Before setting up three dental practices in Dubai, Dr Michael Formenius spent most of his childhood in his native Sweden. The 58-year-old graduated from Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet in 1982 and went on to run several private dental clinics and a dental lab in Stockholm for 14 years. In 1996, he and his wife, Dr Christina, moved to Dubai and opened the first Dr Michael’s Dental Clinic in Jumeirah.
5am
My days are structured and I love routine. Every day I wake up at 5am and light candles in my room to pursue meditation by Louise Hay. I have been practising meditation for four years and it is my way of quieting my mind and gaining creative insight for the day ahead. It is a good way for me to ensure I give my patients a completely positive experience.
6am
My health is my top priority, so 6am is gym time. I have two trainers. Three days a week I do cardio plus upper/lower body workouts and two days I do cardio plus electrical muscle stimulation. I end every gym session with 10 minutes of stretching to keep my body flexible.
7.10am
I am back home to prepare for the day. I am extremely conscious about my diet, so I eat a very healthy breakfast. I start by drinking freshly squeezed lime in hot water, with chopped ginger and lemon grass. I then have oats or oatmeal porridge with almonds, walnuts, goji berries, dried apricots, cinnamon powder, etc. I also have one soft-boiled egg if I have to do extensive training at the gym.
8.30am
I am in the office to practise what I love the most – creating beautiful smiles. My patients come not only from within the UAE, but from across the region, the Far East and Europe. On an average, I see two to four patients per day. Five years ago I trained at New York University Rosenthal Institute of Aesthetic Dentistry to create smiles with Facial Aesthetic Design. I was able to design every tooth individually to enhance a patient’s smile, taking into consideration the way the patient talks and his/her facial expressions while speaking, smiling and showing all sorts of emotions. The science, the design ability and principle of artfully creating individualised smiles is what I call Couture Smile – a brand I own; it is patented.
9am
I see patients from 9am to 1pm every day. A typical smile consultation involves listening to the patient’s concerns and wishes about his or her smile. This is followed by a set of facial and close-up photographs, X-rays and models. The fun part is when I get to show my patients how their teeth could potentially look – both in shape, size and colour – with a liquid composite and brush pencil. I create a mock-up of the “new teeth” and temporarily bond it to the patient’s existing teeth to show him/her how it feels like to actually “wear” his/her new smile.
1pm
I gather with my wife, my two children – Louise, 24, and Alex, 22 – my mum and mother-in-law for lunch. I have two full-time chefs at home who prepare the world’s healthiest food, which is usually Thai.
On Mondays, I go to the Rotary Club of Dubai to attend a fellowship lunch; two to three times a month there is a guest speaker. Being in the Rotary is very much like being in a sisterhood or brotherhood, and it is non-political environment. Along with the principle of service above self, we try to help those who are less fortunate and support projects and causes in our community and worldwide.
3pm
I spend around two hours attending meetings concerning the business, as well as board meetings – we discuss finances and, of course, how best we can improve our service.
6pm
At least three to four times a week, I like to be at the beach for my sunset walk. I love going to Jumeirah Corniche to relax, reflect and to do a little more exercise. This is followed by dinner no later than 7pm. I will have something very light, such as salad with fish, crab, mozzarella or salmon.
8.30pm
I look over my day and read a book. I like books about leadership and personal development. I am currently reading Robert Cialdini's The Small BIG, which is about improving customer service. I do not like watching television, as I do not like to imbibe the negativity that we often see on TV. I do, however, read newspapers in the morning to check out business news and important regional news. If there is a good movie, I will go see it at the cinema. I want to end my day ushering in inner peace and calmness.
10pm
My day ends with an immaculate facial cleaning and a night meditation. Candles and some essential oils to complete the aura for meditation is a ritual. I go to sleep at 10pm.
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