Farid Noie

I believe that if you give your patients or customers a peace of mind, then they are going to remember the excellent service you had provided them.

 

Farid Noie is an Implant and Cosmetic dental specialist and the founder of Unicare Center for Cosmetic & Implant Dentistry, located in Webster, Texas. A graduate of The University of Texas School of Dentistry, he received his Doctor of Dental Surgery in 1995. From there, he began his career as a cosmetic and general dentist which he did for three years and then realized that he needed to help his patients beyond just teeth restoration and cosmetic smile makeover. He then continued his post-doctoral training in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at the prestigious New York University over the next 4 years. Upon completion of his surgical training, Dr. Noie became very proficient in oral surgery, dental implants, treating all kinds of oral pathologies as well as Sinus lift, Guided bone and tissue regeneration and full mouth rehabilitation.

Farid Noie believes patients and their dental surgeon should work together as a team to achieve a perfect smile. He wanted a unique practice where high-quality care is a priority and where each patient walks out with a healthy and beautiful smile. His 24-years of experience has helped tens of thousands of patients achieve a better quality of life. Today, his practice is one of the top dental offices in Southeast Texas. Farid Noie is passionate about his work, and it shows. When Dr. Noie is not working in his office, he enjoys mentoring and teaching other dentists, boating, auto racing, and spending a lot of time with his family.

When did you know that you wanted to be a dental surgeon?

I started thinking about dentistry as young as nine or ten years old. I was just 9 years old when my father was forced to wear partial dentures, and that is when I realized how it changed the quality of his life. He couldn’t eat with his partial dentures, so he took them off to eat, except he had a hard time eating without them as well. It was a lose-lose scenario. He started having his own type of food that he could chew. I remember to him eating became more of a chore than a pleasure. Around that time, I made two general observations that changed the course of my life:

1) I had way more issues with my teeth and dental cavities than most of my peers.
2) My dad as well as my uncles and grandfather had a lot more problems with their teeth than most people.
So then, I began lecturing all the kids in my school about benefits of good oral hygiene. Around the school I became known as the dentist and several years later, I became a dentist to help others achieve a healthy mouth and teeth fulltime!

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

I usually have a meeting with my staff around 7:15 in the morning for 15 minutes to go over the day’s procedures and patients. We then typically perform our first surgery around 7:30 a.m. I am so fortunate to work with a group of highly skilled professionals that share my passion for restoring quality of life through replacing lost dentitions with dental implants that look and feel like natural teeth. My team has been with me for a very long time, and they’re top notch. Once we prep the patient for their operation and review what should be expected, I establish IV line to draw blood and start deep sedation. We then scrub and gown up for surgery to the most strict standards. Once we are finished with the operation and the patient is released to their escort, we move to the patient who is ready to go. In the afternoon I mostly do my post-op visits and prosthodontic aspect of my practice. I’m generally on my feet all day long and love every minute of it. I have practicing my craft in the same location in Southeast Houston for over 22 years and still feel like a kid in the candy store, everyday!!
By the evening, when I come home, I focus on personal matters, family and friends and try to keep up to date with the local and national news.

How do you bring ideas to life?

I begin with something I call “wide spectrum research”. I learn everything that I can about the topic. I collect bits and pieces of related information or images and put them on an Idea Board. I attend chat groups and get as many interested professionals involved as possible. We then brainstorm as a group on the “Idea Board” and rearrange and modify until a clear procedural flow and benefits are established. I then set a series of safe parameters and expectations in place and offer to perform that procedure on qualified and willing volunteers free of charge, making sure they fully understand the benefits and possible side effects of the experimental procedures. For example, say I wanted to establish a new procedure or modify an existing procedure to rehabilitate pneumatized maxillary sinus to better allow a more predictable dental implant placement with a shorter waiting period. I also use the same technique to determine whether a commonly performed complex procedure is something I want to incorporate into my practice. I first learned about a popular procedure in implant dentistry called “All-On-Four” when qualified patients could have all their hopeless teeth removed and replaced with dental implants while fully sedated and sleep and they can go home and eat dinner that night. At first, I was a bit skeptical since it defied conventional wisdom. But after putting this procedure through my “wide spectrum research” protocol for about 15 months and several volunteer trials, I concluded that this procedure is predictable and wildly popular by patients. So, I incorporated “All Teeth in a Day” procedure in my practice and have performed hundreds of them since then with over 98% success and 100% satisfaction rate.

