How Your Current Job Could Quietly Derail Your Future Practice Ownership

How Your Current Job Could Quietly Derail Your Future Practice Ownership

Thinking about owning your own dental practice? You’re not alone. For many doctors, the dream of practice ownership is what fueled them through boards, clinicals, and those 2 a.m. study grinds.

But there’s a silent trap that isn’t talked about enough:

Your current job could be the biggest threat to your future practice.

Yep—your employment contract, the one you may have skimmed and signed in the rush to start earning, might quietly lock you out of the very career you’re trying to build.

Let’s break this down.

Today’s Employment = Tomorrow’s Risk

When you're preparing for ownership, it’s not just about saving money or building clinical confidence—it’s also about protecting your future options. One of the most overlooked threats to that future?

Employment contracts.

Specifically, the kind with non-compete clauses and territorial restrictions that limit where and when you can open your own practice.

Sound dramatic? It is. And it's more common than you think.

Two Contract Clauses That Could Derail Your Ownership Dreams

1. The “Dream Town” Exclusion
Let’s say your heart is set on opening in your hometown—maybe it’s Harrisburg, PA.
But if your current job is in Harrisburg and you signed a non-compete that blocks you from practicing within a 10-mile radius for two years after leaving… well, you may have just signed away your dream.

We call this the “Dream Town Exclusion.”

These clauses are written to protect your employer’s turf. But for many doctors, they wind up unintentionally handing over their ideal future in the process.

2. The Olympic Ring Zone Problem
Working for a group or DSO? The risk is even higher.

Enter the “Olympic Ring Zone.”

Many group practice contracts restrict you not just from your current location, but from any location the company owns—now or in the future. Which means:

• You might be blocked from practicing in multiple cities or zip codes

• The group’s growth can expand your restriction radius

• You may find yourself boxed out of every place you actually wanted to open

One doctor we worked with was shocked to learn that his non-compete covered an 18-mile radius around several locations… including all the towns he had been considering for his startup.

Bottom Line: Don’t Let a Job Cost You Your Practice

Before you sign—or even consider—a new role, stop and ask:

• Does this opportunity align with my long-term vision for ownership?

• Will this employer’s non-compete restrict the area where I hope to open?

• Am I protecting my future options, or unknowingly giving them away?

A Few Steps You Can Take Right Now

• Review your current employment agreement with a dental-savvy attorney

• Keep a copy of your signed contract (seriously—many doctors don’t)

• Map your dream location and compare it with any current restrictions

• If joining a DSO or group, ask about expansion plans that could impact your radius

Looking Ahead with Confidence

At Ideal Practices, we’ve helped hundreds of startup-minded doctors navigate exactly this situation. Some caught it just in time. Others had to start over in a completely different region.

Don’t let your current job quietly close the door on your dream.

If you're thinking about ownership—whether next year or five years from now—now is the time to get strategic.

• Download the Startup Dentist Book for a real-world guide to startup success

• Use our free tool, the 12 Crucial Demographics Data Points, to evaluate your future location

• Or join us at the Startup Practice Blueprint to design your practice—your way, with strategy from the start

• Need help navigating employment risks or mapping your location options? Schedule a consultation call and we’ll walk through it together

• Want proof? See how other doctors have overcome contract hurdles and launched thriving practices on our testimonials page

You’ve worked too hard to get boxed out by a clause in fine print. Let’s build a practice—and a future—that’s truly yours.

—Stephen Trutter