20/20 MONEY: The Business of Optometry

On this episode of 20/20 Money, I deviate a bit from the traditional topics of the show and talk about what investors should be thinking about and doing during market selloffs like we experienced last week. I actually bumped a previous episode to make room for this conversation just given the nature and timeliness of the events that occurred in the markets last week. I talk about the importance of having an investment philosophy, what you should be looking at with regards to your investment plan and timeline, the importance of understanding the amount of risk that you're taking in your portfolio by knowing the loss deviation of your portfolio, historical examples of market performance during epidemics and pandemics, and why it's a nearly impossible feat to try and predict or time the markets. As a reminder, you can get all the information discussed in today's conversation by visiting our website at integratedpwm.com and clicking on the Learning Center. While there, you can also set up a 15min pre-discovery conversation to learn a little bit more about what it means to work with our firm or check out any number of additional free resources like our eBooks and on-demand webinars. Pandemics, Portfolios, and Perspective ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

Hello, and welcome to this episode of 20/20 Money! My guests on today's show are Drs. Jennifer Stewart and Jeremy Ciano. Longtime listeners will know that both of them have been on the show a number of different times. Their business knowledge and practice insight has helped them each build and run very successful private practices. On today's show, we discuss one of the biggest decisions and factors that influence the gross revenue and thus profitability of an optometry practice: vision plans. Jeremy and Jennifer discuss their viewpoint on vision plans, the purpose with how they think about insurance plans, and how they understand the profitability of the plans in each of their respective practice. We also discuss how vision plans can be used as a way to "jump start" a practice that is thinking about adding an associate but why it's still important to make sure that you're being calculated and measuring the progress and impact of the plans after you add the associate to make sure that it's still a "win-win-win" for everyone involved in the equation. And be sure to stick around to the end of the program, where Jeremy and Jen again revisit why it's so important that you, as both the doctor and business owner, create a process in the practice that allows everyone to understand the different options that are available for patients and why it's so important for everyone (the doctor, the team, and the patients) to see through the trivial many features of each respective vision plan for the vital few benefits that are going to directly impact the patient. As a reminder, you can get all the information discussed in today's conversation by visiting our website at integratedpwm.com and clicking on the Learning Center. While there, you can also set up a 15min pre-discovery conversation to learn a little bit more about what it means to work with our firm or check out any number of additional free resources like our eBooks and on-demand webinars. And with that introduction, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Drs. Jeremy Ciano and Jennifer Stewart. Resources: Edge PMS Adam's sessions at Vision Expo East Jennifer's sessions at Vision Expo East ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

As the owner of a private practice, a question that you will inevitably ask yourself is "How much should I pay myself as the owner of my practice?" There are a number of different ideas and considerations to think about with regards to this question and in this show I talk through some of the different decision points that exist for a practice owner to consider which can influence how much they pay themselves. Profit First The Profitable Doctor My sessions at Vision Expo East (March 26-29 in NYC) All of Mick Kling's sessions at Vision Expo East Mick's Profit First Session at Vision Expo East Planning for the 199A deduction in your practice ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

In this episode of 20/20 Money, I talk about three important ratios that optometrists should understand using their balance sheet. There are three big financial statements that practices should always be analyzing, and I feel that the balance sheet is the one that gets the least love from ODs. During the conversation, I talk about how to calculate your quick ratio, your current ratio, and your debt service to outstanding debt ratio and what range each of those should be within your practice. ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

Hello, and welcome to this episode of 20/20 Money! My guest on today's show is Dr. Nysha Blender. Nysha joins me on the show to talk about her journey in optometry and how she ended up in a somewhat unconventional role as a medical science liaison with Ocular Therapeutix. On this show we talk briefly about her path in optometry and what caused her to go down this path of becoming an MSL and what it's meant to her personally, professionally, and clinically. She gives us an idea of "a day in the life of" and what has surprised her most about being in this position as well as how the compensation structure and numbers compare to her traditional clinical roles as an OD. We wrap it up with her answer to my one question I ask every guest. As a reminder, you can get all the information discussed in today's conversation by visiting our website at integratedpwm.com and clicking on the Learning Center. While there, you can also set up a 15min pre-discovery conversation to learn a little bit more about what it means to work with our firm or check out any number of additional free resources like our eBooks and on-demand webinars. And with that introduction, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Dr. Nysha Blender. Nysha's LinkedIn profile Ocular Therapeutix ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

Life insurance for optometrists is something that probably isn't the topic of conversation when ODs get together and chat, but it's an important part of a well-rounded financial plan. Unfortunately, there are many different options for life insurance and they're not all created equal, especially when you take into consideration the conflicts of interest that exist between you the client and the person selling you a policy. On this episode I share with you the basics of the different kinds of life insurance and which type of life insurance I believe is going to be satisfactory for the vast majority of ODs. I also talk about how I think about life insurance, a unique way to think about structuring your life insurance policies, how to determine how much you need, and how carrying debt on the practice can influence and impact your life insurance strategies. As a reminder you can get all the information talked about on today's show by visiting www.integratedpwm.com and clicking on the learning center. While there you can also learn more about our process, how we work with ODs around the country, and even set up a quick 15 min call to learn more about our firm. Life Insurance Needs Calculator https://www.selectquote.com/ https://llis.com/ https://www.zanderins.com/ ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

