Making a living: everybody’s gotta do it, but there are an endless number of ways our day to day jobs can differ – and in Work Daze, we like to give a shout-out to black women excelling in their careers, no matter what they might be. This month, we learn about a typical day for Dr Uchenna Okoye, the former resident dentist on 10 Years Younger (Channel 4) and hailed ‘UK’s best known cosmetic dental expert’.
Name: Dr Uchenna Okoye
Age: 48
Occupation: Clinical Director of London Smiling Dental Group
City you live in: London
Life motto: ‘You get in from life what you have the courage to ask for’
5am: I’m an early riser, so I like to get up while the sunshine is still milky (or the sun hasn’t even risen!) to get a few quiet moments in. This works out great if I am doing something like BBC Breakfast, as the early starts don’t faze me. I tend to do some stretching exercises in the morning. Sometimes I can spend 5-6 hours on a smile makeover so I have to really look after my back. I do the obligatory checking of my emails, scrolling Instagram, and all that kind of stuff to see what was going on while I was asleep. This is my time to set my goals for the day. I am seriously results-orientated, which sometimes means I tend not to celebrate the journey but I am getting better at this.
6.30am: I jump into the shower and listen to a podcast, something motivational like Joel Osteen, or audiobooks. At the moment, I’m in the middle of Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg.
7-7:15am: I wake up my daughter and have a play with her. She is two-and-a-half and has so much energy, she always makes me laugh and those cuddles set me up for the day ahead!
7:30am: I hand over to the nanny, and I’m on my way to the practice. We always have a morning huddle to prepare for our guests (we call our patients ‘guests’, as it’s the best way to express the type of service we want to offer). We talk about who is coming in, what preparation is needed and we try to solve any issues before they have a chance to happen. We always end with a motivational quote which everyone take turns to find.
9am: Depending on what I’m doing that day, it could be a normal, busy dentistry day or a case where I have one person in the morning and then another in the afternoon. Everything from teeth whitening fixes to a root canal, there’s never a quiet day in the practice. If we are filming, things can get chaotic but everyone has a great time. Everyone’s a celebrity at London Smiling, so they tease me when I get impatient at the number of takes we have to do – they’re used to it.
Dr Uchenna Okoye
Lunchtime: The actual time varies, to be honest – I may be eating with dentists from around the world who’ve come in to learn what we do, or I might have a lunch meeting. Roka on Charlotte Street is one of my faves.
5-5.30pm: I clock out by 5pm-ish – with emphasis on the ‘ish’. The second half of my day often involves some social event or function, so I’ll have someone to do my makeup for me. The bonus of living and working in London (and what you pay the high cost of living for) is that there is always something to do and to keep you on your toes.
7pm: At least three times a week I try to get home early to see my daughter, catch-up, and put her to bed.
10pm: I unwind. I read three to four books on the go and keep them by my bedside, from dental theory books or motivational texts to keep me driven and directed. I bracket my day by ending how I started it, by catching-up on my emails.
11:30pm: I’m fast asleep almost immediately; it’s my favourite party trick.
For more information about London Smiling clinic, visit londonsmiling.com
