Why you should pursue outside interests beyond your career in medicine

1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,860 Welcome to the Clinician Researcher podcast, where academic clinicians learn the skills 2 00:00:05,860 --> 00:00:11,260 to build their own research program, whether or not they have a mentor. 3 00:00:11,260 --> 00:00:17,340 As clinicians, we spend a decade or more as trainees learning to take care of patients. 4 00:00:17,340 --> 00:00:22,380 When we finally start our careers, we want to build research programs, but then we find 5 00:00:22,380 --> 00:00:27,780 that our years of clinical training did not adequately prepare us to lead our research 6 00:00:27,780 --> 00:00:29,200 program. 7 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:35,480 Through no fault of our own, we struggle to find mentors, and when we can't, we quit. 8 00:00:35,480 --> 00:00:40,580 However, clinicians hold the keys to the greatest research breakthroughs. 9 00:00:40,580 --> 00:00:46,200 For this reason, the Clinician Researcher podcast exists to give academic clinicians 10 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:51,800 the tools to build their own research program, whether or not they have a mentor. 11 00:00:51,800 --> 00:01:01,080 Now introducing your host, Toyosi Onwuemene. 12 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:03,800 Welcome to the Clinician Researcher podcast. 13 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:08,960 I'm your host, Toyosi Onwuemene, and it is an absolute pleasure to be talking with you today. 14 00:01:08,960 --> 00:01:10,280 Thank you so much for tuning in. 15 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:17,880 I want to say excited about today's topic, and I would say maybe rather than excited 16 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:19,920 today, I'm a little subdued. 17 00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:27,920 It's an exciting topic under normal circumstances, but today it is a topic that I come to with 18 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:36,080 just a sense of realization of kind of the finiteness of our experience. 19 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:43,400 And you know, I will share that I recently got an unexpected email. 20 00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:48,760 This was one of those widespread campus messages about one of our faculty members who, you 21 00:01:48,760 --> 00:01:54,680 know, ended her journey, which is a nice way of saying that she died. 22 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,120 And you know what? 23 00:01:57,120 --> 00:01:59,120 Caused me to pause. 24 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:04,520 And you know, this is a faculty member within my department, and she's someone I knew and 25 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:06,400 interacted with. 26 00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:12,320 And I didn't know her personally, and so I didn't know what was going on with her recently. 27 00:02:12,320 --> 00:02:20,360 But it definitely made me pause and remember that, wow, there is so much more to this journey 28 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:22,640 beyond the work that we do. 29 00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:27,480 And we are not guaranteed a career that's 40, 50 years long. 30 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:28,920 We're not. 31 00:02:28,920 --> 00:02:37,360 And so if for whatever reason we found out that the journey that we have embarked on 32 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:41,880 has an end in the near future, how would we behave differently? 33 00:02:41,880 --> 00:02:47,720 And so that's where I come from with regard to this episode, which is talking to you about 34 00:02:47,720 --> 00:02:51,880 how and why you should create space for your outside interests. 35 00:02:51,880 --> 00:02:55,880 It's just the recognition that the journey is the gift. 36 00:02:55,880 --> 00:02:57,440 It's not the end of the journey. 37 00:02:57,440 --> 00:03:02,480 It's not the career celebration or the retirement celebration 40 years down the road. 38 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:03,480 It's today. 39 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:08,160 And if for whatever reason we are not enjoying our careers today, then we've kind of missed 40 00:03:08,160 --> 00:03:11,360 out on the most important point. 41 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:13,480 Many times we're chasing things. 42 00:03:13,480 --> 00:03:19,200 We're chasing papers and we're chasing publications and we're chasing grants and we're chasing 43 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:20,200 funding. 44 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:22,880 We're chasing recognition. 45 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:28,600 And all of that is fine as long as we're enjoying the chase, as long as the chase is part of 46 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:35,120 the fun and not the reward at the end of the chase, which, you know, honestly is elusive 47 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:40,720 or you catch it and then there's another reward that you have to pursue. 