Finally, I go through a third phase where I identify a patient who would be a good candidate for the new procedure and inform them that I have incorporated a new procedure that could potentially improve their overall dental desires and needs. I also invite other colleagues to come and watch the procedure live and exchange ideas and share knowledge, so they can in return help their qualified patients and spread the word.

What’s one trend that excites you?

The one trend that I have been excited about has been extraction and incorporation of patient’s own “Platelet Rich Fibrin” as well as other growth factors into the surgical site to help reduce post-op healing time from days to hours. I collect about four to six vials of blood prior to start of the sedation. We then centrifuge and isolate the fibrin in the blood into a very strong membrane and help enrich the donor tissue with patient’s own unique cells.

I am also very excited about the incorporation of patient’s own stem cells from the pulp of a freshly extracted tooth and converting it into any other cell. They can provide a patient with specialized cells that so far has only been possible through a cumbersome donor matching program.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

Well, in my world, the term “good enough” is just not good enough. I am the type of person who does something over and over until I master it. I want to be able to completely dissect and understand the subject matter so well that I can explain it to a fourth grader in layman’s terms, and he/she completely understands it and will be able to ace any test on that subject matter. I believe most impossible obstacles contain multiple solutions within them that have not been discovered yet. I have found that no matter how well I perform any procedure, I can always improve on it as I perform it repeatedly.

Author Malcolm Gladwell in his bestselling book called “Outliers” argues that one can become proficient in any skill by spending about 1000 hours practicing it. That will be roughly 4 to 5 months at 8 hours a day. However, after studying hundreds of masters in their field from Beethoven to Mozart to Einstein and Bill Gates, he concluded in order to master any skill one needs to spend around 10,000 hours practicing it. That translates to practicing your desired skill 8 hours a day, 6 days a week for about 5 years. His observations are not supported with scientific data but in my opinion holds a fundamental truth. To achieve mastery level in any particular thing, we have to be willing to put in the time that it takes for our brain to completely get it and be able to teach that skill to any 10-year-old. So many people put in enough time to learn something but not enough to master it.

What advice would you give your younger self?

I would tell my younger self the same thing John Addison “Author” told himself. Ninety nine percent of the things you worry about never happens. Dream more, worry less and enjoy every minute of every day. It goes fast. Stop focusing on what might happen and reach for the stars.

I would tell the younger me to be patient and choose gradual as opposed to immediate. Have a healthy respect for time and don’t try to trick mother nature. At the end of the day, mother nature and time will come up on top.
I would tell the younger Farid Noie to always speak the truth regardless of consequences. A lie comes handy in the beginning and can save us from feeling embarrassed, ashamed, or in trouble. But unfortunately, it will soon become more trouble than its worth. Maintaining a lie is very labor intensive and jeopardizes your reputation and people’s trust in you. Besides, a lie will eventually be revealed. It will be a matter of when, not if.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on?

I humbly but strongly believe that mainstream economic indexes such as GDP (Gross Domestic Product) are obsolete and should not be used to determine the health or prosperity of a nation’s economy or its place in the world. Most economic analysts still judge the strength or growth of a nation by its GDP. For example, Japan was considered a strong and growing economic powerhouse throughout 1970s. It was considered the second largest economy behind the United States. But over 25 years of relatively flat and even shrinking per capita GDP it has lost its economic status and was replaced by China as the second largest economy.
Somehow if a nation’s per capita GDP is not growing at a steady rate, it is considered flat or a shrinking economy. I believe such indexes are outdated and not based on today’s reality. It was designed during the industrial and manufacturing era. It does not apply to the current AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology driven era. Lower GDP does not necessarily mean shrinking economy. Consider two nations with equal GDP; meaning prices multiplied by products per capita is the same. If the following year Nation A has a 10% increase in prices due to an increase in cost of energy, its GDP will increase to 110% and is considered growing. If Nation B could manage to reduce the cost of goods by 50% due to a new technological innovation, its GDP will be cut in half and will be considered shrinking. That does not pass my common-sense test. Japan’s economy is flat because its technological advances have reduced the cost of goods. That means the average Japanese have more buying power today regardless of its GDP standings.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

We are all in the business of making, gaining, and maintaining satisfied clients. Professionally, I always strive to make sure each procedure I perform is affordable, painless, and convenient for the patient. If I can satisfy my patient by modifying an outcome without compromising the function or quality, I would do it in a heartbeat. I have learned that arguing or lecturing a patient does more harm than good.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

The one thing I do to help me grow my practice is to stand behind my work and dental skills. I believe that if you give your patients or customers a peace of mind, then they are going to remember the excellent service you had provided them. Then they spread the word to their friends and family members.

