I'm Thankful for the cerecdoctors.com Community
So as I was sitting back and looking at the calendar and I realized that today is November 23rd and its been exactly 4 and a half years since I sold my practice and moved to Scottsdale. This coming Saturday will be my 18th wedding anniversary. My oldest daughter just turned 16 last week and one month ago we finished construction on our new home and moved in. There has been a ton going on in the Puri family and its amazing how time flies.
You wake up one day and realize that if you blink twice instead of once, life just passes you by. I still remember sitting on the plane in July of 2011 with my then 12 year old who was bawling because we were moving to Scottsdale and leaving all her friends behind. She told me that I tore her away from her friends and she hated me. Not something a father wants to hear as he is trying to create a bigger and better opportunity for his family.
My wife was sad because we had no family in Arizona - all of our family was back home in LA. Luckily her sister and my brother-in-law decided to move at the same time as well due to a job offer for him otherwise I don't think she still would be happy here and chances are we would have moved back to LA.
While the cerecdoctors.com website and our courses were doing well, moving to Scottsdale was a huge gamble for the family and for me personally. I had a beautiful home in LA, I had a great practice with great staff in LA, we had all our family in LA. So why move? There were no guarantees in Arizona that things would bear any fruit or would lead to more rapid growth. Would it be worth it to uproot the family and move? Would it be worth the emotional toll that it would put on my family?
4.5 years later, I can tell you that I am eternally grateful for the all of the incredible support from the cerecdoctors.com community and all the incredible friends that I have made over the years that have led to an extremely successful transition from Los Angeles to Scottsdale. The gamble paid off and every year we have grown tremendously here at cerecdoctors.com. My family has never been happier or stronger. My kids are thriving and my wife is settled. Our parent company Spear Education is now at 130 employees with plans to grow further in 2016.
I'm eternally thankful for all the people who visit our workshops and give us great feedback so we know we are doing something right.
I'm eternally thankful for all of you that have sent me emails or messages on how cerecdoctors.com has had a positive impact on your lives and practice.
I'm eternally thankful for each and every single person that stopped me in Las Vegas for CEREC 30 to thank me for creating the cerecdoctors.com community and impacting their lives.
I'm eternally thankful for the love and support over the past few years as we have transitioned and grown the company to where we are today - the world leaders in CEREC education and support.
I'm eternally thankful for our partners at Spear Education who provide so much knowledge, wisdom and leadership to our CAD CAM division.
I'm eternally thankful for our leadership team who provides the vision for the future.
I'm eternally thankful for the incredible clinicians that I work with on a daily basis like Flem, Farhad, Skramy and so many others that make me a better person and clinician myself.
And finally, I'm eternally thankful for all of you - each and everyone that is committed to the highest level of patient care and is committed to make the CAD CAM world well respected and mainstream.
As we head into the holiday season, I want to give each and every single person my best wishes and a very safe and happy holiday season. Let's wind down the year, recharge the batteries and get ready for a strong 2016. As is the case every year, I'm sure there will be many great events, products, materials, techniques to discuss in 2016 as there have been in the past. As is the case every year, cerecdoctors.com will bring you the most up to date information with regards to the CEREC technology. This is our commitment, to bring you the best, most comprehensive CEREC knowledge for you and your team.
If there is anything I can do personally to make your CEREC journey more rewarding, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. If there is anything my team can do to make your CEREC journey more rewarding, reach out to me as well. This is my passion, my life, my journey and I'm thankful for all of you for sharing it with me.
Thank you for making this the most incredible online community in the world. Happy Holidays to you and your family!
Thanks Sam! Have a wonderful holiday season with your family and look forward to seeing you soon!
Very nice message Sam.
HUGE Thanks from me to YOU and the Scottsdale Crew and Mentors. This has really been practice-changing for me and I am loving it.
Have a wonderful holiday with family and friends.
Sam, I am thankful that I met you and all the team down in Scottsdale five years ago. You have played an important part in the success of my practice and rejuvenated my enthusiasm to come to work every day. Thank you for everything. All the best to you and your great group of staff.
I am thankful to have such a great leader to follow on my CEREC and life journey. Thanks Sam.
Aaron
Sam,
You said it all. Thanks for all you guys do out there. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.
Tom
my wife would like to say that she is thankful that you keep me on the road enough to keep me out of her hair.
Happy Holidays to the best community I have ever been associated with.
That's funny, my wife say the same thing. But usually adds, "at least you're with Rich, Pete, or Darin". HAHAHA
Happy Holidays everyone!
Beautifully said Sam.... and wonderful that this venture that has blessed you, has also blessed so many others.... Happy Thanksgiving!
Hear hear! Great Holiday toast Sam to all that is CERECdoctors! The Center and Staff in Scottsdale are top notch. Thanks for your leadership and vision to keep the ship moving in the right direction.
Sam , I am glad it all worked out for you and your family. Your personal and professional impact on all of us has been exponential...I can tell from the posts we all love what we do...how many professions can say that??? Also the incredible camaraderie and safe haven that you have created for all of us????Thank you thank you thank you!!!!!
Hey I'm beginning to get to that age where I'm just thankful to wake up in the morning. But yes Sam we do all have a lot to be thankful for in this crazy world we live in and that includes this Cerec community and all the hard work you, Mike, Mark and the many others do for us all.
Sam, you've done a great job and should be proud of what you've done and what you're doing. You've impacted all of us greatly....and I personally thank you. Congrats on the fine family and 18yrs, that is a hallmark in itself!
I'm looking forward to the future and enjoying the journey, and it sounds like you are too.
Risks and change can be really good...you've shown and experienced that.
Thank you,
JJ
Very well stated Sam - thanks to you and the entire team at the Center that helps us all be better......here's to a wonderful 2016!!
Sam,
We are all grateful for you and all that you do to make our Cerec experience better and better every day. I cannot begin to think what, not only my practice life, but life in general, would be like without you, Mike, Mark ,all your support staff, the great faculty presenters and all the great Mentors I have become friends with. I can't wait to get to my office every day because I am confident my staff and I can provide state of the science dentistry for our patients. All of us in the Cerec community are truly blessed to have you and each other.
Thank you Sam for making that move and what you have helped build in Scottsdale. I know participating with this group and with the courses have greatly impacted my practice and I am extremely grateful for what I have learned from you all. Happy Thanksgiving!
I suppose I better thank you as well. My wife on the other had.... depends on the day :)
Strange to think about how long it's been. The best is yet to come. Love my job and love the community.
Same here Sam, thanks to everyone at CD that keep us sane, addicted to our phones, and constantly up to date.
We missed you here in So. Cal when you left but obviously it was a great call on your part, and we have all benefitted from it.
Can't imagine being a "Cerec guy" without the help of you and your team.
Have a great holiday season.
Sam, I am thankful for all you do. It has been a pleasure knowing you. I had an assistant retire recently and my remaining assistant went home extremely ill today. I learned where things are kept today, but my efficiency sucked. Today, I redefined shorthanded so I couldn't spend much time at my desk. I would love to find a replacement for the one who retired, but nobody wants to work anymore. My receptionist, who has never been clinically oriented is trying to fill in when I need an extra pair of hands, but it is a struggle.
Having been in Scottsdale since almost the beginning, it's been great to watch the company grow under your leadership. It's fun having a second vocation I enjoy so much. Can't think of a better group to enjoy it with.
Rock on!!!!! 
Thanks to all of you for all the time and effort you put into making this community what it is.. Happy thanksgiving to everyone..
Thank you for having the vision and drive to create such an amazing community!
Happy Holidays,
Justin
Sam, I'm grateful to be invited to mentor for Cerecdoctors. You and the whole community have enriched my life professionally and personally. I appreciate all you do for others and you deserve the best of everything!
Good morning from Russia! I am 12 hours ahead of USA central time.
Just wanted to say hi to all my Cerec friends... And Thanks to Sam for the leadership & friendship. I still peek into cdocs occasionally
Have a great Thanksgiving this week!
Thank you for putting together this amazing community that have made learning so easy! Keep the great work.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone
Thank you Sam for building such an amazing community. This group inspires me everyday to keep learning and striving to perform at a higher level. Happy Thanksgiving.
Sam,
Wonderfully written, thanks for sharing your feelings. This has been the best move I made. I can't imagine not having this site to grow and learn from all of you. And give my input occasionally. So Thank You so very much for creating this site. I am looking forward to coming back to Scottsdale to mentor in April and seeing all of you again! Happy Thanksgiving to all of you.
Carrie
Sam,
We are so thankful to you and all the staff out in Scottsdale.
You all have changed our lives for the better. This is what makes Cerec so special.
Your story is amazing, and I appreciate your sharing it with all of us.
I can't wait to be out there in a few weeks!
I have not shared this story with many but should describe how truly thankful I am for Cdocs and Sam. In 07 I bought my practice. A few months later, the market crashed and my office was definitely having a tough time. I got an offer to speak with another person and try to build an advanced training business. Cdocs at that time was just starting. Scottsdale was just starting, there was no faculty, there was no mentor group, there was a message board that initially had a few posts a day max but was growing and I was just learning how to create keynote presentations and speak in front of people. The day that I got the offer to try and build this teaching opportunity, by the grace of God, Sam calls me. He tells me that the site is growing too fast for him to be able to manage. The classes are getting full and they need extra people to help with the live exercises. He tells me that he wants to start a faculty comprised of the people he trusted the most at that time. Those people were Flem, Skram, Gardell, Jeff Caso, Darren Greenhalgh and myself. We were all friends from Dentaltown and basically the only ones on that site posting cases (good and bad), answering questions and getting virtual arrows shot at us in all directions from non believers in the technology.
I was so excited, but with the office struggling, I had to ask how much it paid. Sam said that they definitely did not have the money to pay me but he had a vision for what he wanted cdocs to become and he wanted to do it with us. He said that he was building tons of great relationships with Patterson and branches around the country. He could not handle all the lectures they were asking him to do and he would keep me busy lecturing to help while I was building the practice. I was so torn. I had to choose between taking the low hanging fruit of getting paid right out of the gate, or take on this journey with some of my closest friends and the time and see what happens. Sam also said that whatever I choose, we will always be great friends. When I asked my wife, she told me right away to pick the low hanging fruit. Although it made sense from the initial financial aspect, I was not sure on the inside. I'm one who figures that If I do what I love, the rest follows. The number one thing in life for me is family and friends. I value and cherish those relationships more than anything. I believed in the vision that Sam talked to me about and figured that if this was not going to work out, I would be supported by friends who I thought of as family. I knew they would always have my back. I told Sam I was in. I told him that the sooner I could get busy lecturing the better. He said the words that would haunt me forever," BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!!"
It has been almost 8 years that I have been a part of this amazing group of people. There have been changes throughout the years but the most important constant has been the friends I not only started this journey with but have added along the way. I'm not talking acquaintance type friends either but friends that would take a bullet for you type of friends. This growth of this site has directly impacted my practice. I went from a practice on the brink to aligning myself with selfless successful people that taught me how to turn that around. I enjoyed what I did more than ever and I have traveled the world sharing my love for the technology and helping others to take on that journey too.
I always call this group of doctors "the most pay it forward people in the dental community". People like Sam have changed my life. I have worked hard to try and do the same. I'm thankful for not only the opportunities I have received from doing this for the last 8 years, but for the family I have gained for taking the journey. There is a lot of crazy crap going on in the world so it is a joy and a blessing to have this wonderful virtual world that we can immerse ourselves in and become better every day. Thank you Sam and everyone on here for helping to make my life the best it can be!
Awesome posts on here, gentlemen...it has been a wonderful experience getting involved with this community and getting to know so many new friends. Big thanks to Sam, Mike, Mark, and the CDocs team overall for creating an environment where we can discuss a variety of topics openly and honestly and learn from each other. A specific thanks to Rich for all the help he has given me over the last few years in a ton of different ways...Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Funny, I was just designing a bridge and could hear your voice guiding me through the design like one of your videos. Thanks Sam ( and all the rest) for making my practice, and life, more enjoyable.
I feel blessed to be one of the few that have heard that story and I'm so glad you chose the road you did Rich. We are blessed to have you in the leadership group. And Sam is right, "BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!" But if you listen to your heart, as you did, it typically works out pretty well.
Exceeding well done Sam. I admire your kindness, focus, and incredible talent.
I am sending a Meerkat for a house pet to solve what appears to have been your only significant problem in the last few years.....Scorpions.
Happy Holidays.