48 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:46,520 And so that's what sits on my mind today as I share this episode, which is important about 49 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:51,360 creating space for your outside interests and why it's important to do that. 50 00:03:51,360 --> 00:03:57,840 And the first thing I will share, which I think you already know, is that this journey 51 00:03:57,840 --> 00:03:59,200 is a marathon. 52 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:01,400 It's not a sprint. 53 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:09,280 When we first started on this journey towards medicine, for some of us that means that we 54 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:15,920 did an undergraduate degree and then from undergraduate we went to medical school and 55 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:20,720 after medical school we did graduate medical education, whether that was for three years 56 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:25,040 in residency or more or in fellowship. 57 00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:30,560 We have been on this journey where, you know, we've to some extent we've done it in sprints 58 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:36,560 though when you look back over the whole journey, it's been one long marathon. 59 00:04:36,560 --> 00:04:41,120 In finishing med school, that was one part of the sprint and finishing residency, that 60 00:04:41,120 --> 00:04:42,520 was another part of the sprint. 61 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,520 And for those of us who did fellowship and finishing fellowship, it feels like that was 62 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:47,880 another part of the sprint. 63 00:04:47,880 --> 00:04:51,680 And you could call it a sprint maybe because at least those were like four year and three 64 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:54,280 year spurts or maybe it was five years. 65 00:04:54,280 --> 00:05:02,280 But overall, when you put it all together, we've been running a long time and overall 66 00:05:02,280 --> 00:05:08,640 it really is long, 10 years of training before you even start in your faculty career and 67 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:13,640 all of it counts by the way, it is a long trip. 68 00:05:13,640 --> 00:05:20,240 And if you do have 30, 40 years ahead of you, that's a long, long trip. 69 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:26,080 And so recognizing that you've got so much further to go than where you started helps 70 00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:29,680 you recognize that well if you're going to finish well, you're going to have to pace 71 00:05:29,680 --> 00:05:31,240 yourself along the journey. 72 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:37,120 You're going to have to be measured to your approach and you're not going to want to try 73 00:05:37,120 --> 00:05:42,840 to do everything all at once or try to accomplish everything all at once or beat yourself up 74 00:05:42,840 --> 00:05:45,480 time after time after time. 75 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:49,000 Because honestly, wow, it's a long journey. 76 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:54,960 We've got so much, so much that's going to be accomplished over the course of a long 77 00:05:54,960 --> 00:05:55,960 career. 78 00:05:55,960 --> 00:06:04,320 And so because we recognize that this journey takes a long time and that we are really, 79 00:06:04,320 --> 00:06:08,600 if we're going to do it well, we're going to pace ourselves in the same way as you would 80 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:14,680 for a marathon, then you recognize that you're not sprinting and you shouldn't be sprinting. 81 00:06:14,680 --> 00:06:18,800 Because when you sprint, you burn up a lot of energy very quickly, you get tired very 82 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:19,800 quickly. 83 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:24,520 You can only do that for so long before you burn out or pull a muscle or something. 84 00:06:24,520 --> 00:06:31,640 But if you're going to run a marathon, you train and you run in bursts. 85 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:36,720 Now, have I, actually I was going to say, have I run a marathon? 86 00:06:36,720 --> 00:06:38,360 The answer is yes, I have. 87 00:06:38,360 --> 00:06:41,760 It's kind of like it was a non-traditional marathon. 88 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:44,880 I'll have to save that story for later, but I definitely did. 89 00:06:44,880 --> 00:06:48,520 Actually, I'll tell you the story is that it was during the pandemic and I had this 90 00:06:48,520 --> 00:06:57,840 goal to run a marathon before my 40th birthday and I had taken to, this was at the very beginning 91 00:06:57,840 --> 00:07:00,080 of the pandemic, running in the house. 