Walk and talk – Andy Acton speaks to Shiraz Khan about his personal brand

Andy Acton and Shiraz Khan discuss how to build your personal brand with the growth of social media.

Shiraz explains how he never started by trying to create a personal brand. He was told at university to be unique and be individual. But he points out that it has to be authentic. Despite not starting out creating a brand, people started to recognise Shiraz, his style and what he stood for. And so his brand began to grow.

Andy agrees pointing out that we always knows when somebody is genuine or when they try to be somebody they’re not. ‘If it’s not true to who you are, the integrity just falls apart,’ Andy says.

This extends to all aspects of our every day life. We can’t be one person in one situation and somebody else in another.

‘If you’re presenting yourself as a professional, I think there’s a huge duty to remain professional in whatever walk of life you’re considering,’ Shiraz says.

‘Rather than trying to force your way through a door, a pathway opens. Work on the basics, work on being you. Work on being a great communicator and the roles of business. If a brand comes from that, fabulous. If it doesn’t you’re not a failure as a dentist. That’s what we need to understand.’

Shiraz Khan

Dr Shiraz Khan graduated from the University of Birmingham Dental School in 2013. Having successfully completed foundation training and winning several prizes, he finished his dental core training in a range of specialisms including restorative dentistry at Croydon University Hospital, Guys and St Thomas’s. He currently works in private practice in the heart of London (Devonshire Place, Chelsea and Fulham).

Shiraz has heightened his profile at this albeit early stage. He lectures to young dentists around the country, as well as lecturing internationally. Recent exploits include lecturing at the EXCIDA 57th international congress regarding aesthetic dentistry in Tehran, Iran. Progressing in his career in additional post-graduate qualifications and building a portfolio of achievements means that Shiraz is nothing short of an aspirational individual.

He has a distinction in his masters in restorative dentistry at the University of Birmingham. Shiraz invests time into his career development and experience, regularly sharing with like-minded professionals. He has won the Fast Track 4 Award in recognition of his commitment to dentistry. He won the Best Young Dentist 2017 at the Dentistry Awards. And was also recognised as ‘The Rising European Star in Dentistry 2018’. He also won a restorative category in the prestigious Aesthetic Dentistry Awards 2019. Most recently the Young Dentist Academy recognised his hard work and efforts appointing him director.

Andy Acton

Andy Acton is a serial entrepreneur developing the FTA group of companies, a full range of business services for the dental profession. Andy’s first move into business was to acquire Frank Taylor & Associates back in 2000 and then build on the guiding principles established back when the company was established in the late 1980s. Frank Taylor & Associates is consequently still one of the leading valuers and sales agents to the dental profession some 30 years on.

A sought-after public speaker, Andy covers topics including leadership, management and marketing. Andy is also a director and co-owner of FTA Finance, the award-winning healthcare finance broker, FTA Financial & Wealth Management, the specialist financial services provider for the dental profession, and FTA Recruitment, the specialist recruitment company for the dental and pharmacy professions. He was also part of the executive team that created FTA Law back in 2016. This has already become a leading law firm providing services to the dental profession. More recently Andy helped create FTA Media, which produces authentic video for digital marketing purposes. Andy is currently working on several new projects. These include a growth consultancy venture to support dental practices for the next decade of growth.

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