Hello, and welcome to this episode of 20/20 Money! My guest on today's show is Dan Zone. Dan's a VP and Senior Relationship Manager with Wells Fargo Commercial banking here in Indianapolis and is back for a second time on 20/20 money. What's unique about Dan, though, is that he has a big focus on serving those in "white coat professions" including optometrists and I wanted to have him on today to talk specifically about financing the sale of a practice from both points of view: the seller and the buyer. We start out our conversation by talking about the current state of the lending market and what changes he's seen since our first interview back in late 2018. We then get into the weeds on practice debt and really focus our conversation around how both parties in a practice sale should think about debt and their personal finances before and during the transaction. We talk a bit about how seller financing can be a component of a practice transition and ways to think about whether it's better to pay off your debt and be cash poor or be cash rich but balance sheet poor. Through all of our conversation, though, please know that everything that Dan and I talk about are his opinions and not those of Wells Fargo. You can find any additional resources that we talk about during the podcast by going to www.integratedpwm.com and clicking on Learning Center. There you'll find a list of show notes with links to any resources and additional contact information that we discuss on today's episode. As a reminder, please don't forget to subscribe so that you'll always know when a new episode is released. Without further ado, here's my interview with Dan Zone. Call Dan: 317-995-9087 Dan's LinkedIn profile ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

Hello, and welcome to this episode of 20/20 Money! My guest on today's show is Dr. Mick Kling, OD. Mick wears many different hats in the optometry community and spends a good deal of his time talking and consulting with other ODs around the country. In addition to owning Invision Optometry in San Diego, he is also the founder of Impact Leadership, an organization that helps ODs understand their practice's finances and how to use that information to run a more profitable practice, albeit through maybe a bit more of an "unconventional" approach compared to how your CPA or other consultants would have you look at your practice. Mick provides a unique perspective to the profession of optometry because in addition to participating personally in a number of practice transition transactions, some of which have involved private equity partners, he's also affiliated with Vision Source and serves in the role of a business coach with Vision Source-affiliated practices to help ODs understand where all the money is going in their practice. During our conversation, we talk at length about the idea of selling one's practice and a number of important variable and timelines for doctors to consider. We then discuss the details that a Vision Source franchised practice needs to consider when selling their practice and the pros and cons to selling their practice to another OD (and maintaining their Vision Source franchise agreement) or selling to a private equity firm or other 3rd party and dissolving their franchise affiliation. We also talk about the state of the economy and how the current access of cash has fueled transactions and why it's important to "plan for the best and prepare for the worst." We wrap it up with Mick's answer to my "one question" and a tease about a future topic that we'll discuss on another episode along with all of Mick's contact information. As a reminder, you can get all the information discussed in today's conversation by visiting our website at integratedpwm.com and clicking on the Learning Center. While there, you can also set up a 15min pre-discovery conversation to learn a little bit more about what it means to work with our firm or check out any number of additional free resources like our eBooks and on-demand webinars. And with that introduction, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Dr. Mick Kling. Impact OD Email Mick Call Mick: 619-379-2560 Vision Source ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

As the owner of an optometry practice, one of the benefits is being able to participate in not only the normal "earnings" that any other OD would make, but also the rewards of owning the practice in the form of profits. In this episode, we'll talk through the different ways in which ODs can pay themselves out of their practice, which starts by understanding how your practice files its taxes. From there, we'll discuss the type, timing, and frequency of how you can pay yourself out of your practice to satisfy both the practice's and your own financial goals. 1099 Hell Vision Expo: It's What You Keep That Matters Vision Expo: Thinking Outside the Box ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!

It's the start of a new year—the year of optometry!! Let's start out 2020 by talking about 5 financial topics that optometrists should be reviewing both in their personal and professional lives. We start out by talking about funding your Roth IRAs (especially if you're making those contributions via back-door Roth IRA conversions), HSAs, and 529s and also remind you to adjust your annual contribution savings amounts into your 401k or SIMPLE IRAs. From there, I talk about the importance of making sure that your chart of accounts is accurate, which will give you an accurate profit/loss statement to analyze in your practice to determine areas of the practice in which you can make incremental improvements over the course of the year. It's also the time of year to determine if and how much of a profit sharing contribution you may consider making within your practice's retirement plan and why this is the time of year to determine whether your plan is set up to maximize your own wealth building potential. I wrap up the conversation talking about the recent passage of the SECURE Act and why the recent passage of that legislation should give you reason to revisit your beneficiary designations, especially if you have a trust named as a primary or contingent beneficiary. Maximum Benefit and Contribution Limits for Retirement Plans ————————————————————————————— Please rate and subscribe to 20/20 Money on these platforms Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Play Stitcher ————————————————————————————— For past episodes of 20/20 Money with full companion show notes, please check out our episode archive here!