92 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:07,680 So I would just run back and forth and I would log a few miles with my running back and forth. 93 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:10,840 And eventually one day I thought, you know what, I'm going to keep running back and forth 94 00:07:10,840 --> 00:07:13,000 until I've done 26 miles. 95 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:14,840 And I really did do it. 96 00:07:14,840 --> 00:07:16,680 And it was interesting. 97 00:07:16,680 --> 00:07:21,880 I don't say it's the same as running a marathon where you're running outside and there are 98 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:23,560 others around you. 99 00:07:23,560 --> 00:07:27,320 But it was one of those things that I did know, it's like, you know what, I logged these 100 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:28,920 miles and I did it for hours. 101 00:07:28,920 --> 00:07:31,520 I forget how many hours, it was probably over five hours. 102 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:35,760 So it wasn't even a fast marathon, even though it was by myself in the house. 103 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:41,800 But one of the reasons I share the story is because, I mean, I'm a runner and I do run 104 00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:43,760 outside and I do run indoors. 105 00:07:43,760 --> 00:07:49,600 And the pandemic was one way that I could keep the pandemic running and the way I was 106 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:54,320 running indoors was one way that I could be gone for long periods of time running and 107 00:07:54,320 --> 00:07:57,400 still be indoors with the kids who were homeschooling. 108 00:07:57,400 --> 00:08:03,240 So it was kind of strategic because I couldn't be gone for long hours running. 109 00:08:03,240 --> 00:08:04,960 I needed to be home for them. 110 00:08:04,960 --> 00:08:06,840 And so it was one strategy that I used. 111 00:08:06,840 --> 00:08:12,340 So anyway, I say all that to say that if you're going to run a long, long distance, you do 112 00:08:12,340 --> 00:08:15,120 want to build up to it. 113 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:22,280 And it's important to recognize that these careers are long, long, long, long, long, 114 00:08:22,280 --> 00:08:23,960 long journeys. 115 00:08:23,960 --> 00:08:29,600 And for that reason, you don't wait until the end of this long journey to create space 116 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:30,840 for your outside interests. 117 00:08:30,840 --> 00:08:32,840 Please don't wait till you retire. 118 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:37,400 Something you want to do right now alongside your trip, alongside your journey. 119 00:08:37,400 --> 00:08:42,760 And for many of us, I think that we do a good job of not necessarily deferring all our hopes 120 00:08:42,760 --> 00:08:45,880 and dreams till the very end. 121 00:08:45,880 --> 00:08:50,600 After 10 years of training, and then some being in faculty on faculty, you suddenly 122 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:54,040 realize you're like, wait a minute, what am I saving all this for? 123 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:55,760 This keeps going. 124 00:08:55,760 --> 00:08:59,600 And so just recognizing that you should create space for your outside interests because this 125 00:08:59,600 --> 00:09:01,080 journey is a marathon. 126 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:03,080 It is not a sprint. 127 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:05,440 All right. 128 00:09:05,440 --> 00:09:12,200 The second thing I want to share is your identity extends beyond your career. 129 00:09:12,200 --> 00:09:13,880 This has always been true. 130 00:09:13,880 --> 00:09:15,100 It's always been true. 131 00:09:15,100 --> 00:09:19,280 But what happens when we come into medicine is that medicine is all consuming. 132 00:09:19,280 --> 00:09:23,160 Wow, it takes up so much time, so much energy. 133 00:09:23,160 --> 00:09:26,480 It feels as if there was nothing before medicine. 134 00:09:26,480 --> 00:09:29,240 It feels as if medicine is all there is. 135 00:09:29,240 --> 00:09:30,920 And it really is all consuming. 136 00:09:30,920 --> 00:09:33,960 It just takes up so much time and energy. 137 00:09:33,960 --> 00:09:38,920 Your friends are in medicine, your colleagues are in medicine, your daytime hours are spent 138 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:42,800 in medicine, and your nighttime hours consumed by medicine. 139 00:09:42,800 --> 00:09:45,720 Wow, it's a lot of medicine. 140 00:09:45,720 --> 00:09:54,280 And so to no one's surprise, when some of us feel like medicine is our whole identity, 141 00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:55,280 it's a big deal. 142 00:09:55,280 --> 00:10:01,040 And it's not uncommon because, wow, for something that takes up so much time all the time and 143 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:07,120 doesn't really have limits, you can be on call and be patient at nighttime. 