Sunday 11:21 pm
Tell me a story.
Alright.
Any number of good stories start thusly. And I have always believed that each one of us has at least one good story to tell. This is a story about more stories, the stories that are to come. Wherever those stories may lead us, let us begin with where we are.
I am a heckler and an instigator by nature. I accept it. The current pandemic, specifically Covid19, has left our lives in a major spin cycle. It has demanded adjustments in family schedules, umpteen cancelled plans, and continual acceptance of an evolving “new normal”. BUT…this altered daily life has also been a chance to introspect, more than ever before, and a chance to see life with new eyes. A chance to assess who we are, where we are, most importantly where we are going.
So it is that I found myself doing something actually useful on social media recently when I joined a group of like-minded physicians in a virtual gathering. The centerpiece of the gathering were recorded interviews with over 50 physicians who have gone beyond the confines of their profession to become entrepreneurs.
Physicians are generally highly paid professionals (though there is a big ranger in that pay based on specialties). But what non-physicians don’t see are the ledges full of loans, higher costs on accounts of higher exposure to liability, and routine living where work hours spill into family hours.
For various reasons, and I hope to explore those in the future, we seek more. What Covid19 has done, largely through payouts, furloughs, and imploded businesses, is to show that the perceived job security of a career as a physician is not so secure after all.
I have taught residents for quite some time that happiness or whatever adjective they apply to feeling “accomplished and at ease” balances on three pillars: personal, professional, and financial progress.
These three are intertwined in medicine and the “balance”, as it may be, is different for each person. For example, someone may go into private practice because they value time with patients, and higher pay, but don’t feel drive to do research. Another person may be very driven to conduct research and connect it to clinical medicine, and may choose an academic career. But generally speaking academic salaries are less. Still, each may find their life fulfilled for they have found their own balance.
I have laid this blog out with the aim to explore. Should you join my journey, we will explore values and how we navigate the world with them. One of toughest things to decide, and to teach, is the ‘how’ of anything. The ‘what’ and the ‘when’ are easy, and the ‘why’ is different for each person. But the ‘how’ has some universal truths that we can share to better each other. Beside the blog, in the coming days, I will be posting in the various parts of site. Here is my plan, lest it go awry:
Resources: I will create a clearing house of high-yield links for the sites, courses, and sources that may help us explore issues and idea. E.g. there are a ton of blogs out there on Financial wellbeing. I will scour them and provide you with the ‘pros, cons, essence” reviews.
Healing Arts: I am a physician. Nothing I post any where on this blog is medical advice and should not be construed as such. What I will do is highlight ideas, developments, and knowledge fund in the realm of healing arts and how they apply to the human species. As a nuclear radiologist, I have a soft spot for imaging and therapeutics in radiology. But as a citizen and a human, I too am curious about other disciplines and hope to get help from my friends in exploring them.
Books and Media: “There are no new ideas”. Nearly everything I have learned in life has come from the knowledge of others, much of it in writing. I am lifelong education junkie. I will share with you the books that have made a difference. The aim is to do contextual reviews. E.g. why you should read “The Princess Bride” even if (especially if) you already saw the movie. I read A LOT. This will be fun!
The Emporium: As a tech junkie, tinkerer at large, and a builder, I find myself looking for items of value. In a past life, I worked at a computer store, then a library, and then I had a seat in the information technology as well as quality and safety divisions of institutions where I have worked. All this to say, I vet my purchases, and often friend and family come to me to opinions on widgets. I will highlight those that have been of value, and to be fair those to be avoided. I may put some affiliate links, if appropriate, for the best place to buy something.
The best way to start something is, well, to begin. This particular beginning requires the acknowledgement of my tribe ‘ L&G Accelerators’ and my new blogging friend, Amelia. Let’s roll.