Dr. William "Woody" Oakes has been named one of the "Giants of Dentistry" and one of the "Top Clinicians in CE" by Dentistry Today magazine... but it was a long journey to the top.

Woody graduated from Indiana University Dental School (at the IU Medical Center in Indianapolis, Indiana) in 1974. He graduated in the lower third of his class, held down three part-time jobs and graduated with over $100K in debt.

He started practice as an associate and opened his own practice two years later after discovering that the owner-doctor of that practice was an alcoholic and was guilty of Medicaid fraud.

For the next six years in his own practice, he barely made a profit. He was evicted from two apartments for failure to pay the rent, and for a brief time had to move back home and live with his parents.

His only form of transportation back then was a rusty, 1961 Volkswagen with a hole in the floorboard on the driver's side.

Desperate to become a success in dentistry, every time he got the chance... he drove that old Volkswagen to a successful dental office to look "over the shoulder" of the dentist, take notes and learn all that he could.

Finally, his small practice in New Albany, Indiana (in a bad part of town) started to turn around. In fact, it began to do so well that Woody wrote a practice management book - The Winning Combination - and sold it to other dentists in hopes that it might help them.

That little blue book went on to sell over 100,000 copies and remains today as the #1 best-selling dental practice management book ever!

By the early 90s Woody's practice was producing over $1,000,000!

Because of the book and the incredible success of the practice... Woody began to get speaking invitations nationwide and started Excellence in Dentistry Inc., an information marketing company that publishes The Profitable Dentist Magazine, promotes national seminars, has a tape of the month/CE credit club, sells products and provides an elite coaching club program for dentists.

Back in the days of driving that rusty Volkswagen and struggling to pay his bills... few would have predicted Woody's rise to success and his tremendous impact on the dental profession.

Woody is living testimonial to the concept that hard work and perseverance pays off!