Episode #344

20/20 Money Episode #344 – The power of community, stopping the “race to the bottom,” educating ODs on practice affordability, discussing the Associate OD shortage, and more with Dr. Mick Kling, OD

June 9, 2025

Welcome to this episode of 20/20 Money! My guest on today’s show is Dr. Mick Kling, OD.

Mick joins me back on the show to talk about the power of community within the profession and how optometrists can avoid the “race to the bottom” when it comes to pricing by focusing on delivering and communicating value to their patients. We also discuss how to evaluate the affordability of a practice, the tools available to help aspiring owners make informed decisions, the current shortage of associate ODs, and the importance of building strategic partnerships throughout a practice owner’s career. Be sure to check out the show notes for a number of helpful resources we reference throughout our conversation.

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, be sure to subscribe to our monthly “planning life on purpose” newsletter that’s filled with tips and ideas to help you plan your best life, on purpose. You can also set up a Triage conversation to learn a little bit more about how we serve in the capacity of a personal and professional CFO: helping OD practice owners around the country reduce their tax bill, proactively manage cash flow, and make prudent investment decisions both in and out of their practice to ultimately help them live their best life on purpose. Lastly, if you’re interested in learning more about the 20/20 Money Financial Success Masterclass, a course & platform that we created to help ODs become “brilliant at the financial basics,” please check out the link in the show notes of this episode to learn more.

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And with that introduction, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Dr. Mick Kling, OD

Resources:

20/20 Money Membership Information

OD Masterminds Request Form

Adding an Associate Spreadsheet

The Buy-In Spreadsheet to help you evaluate whether a practice is worth buying, how much to pay, and what you’ll earn (Part of the Toolkit)

Vision Source – AOD open positions

Adding an Associate White Paper

Vision Source Next


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