<p>In this Dental Leaders episode, Payman sits down with Fabian Farbahi, a 22-year-old Sheffield dental student who&#39;s already mastered something most people spend decades learning: the power of genuine conversation. </p><p>Fabian spends 3.5-hour train journeys striking up chats with strangers because he&#39;s fascinated by people&#39;s stories—the same curiosity that drove him to become president of Sheffield&#39;s dental student society and spend two months on elective in Brazil learning Portuguese. They discuss Fabian&#39;s refreshingly unformed career path—he&#39;s drawn to oral surgery, intrigued by sports dentistry, passionate about public health behaviour change, and comfortable not knowing exactly which direction he&#39;ll take. </p><p>The conversation covers his transformation from small-town student to confident stage presenter, lessons learned managing volunteers without pay, and why the best time to take business risks is when you&#39;re young. What emerges is someone who understands that dentistry isn&#39;t just about teeth—it&#39;s about connection, communication, and throwing yourself into uncomfortable situations until they become second nature.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>In This Episode</strong></p><p>00:03:35 - Choosing Sheffield and moving north</p><p>00:06:45 - Clinical mistakes and university challenges</p><p>00:07:40 - Student society presidency</p><p>00:11:25 - Train conversations and connecting with strangers</p><p>00:14:20 - Getting into dental school struggles</p><p>00:17:40 - Career interests: implants, oral surgery, sports dentistry</p><p>00:20:35 - Public health and behaviour change</p><p>00:26:15 - Implantology path and the dip</p><p>00:30:05 - Practice ownership versus travel ambitions</p><p>00:32:20 - Two-month Brazil elective experience</p><p>00:41:20 - Six-year projections and taking risks young</p><p>00:44:30 - Managing people without payment</p><p>00:50:15 - Business culture and leadership style</p><p>00:54:50 - FDI World Dental Congress in Istanbul</p><p>00:58:20 - Shadowing at Evo Dental</p><p>01:01:30 - Sponsor hunting and sales lessons</p><p>01:06:00 - Finding confidence through reinvention</p><p>01:08:50 - Fantasy dinner party</p><p><br></p><p><strong>About Fabian Farbahi</strong></p><p>Fabian Farbahi is a fourth-year Sheffield dental student who served as president of the Sheffield University Dental Student Society. Originally from Taunton, he recently completed a two-month elective in Brazil, working across multiple cities whilst learning Portuguese and immersing himself in the culture.</p>