144 00:10:07,120 --> 00:10:10,800 Your sleep is not sacred. 145 00:10:10,800 --> 00:10:15,600 And it can make people feel so wrapped up in the identity of being a physician. 146 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:20,560 And as you make the transition to lead a research program, it's the same thing where it feels 147 00:10:20,560 --> 00:10:23,880 like you're always writing grants, you're always submitting manuscripts. 148 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:28,920 It just feels like you're kind of on this what sometimes can feel like a hamster wheel 149 00:10:28,920 --> 00:10:29,920 of this career. 150 00:10:29,920 --> 00:10:38,440 But the reality is that way, way, way before we came into medicine, we had other identities. 151 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:39,840 We were real people. 152 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:41,800 We had other interests. 153 00:10:41,800 --> 00:10:47,080 And even if we went from medical school, I mean, from undergraduate straight into medical 154 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:52,400 school, straight into residency, straight into fellowship without any breaks, no matter 155 00:10:52,400 --> 00:10:58,280 how young we were when we started, we had identities outside of medicine. 156 00:10:58,280 --> 00:11:05,840 And so for medicine to become all that we do for our careers in clinic and clinical 157 00:11:05,840 --> 00:11:11,000 things and in research to become all that we do, it's kind of a false, it's a false 158 00:11:11,000 --> 00:11:14,120 reality because there's so much to us. 159 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:17,160 There has always been and there always will be. 160 00:11:17,160 --> 00:11:22,720 And as much as medicine means so much to us, if it all ended today, we would continue because 161 00:11:22,720 --> 00:11:27,580 we have so many skills we've amassed that are relevant in other areas and other spheres 162 00:11:27,580 --> 00:11:29,280 of our lives. 163 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:35,040 And so the reason why you should create space for your outside interests, at least one of 164 00:11:35,040 --> 00:11:39,580 the reasons, is that your identity extends beyond your career. 165 00:11:39,580 --> 00:11:42,080 And so there should be more to us. 166 00:11:42,080 --> 00:11:44,780 There is more to us beyond our careers. 167 00:11:44,780 --> 00:11:48,120 And we should give space and attention to those things. 168 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:53,560 Now once upon a time, I couldn't read books that were not medical because I felt like 169 00:11:53,560 --> 00:11:59,320 I was inadequate in my fund of knowledge and I needed to keep reading more. 170 00:11:59,320 --> 00:12:05,440 And any deviation from reading medical textbooks or journal articles felt like I was doing 171 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:06,640 the wrong thing. 172 00:12:06,640 --> 00:12:12,300 And so there's a part of our training that makes us feel that we constantly have to strive 173 00:12:12,300 --> 00:12:17,520 to be more, do more, get more experience, be more excellent. 174 00:12:17,520 --> 00:12:23,520 And the journey and the striving for excellence is good as long as we recognize that there's 175 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:24,520 got to be space. 176 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:29,160 There's got to be space for other things beyond our careers. 177 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:35,280 And it's great that we invest time in being more excellent and that we also leave space 178 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:39,280 for the things that matter, the things that make us whole, the things that make us who 179 00:12:39,280 --> 00:12:41,720 we are. 180 00:12:41,720 --> 00:12:47,200 The third reason that I want to share is that we've lost great friends along the way. 181 00:12:47,200 --> 00:12:49,280 We've lost a few. 182 00:12:49,280 --> 00:12:52,040 And now I feel like goodness. 183 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:55,280 We've lost more than a few. 184 00:12:55,280 --> 00:13:03,160 And I'm not here to make anybody sad or to ruminate on all the people I know personally 185 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:10,480 who passed away this year, but just recognizing that there are people we didn't think were 186 00:13:10,480 --> 00:13:11,480 dying who did. 187 00:13:11,480 --> 00:13:15,480 There are people we didn't know were sick who died. 188 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:21,240 There are many people that we're surprised by whose journeys have come to an end faster 189 00:13:21,240 --> 00:13:24,600 than we expected them to. 190 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:31,800 And we have no guarantees as to how long we get to be here, how much longer we get to 191 00:13:31,800 --> 00:13:33,280 continue to contribute. 192 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:39,560 And for that reason, it's important for us to recognize that if the journey ends today, 193 00:13:39,560 --> 00:13:40,560 are we ready? 