What I also do is when I’m finished with any procedure, whether it’s simple or complex, I schedule my patients for periodic follow up visits to make sure they are healing right. I also give them the peace of mind by insuring the quality of my work so long as they maintain good oral hygiene and come for their routine checkup and cleanings. This is for the rest of their lives, so if anything goes wrong, then I am here to correct whatever problem they may have at no cost to them. Even if the patient is from out-of-state, I invite them to fly in so I can keep maintenance on their oral health. We cover the costs of their stay while they’re in town for their appointment. My patients seem to appreciate that and are more than happy to oblige.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

Since I have been in business, I have learned that the quality of your staff has a direct effect on the satisfaction of your services and the happiness of each customer. They may be happy with my services, but if my staff isn’t up-to-par, then it can make a patients experience as bad as doing shoddy work. My team doesn’t have to be fancy, just friendly and down-to-earth. There was a time where I had some people who were working for me, who did not do too well with the patients, and it reflected poorly on myself and my practice. I ended up adding some new employees and got rid of the ones who were causing problems, and now things are running smoothly, and my clients are very impressed by the increase in customer care by each member of my team.

To me, it is far more essential to have a great support team then getting into the technical aspect of what you do, to make sure that things are running smoothly. When I first began, I didn’t know that it took more than just my ability to create healthy smiles. I figured that my business would build with the results of each procedure that I do. But it is honestly more complicated than I initially thought. It’s all about the people who work for you, and if they can perform their job well.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

No matter what kind of business you decide to start, at the end of the day it’s not about what you do on the job. It’s about the people you work with and the individuals you serve. Our job is to make sure that each person we come in contact with is 100 percent satisfied. We must focus on those who work with us every day and those we strive to help when they walk through the doors of whatever business we are running. To me, that is more important than saying what type of business another person should start because they will choose something they’re passionate about.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

This happened a few days ago. This guy came in with his wife and child, and they were selling cupcakes. He and his family were going door-to-door with these cupcakes and were trying to sell them all over the area. When they walked in the door, my friend told them that there is no soliciting allowed, and I walked in to find out what was going on. The guy said “my car is broken down and we had the ingredients to make cupcakes, so my wife made some so we could sell them and get our car fixed.” So, what I did was give him and his family $100 for a cupcake to at least help towards the repairs to their vehicle. I told the guy that he could keep the change for the cupcakes and the rest of their batch. So, in theory, I spent $100 on a single cupcake so I could help a family out in their time of need.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive? How do you use it?

The one piece of software that has helped me with being productive is called i-CAT Vision, which came with my CT machine that I use in my office. I love it because I can virtually perform surgery as a way to practice my technique a few times before I touch a patient and it also allows me to read any x-rays and reports for every person whom I see in verbatim. This software has certainly helped me with my practice over the years, and they have university type lessons that help anyone who is new to their program learn it with ease.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

I honestly love your questions. The one book that I sincerely recommend is by Stephen Covey, and the book is, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People“. I read this book every night before I go to bed because Mr. Covey gives you easy to accomplish goals to achieve and simple steps to reach these goals with ease. I first bought the book over 25 years ago, and I will finish it, and then I will return to reading the book for reference. Honestly, it has changed my life for the better. These seven simple to achieve habits are ones that Stephen Covey feels all successful people have in common, and I will say, this book is fantastic.

What is your favorite quote?

There are so many quotes to choose from that have been inspiring to me throughout my life. The one quote that I have in mind and is very crucial, Jim Carrey the comedian and the actor said years back, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that money and fame is not the answer.”
You find your real happiness in people and relationships you develop over time, not in money. So many people devote so much of their time to pursue wealth and fame just to be disappointed that the happiness they find is so transitional and loses its thrill within months. Time and relationships are the cornerstone of any happiness!

Key learnings:

● Your business must be something that you are passionate about, that can make a positive impact on people around the world.
● Remember that at the end of the day, it’s not just about making yourself happy, but making sure that you’ve made your customers happy and did the best you can.
● To achieve success, one must have a great support team to stand behind you.
● Always go above and beyond to help others and let them know that they matter too.
● To find happiness, look at the people who are around you, and not what is sitting in your wallet.

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