“Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.”
―Theophrastus
Fact: No one will value your time as much as you do.
Time is undoubtedly our most valuable and limited resource. Every day, so many people and things vie for our time. Our families, friends, patients, hospital ...
“Monday is like a math problem. Add the irritation, subtract the sleep, multiply the problems, divide the happiness.”
―Unknown
Work dread. You know the feeling even if you didn’t know it had a name. It is that sensation in the pit of your stomach when you realize that the start of...
“Alone, we can do little; together, we can do so much.”
―Helen Keller
For all its traumas, one of the most incredible gifts bestowed upon doctors is the community created during medical training. When I think back to my Internal Medicine internship, I don’t think about the grueling,...
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
We are taught from an early age to avoid comparing ourselves to others. Then, we are sent off to school, where we are ranked, compared, and pitted a...
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
–George Bernard Shaw
Who Needs A Reinvention?
Everyone.
Reinvention gets a bad rap. People hear the word and think it sounds woo. Or, they believe it means scrapping everything and starting over, like tor...
“The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.”
–Sydney J. Harris
During a recent conversation with my physician coach, I found myself reflecting on my favorite part of our family vacation to the Caribbean. We snorkeled, swam with turtles, rented jet skis, held starfish, and...
“Change begins at the end of your comfort zone.”
–Roy T. Bennett, The Light In The Heart
Before physician coaching, I did not believe that I had the capacity for change. I would dare say that I had a relatively dismal opinion of anyone’s ability to change. Of course, we all have the p...
“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”
– Anne Lamott
While coaching a physician, we started talking about his upcoming vacation. He and his wife had planned a two-week South Pacific trip, which sounded incredible. As he spoke about his break, he t...
“Sometimes the poorest man leaves his children the richest inheritance.”
―Ruth E. Renkel
It is incredible to look back at your life and recognize the critical moments that led you to become the unique human being you are today. Many people, places, and things needed to come together ...
“The word ‘should’ is an enemy of growth and a thief of joy.”
―Kevin Ngo
The first time I heard the phrase “shoulding all over yourself,” I laughed. As a gastroenterologist, I have a particular affinity for poop jokes. It might not be obvious when you read the phrase, but say it out l...
“We’re afraid that the feeling of joy won’t last, or that the other shoe is going to drop. We think, ‘I’m feeling good, this can’t be right; something bad is going to happen.’”
—Brené Brown
Foreboding Joy. I didn’t make it up. I had never even heard of foreboding joy until I read Dar...
“If you have integrity, nothing else matters.
If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.”
–Harvey Mackay
Here’s something I never thought I’d say: I attended a conference for entrepreneurs. Over the years, I’ve been to countless medical conferences where the atmosphere is f...