Dr. Desiree Yazdan is a committed citizen determined to leave the world a better place than she found it.
Desiree Yazdan is a doctor, an advocate, a mentor, a wife, an athlete, a world traveler. A graduate of the University of Southern California with a Doctor of Dental Surgery and a Master’s degree in Craniofacial Biology, Dr. Yazdan stands out in her field. With a well-established clientele at the Center for Restorative and Cosmetic Surgery, her remarkable success has placed her alongside the west coast’s leading cosmetic dentistry practitioners. Her journey to becoming the Smile Whisperer—a title she rightfully earned in Orange County—was informed by personal experience. Born with severely misaligned teeth that caused her embarrassment to smile, she began at a very young age to explore what eventually morphed into a passion. Having experienced a series of unpleasant visits to the dentist, she inherently understands the importance of providing her patients with a trauma-free experience that allows them to smile again.
Her services are never limited to performing the required treatments, as she takes great pride in educating her patients, both current and potential, on the benefits of oral care. Dr. Yazdan also uses her Instagram (@dryazdan) to share valuable and informative advice with her followers, featuring counsel for future dentistry students on navigating the world of college applications.
5 Questions for Dr. Yazdan
How do you manage career, family, life, while still carving some time for you?
I have a few rules. I have set times that I work in or on my business, and when I’m working, that’s what 100% of my focus is on. When I’m not at work, I am dedicated to being present in the moment. Whether that’s with family, or tending to myself. I make sure my husband and I have a date night each week, we try to see our families at least once a week, and I also make sure that I listen to my own needs, whether it is nail or hair appointments, or various fun activities, so that I make sure that I take care of myself. Also, my husband and I like to schedule vacations every other month or so, whether they are big or small, so that we can get away and focus on ourselves!
What are the most difficult challenges you face in business?
Since we tend to never learn anything about business while attending professional school, everything business-related was a challenge. Meaning understanding how to hire the right people for each position, managing staff, implementing systems in the workplace to make things run smoothly, having open communication with the team, learning how to delegate tasks and hold people accountable on your team so that you’re not doing everything yourself. All this was a work in progress, alongside the typical trial and error period, for a quite a long time. We have continued to improve things behind the scenes, but initially, everything was a challenge! Being a business owner is no joke, and you have to dedicate yourself completely to it in order to succeed.
How did your personal story influence the way you conduct yourself as a doctor today?
I remember being a patient in dental offices growing up. I didn’t have the best of experiences. So, when I decided I wanted to go into dentistry, I went back and thought about all the things I didn’t like about going to the dentist. The worst part was that I never knew what the dentist was doing, and I didn’t feel like the dentist cared about me. So, I made it a point to show all my patients that I genuinely care about them first. No matter what, they come first. I make an effort to understand who they are and what they need, and then I create a specific treatment plan with that in mind. I always come from a place where they know I care about them. Moreover, I also make sure they are aware as to what I’m doing when I’m working on them. It helps take the scare out of the chair
You mentor students about their career path. How do you specifically help and guide them?
I have let students shadow me, and I teach them the things they don’t learn in school, like patient management, and the behind the scenes business strategies. I also go to many professional schools and give lectures about branding, marketing, and social media, and teach the students how to start thinking about their future businesses and what they can get started on now.
You and your travel are world travelers, what is your favorite destination and why?
One of my favorite places to travel to is London. I love the city so much. It’s clean, with beautiful flowers everywhere. I love the accent, and I love tea time. It’s the only place in the world that I’ve visited that I feel I could live in. I also like that you can hop on a plane or a train and travel to other parts of the world in just 1-2 hours. Whenever my husband and I plan our vacations, we try to stop in London, even if it’s for 1-2 days. It makes us happy just being in the city!
Follow her on Instagram: @dryazdan
