then you turn 30, and you say, ‘Man, there’s a lot I don’t know.’ Then, at 40, you wonder if you know anything. That doctor I listened to? It was Peter Dawson.

DR. CHRISTIAN COACHMAN, 44, is the founder and CEO of Digital Smile Design (DigitalSmileDesign.com). He lives in São Paulo, Brazil, with his wife, Nicoly, and their three sons. (A baby girl is on the way.) Incisal Edge recently named Dr. Coachman No. 19 on its annual list of the 32 Most Influential People in Dentistry.

Below, view the complete “Coffee Talk With Coachman” podcast with Kirk Behrendt, the founder of ACT Dental and one of the industry’s leading speakers and consultants: