The History of Hygiene Edge
Jessica Atkinson has long had a passion for two things– dental hygiene and education. Her career has consisted of these two elements in a variety of ways for several years. Back in 2014, as she was teaching at Utah Valley University, she started a YouTube channel to help her students practice good instrumentation when their resources were limited. Thus Hygiene Edge was born. Together with Shelley Brown and Melia Lewis, Jessica has helped advance legislation for Dental Hygienists. All three contribute to free, online educational videos to help students and practitioners.
Sharing Ideas
Jessica was a big believer that her idea would not have gone anywhere if she didn’t share it. In fact, when we operate with a mentality of scarcity, we often hold our ideas close and tight, get afraid to share them because we’re not sure if someone will take them. But when we have a mentality of abundance, when we have lots of ideas and opportunities, we open up. It’s almost like a self fulfilling prophecy. Because by sharing her idea, Hygiene Edge was born.
Desperation breeds innovation
We’re living in interesting times. And a lot of business owners and employees are feeling desperate. It’s easy to let that desperation lead to a mentality of scarcity. You don’t know when your next customer or patient will come in. You’re unsure of how you’re going to bring in more revenue. Jessica argues that this desperation breeds innovation… if we let it. We’re having to adapt. We’re doing many things differently than we’ve ever done before. None of us have lived through a pandemic. And the changes from this aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. So, Jessica would argue that there is no other option but to innovate.
We develop things when in isolation, but…
When hoarded, like supplies, ideas only last so long. They have a short shelf life. Have you ever noticed that if you don’t write that idea down, it vanishes? When we have a spirit of scarcity, we hold things close to our chest. Afraid someone will take our TP… idea and run with it. But when we disclose our ideas, others often join us in the arena to help promote and develop that idea. They fuel our flame. Provide us with more to think about that get our creative juices flowing.
Include others, especially in a time of needed human connection
In many of our lifetimes, we’ve never lived in a time where there’s a greater need for human connection. Sharing our ideas allows us to reach out to others, engage, and develop great things while staying mentally sane. We need each other. Working to develop an idea can not only provide us with a challenge, but also pushes us to strengthen and help our communities as we work to innovate and discover.
Times of uncertainty are the playground for innovation
COVID-19 has already changed the world. And its impact is here to stay. What will we do? How will we rise above? Problem after problem is arising. Small businesses have been hit hard. The service industry got flipped upside down. In this short month (ok, 245 day month), we’ve already seen many rise to the challenge. Volunteers building websites for at-risk individuals to submit grocery orders. Restaurants pivoting to take-out models. Doctors and physicians administering to patients in their cars.
But there’s more to come. Of all of it. More uncertainty. More worry. But also more discovery. More desire to help. More creativity. More good. We will rise above. The world is already beginning to unite against this. What ideas do you have? Do you need help sharing them? Are you looking for someone with the strength you need to promote and develop your idea? Let us know in the comments below and we’ll help connect you to individuals where we can.
3 takeaways
Jessica’s takeaways are:
- Share your ideas. Let people in. No matter how hairbrained it is. Tell your partner, a family member, a friend, a neighbor. Have someone you share ideas with. Together, you can decide which is worth pursuing.
- Look for people who have the strengths you need. If you have that strength, approach someone! A business out grows one individual quicker than many expect. You need people to balance you. If it’s not your business, well, there are lots of businesses that need you for your specific strengths. Find those gaps and fill them.
- Do it! Execute, plan, set deadlines. Hold yourself accountable. Set mini-deadlines. Because if you don’t, someone else will beat you to it.
How to connect
Feel free to email [email protected] or visit them at their website http://www.hygieneedge.com/
IG: @hygieneedge