194 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:43,480 Like, have we done all that we wanted to do? 195 00:13:43,480 --> 00:13:47,200 Are we satisfied with the experience that we've had? 196 00:13:47,200 --> 00:13:51,440 And if for whatever reason there is a sense of like, oh my goodness, I haven't done all 197 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:54,720 the things I wanted to do, that's a sign. 198 00:13:54,720 --> 00:14:00,040 It's a sign that you should pay attention to those things that you want to do. 199 00:14:00,040 --> 00:14:08,920 Because the reality, which is made so much more stark when somebody dies unexpectedly, 200 00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:11,960 is that tomorrow is not promised. 201 00:14:11,960 --> 00:14:13,440 Tomorrow is not promised. 202 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:14,880 Today is the present. 203 00:14:14,880 --> 00:14:17,880 It is the gift that we have to live. 204 00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:20,400 And we should make today count. 205 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:29,080 Part of making today count is looking at our experience, like our global experience, and 206 00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:35,920 recognizing that we have opportunities to make up relationships or build new relationships 207 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:44,360 or mend old relationships and move forward with projects that have excited us or encouraged 208 00:14:44,360 --> 00:14:48,560 us or inspired us for so long. 209 00:14:48,560 --> 00:14:55,280 And so, one reason to create space for our outside interests is that we have no guarantees 210 00:14:55,280 --> 00:14:58,600 as to the duration of this journey. 211 00:14:58,600 --> 00:15:05,440 And for that reason, we should make sure that every moment counts to the best of our ability. 212 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:12,120 The fourth reason that I have to share is that your experiences outside of medicine 213 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:16,560 actually make for greater contributions within medicine. 214 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:22,880 Your experiences outside of medicine make for greater contributions within medicine. 215 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:29,520 Because one of the things you recognize about innovation is that innovation is frequently 216 00:15:29,520 --> 00:15:35,000 not making something new, but applying something that's already used in a different area to 217 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,200 a new area. 218 00:15:37,200 --> 00:15:43,400 And the reality of our experience is that outside of medicine, there's so much innovation 219 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:47,080 that doesn't look like innovation until we bring it into medicine. 220 00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:48,440 And so much of that is happening. 221 00:15:48,440 --> 00:15:49,880 It's unfolding. 222 00:15:49,880 --> 00:15:51,080 But it helps us be better. 223 00:15:51,080 --> 00:15:52,080 It helps us think better. 224 00:15:52,080 --> 00:15:54,200 It helps us communicate better. 225 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:57,120 It helps us think broader. 226 00:15:57,120 --> 00:16:03,380 And that's why it's so amazing to have collaborations and colleagues outside of our field, because 227 00:16:03,380 --> 00:16:12,480 every time we interact with people or experience people in different spheres of life or they 228 00:16:12,480 --> 00:16:19,360 do different things, they're in different situations work-wise, financially, it changes 229 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:22,120 the way we think about our experience. 230 00:16:22,120 --> 00:16:30,320 And so the reality of making space for our interests outside of medicine is that, wow, 231 00:16:30,320 --> 00:16:34,480 it makes our experience so much richer. 232 00:16:34,480 --> 00:16:36,360 It makes it so much richer. 233 00:16:36,360 --> 00:16:39,280 It really enhances our experience. 234 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:42,520 It doesn't diminish our experience in medicine. 235 00:16:42,520 --> 00:16:44,660 It actually enhances it. 236 00:16:44,660 --> 00:16:50,440 And so you should create space for your outside interests because it really makes for a greater 237 00:16:50,440 --> 00:16:52,200 contribution within medicine. 238 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:57,520 You're so much the richer because of all the things that you've experienced outside of 239 00:16:57,520 --> 00:16:58,520 medicine. 240 00:16:58,520 --> 00:17:09,200 The other thing is that having friends outside of your field makes you richer. 241 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:10,400 I mean that in every way. 242 00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:12,000 I mean financially. 