CEREC alone has impacted our lives and the lives of our patients. But CerecDoctors and CEREC together have taken all of us further than we could have imagined. Thanks Sameer for this journey!
Rich,
Very moving post. I wish I could meet you, would like to talk to you and get to know you. This site is SO incredible! How could we face all the changes without it. I couldn't and I'm sure I wouldn't have downloaded the software right after receiving it. Its guys like you Rich that keep us inspired. Thank you!!! So much.
Carrie
Can't imagine doing dentistry without Cerec, Galileos, and especially CerecDoctors Community.
I, like so many here, feel blessed and thankful.
Not much more to add that hasn't already been said. To say I wouldn't be where I am today professionally or personally without the people on this sight would be a gross understatement. Sam you have built a community unlike any other. The talent of the people that you have brought into the fold helps all of us elevate our game. Each year you surprise me with your out of the box thinking to bring more to this website and the CEREC community as a whole. The people I have met by being part of this group have become some of my closest friends. Hell I even met my long lost twin. Happy thanksgiving everyone. I know I am thankful for having a charmed wonderful life.
Thank you for sharing this post. Very inspirational. Life is about making tough calls and taking risks. Seems like if your heart is in it for a good reason, everything will fall into place.
happy thanksgiving everyone!
The only thing I could add to this is my personal thanks to Sam for envisioning this, and everyone else in this community for helping me to become reenergized in my career. The open attitude and forward thinking found here are unmatched. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
Thank you Sam for your incredible leadership and many thanks to your amazing and upbeat team who are always so kind and inviting every time I visit Scottsdale.
CEREC and CerecDoctors.com has without a doubt transformed my career, my practice, and my life. I am so much more happy and productive and my team has changed and adapted right along with me. My practice is full of leaders who believe in me and my patient's possibilities. None of this would be possible without the CerecDoctors.com community and Spear Education.
I am inspired everyday by what I read here and I have learned so very much from the members of this community. I never imagined 7 years ago when I first bought my CEREC that I would now be installing a Galileos and beginning that new journey. I also never thought I would be in the position I am now: leading a study club, mentoring and guiding other CEREC owners, traveling and learning constantly, and above all smiling and enjoying life so much more. All of this is made real by being a part of this awesome group of people.
I wish everyone here a truly Happy Thanksgiving and a fantastic holiday season. Be safe and eat lots.
All best to you all,
Winnie
I say this to every Dentist I meet, this is the greatest dental community/group I have ever been involved with! Nothing more can be said.
Happy Turkey Day!!
Sharpie
Finding Spear at the Scottsdale Center accidentally, then cerecdoctors, which led to implant learning... this has lead to the best years of my dental career. Young dentists (and older dentists) are so lucky to have all of you amazing people in the dental community.
Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving.
Sandi
This community has changed my life too, 2004 bought my first cerec machine and it changed my life, my way of beiing a dentist
Thanks to this community i am able to do what i do today and i love it
Thanks Sameer for sharing . I know we met only a few months ago, but i know you so much longer, i think from the beginning of cerecdocs ( i just was out for a period due to illness) but anyway i feel part of this community from the beginning
I wish you guys all the best for the next holiday month , let s hope that things get together here in Europe. ( going to ADF Paris tomorrow , think it is the most save city in the world at this moment) but you never know
Gratefull for all i got from you guys , many thanks
Fernand
Sam,
What a wonderful and heartfelt message. Thank you for the opportunity to be part of your team. You told me we will change dentistry and we are well on our way. I am so thankful for all the deep friendships I have formed along the way....I would love to list them all here but don't want to bore everyone.
It was Thanksgiving 3 years ago when I was home and being bored started posting on CDocs...From then on I got addicted and the rest is history for me.
Thanks again for these past 3 1/2 years and thanks in advance for what is yet to come.
Farhad
"Be careful what you ask for". Sam, thanks for asking "Why isn't there a website for Cerec dentists where they can freely exchange ideas and share their successes and failures without judgment from their peers?". And thank you for asking "Why isn't there an advanced training system in place for Cerec owners?". And thanks for then asking "How can we grow this community into the powerhouse it should be?". So thank you Sam, and the entire Scottsdale crew, for not only asking these questions, but for having the vision and determination to turn those questions into answers that benefit all of us. Your contributions to dentistry and this community are greatly appreciated.