243 00:17:12,000 --> 00:17:14,520 I mean experience-wise. 244 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:20,320 I mean, I just mean richer in every way that you can imagine richer because, you know, 245 00:17:20,320 --> 00:17:22,320 let's face it. 246 00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:26,440 At least when you start out in medicine, you mostly start out in the negative because you're 247 00:17:26,440 --> 00:17:29,680 probably more in debt than you have assets. 248 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:36,800 Over time, as a clinician, given enough time, earning your income staying constant, well 249 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:43,520 actually hopefully increasing over time, you start to be able to build financial wealth. 250 00:17:43,520 --> 00:17:45,240 You start to be able to build financial wealth. 251 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:47,880 And I say financial wealth because wealth is more than just finances. 252 00:17:47,880 --> 00:17:50,600 There's so much more to wealth than just finances. 253 00:17:50,600 --> 00:17:54,000 But financially, you start to build wealth. 254 00:17:54,000 --> 00:17:58,320 And so the longer you're in medicine, yeah, definitely the longer you can build wealth 255 00:17:58,320 --> 00:17:59,480 if you choose to. 256 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:01,320 It's always a choice. 257 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:05,280 But there are people outside of medicine who don't have your physician's income who've 258 00:18:05,280 --> 00:18:07,720 been building wealth from a long time ago. 259 00:18:07,720 --> 00:18:09,720 And they have much to teach us. 260 00:18:09,720 --> 00:18:15,560 And there are people who have different experiences with the way they buy or accumulate assets 261 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:21,280 that helps them be financially independent early that we have so much to learn from. 262 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:25,880 But we can only learn from them if we're actually in contact with them or have access to them 263 00:18:25,880 --> 00:18:27,280 in some ways. 264 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:32,200 So yes, you can learn from your financial advisor, whoever it is you work with for 265 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:33,200 finances. 266 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:37,720 But when you have colleagues who are doing interesting things that are helping them kind 267 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:43,840 of grow financially, it's interesting because you're like, oh, well, they can do that. 268 00:18:43,840 --> 00:18:46,400 Or they're investing in XYZ and succeeding. 269 00:18:46,400 --> 00:18:48,320 I should consider that. 270 00:18:48,320 --> 00:18:53,600 And so having interests outside your field actually connects you with friends that make 271 00:18:53,600 --> 00:18:55,000 your experience richer. 272 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:57,320 They challenge you to new ideas. 273 00:18:57,320 --> 00:19:00,600 They challenge you to new thoughts that allow your life to grow. 274 00:19:00,600 --> 00:19:04,880 So not necessarily now your life within medicine, but your life outside of medicine so that 275 00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:08,480 you have a bigger experience, a more expansive experience. 276 00:19:08,480 --> 00:19:11,800 It is overall a richer experience. 277 00:19:11,800 --> 00:19:14,400 And so it kind of feels similar to number four. 278 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:18,160 You know, I talked about your experience outside of medicine makes for greater contributions 279 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:19,160 within medicine. 280 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:23,400 But what I'm really talking about now is how your experiences outside of medicine make 281 00:19:23,400 --> 00:19:27,640 for a greater life outside of medicine that just make you richer because you're so much 282 00:19:27,640 --> 00:19:28,640 fuller. 283 00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:33,360 You've got so much that you are excited about, looking forward to, can talk about, can share 284 00:19:33,360 --> 00:19:38,600 about and you just are able to kind of grow in different ways. 285 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:45,600 And so definitely a great space for your outside interests because it makes you richer financially 286 00:19:45,600 --> 00:19:52,200 in relationships and in so many other ways. 287 00:19:52,200 --> 00:19:56,080 Those are the five reasons that I wanted to share today about creating space for your 288 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:57,520 outside interests. 289 00:19:57,520 --> 00:20:00,200 And I'm just going to summarize them again. 290 00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:02,060 This journey is a marathon and not a sprint. 291 00:20:02,060 --> 00:20:07,880 And so because it's going to take so long to run, you should take it easy and you should 292 00:20:07,880 --> 00:20:13,200 figure out how to enjoy the process and not just wait until the end of the destination, 293 00:20:13,200 --> 00:20:17,080 which for some of us could be so, so far away, but for some of us maybe it's not that far 294 00:20:17,080 --> 00:20:18,080 away. 295 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:21,600 Number two is that your identity extends beyond your career. 296 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:25,760 You had an identity outside of medicine before medicine and you will always have an identity 297 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:29,920 outside of medicine even if medicine ends today. 298 00:20:29,920 --> 00:20:36,880 But don't wait until medicine leaves yours, taken from you for whatever reason, retirement, 299 00:20:36,880 --> 00:20:37,880 you know, whatever reason. 300 00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:38,880 Don't wait. 301 00:20:38,880 --> 00:20:44,080 Just recognize that, hey, you've always had an identity outside of medicine and you can 302 00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:49,920 come back to experience your fuller identity beyond medicine any time you choose. 303 00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:53,640 Number three is that we've lost some great friends along the way. 304 00:20:53,640 --> 00:21:00,200 And that reminds us that this journey is finite and are we really making the most of the experience 305 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:02,640 that we're having today? 306 00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:06,320 Number four is that your experience makes for greater contributions within medicine. 307 00:21:06,320 --> 00:21:10,160 And so you go, you get ideas, so you come and you make your experience richer. 308 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:16,520 And then number five is that having experiences gives you friends outside your field and that 309 00:21:16,520 --> 00:21:20,560 makes you richer in areas other than medicine as well. 310 00:21:20,560 --> 00:21:24,040 So those are five reasons why you should create space for your outside interests. 311 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:29,960 And I'm curious to know what are some outside interests that you have had that have made 312 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:35,560 your experience as a physician richer, have enhanced your experience as a clinician scientist 313 00:21:35,560 --> 00:21:40,240 or whatever other ways in which they have enhanced your career? 314 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:41,720 I would love to hear about it. 315 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:47,360 If you have something weird like my indoor marathon running, definitely, definitely come 316 00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:48,360 talk to me about it. 317 00:21:48,360 --> 00:21:50,640 I would love to hear, hear about it. 318 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:53,760 Send me a DM on Facebook or Instagram or even on LinkedIn. 319 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:55,400 I would love to hear from you. 320 00:21:55,400 --> 00:21:56,400 All right. 321 00:21:56,400 --> 00:21:58,080 It's been a pleasure talking with you today. 322 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:04,400 I invite you to think about your life and think about all that you've jumped through, 323 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:10,080 all the hoops you've jumped through up until now and to ask, are you enjoying your journey? 324 00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:14,560 And if you're not, ask how can you enjoy the journey today? 325 00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:19,600 Not tomorrow when you finally get that award or when you finally get that grant. 326 00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:21,320 Not tomorrow, but today. 327 00:22:21,320 --> 00:22:23,200 How can you enjoy the journey today? 328 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:24,200 All right. 329 00:22:24,200 --> 00:22:26,160 It's been a pleasure talking with you today. 330 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:35,840 I look forward to talking with you again the next time. 331 00:22:35,840 --> 00:22:41,200 Thanks for listening to this episode of the Clinician Researcher podcast, where academic 332 00:22:41,200 --> 00:22:46,920 clinicians learn the skills to build their own research program, whether or not they 333 00:22:46,920 --> 00:22:48,000 have a mentor. 334 00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:54,120 If you found the information in this episode to be helpful, don't keep it all to yourself. 335 00:22:54,120 --> 00:22:55,840 Someone else needs to hear it. 336 00:22:55,840 --> 00:22:59,880 So take a minute right now and share it. 337 00:22:59,880 --> 00:23:05,360 As you share this episode, you become part of our mission to help launch a new generation 338 00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:26,400 of clinician researchers who make transformative discoveries that change the way we do healthcare.