Regrets and Recriminations – or Joy and Bliss?
By Eugene Schmuckler PhD, MBA
http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
By Dr. David E. Marcinko MBA
www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com
Jimmy’s mother called out to him at seven in the morning, “Jimmy, get up. It’s time for school.” There was no answer. She called again, this time more loudly, “Jimmy, get up! It’s time for school!” Once more there was no more answer. Exasperated, she went to his room and shook him saying, “Jimmy, it’s time to get ready for school.”
He answered, “Mother, I’m not going to school. There are fifteen hundred kids at that school and every one of them hates me. I’m not going to school.”
“Get to school!” she replied sharply.
“But, Mother, all the teachers hate me, too. I saw three of them talking the other day and one of them was pointing his finger at me. I know they all hate me so I’m not going to school,” Jimmy answered.
“Get to school!” his mother demanded again.
“But mother, I don’t understand it. Why would you want to put me through all of that torture and suffering?” he protested.
“Jimmy, for two good reasons,” she fired back. “First, you’re forty-two years old. Secondly, you’re the principal.”
Similar Physician Sentiments
Many of us have had conversations with medical colleagues at which time sentiments of those expressed by Jimmy have been voiced. The career choice that was made many years ago is now, for some reason, no longer as exciting, interesting and enjoyable, as it was when we first began in the field. The career that was undertaken with great anticipation is now something to dread.
The reason for this is occurrence is not that difficult to understand. Two of the most important decisions individuals are asked to make are ones for which the least amount of training is offered: choice of spouse and choice of career. How many college students receive a degree in the field they identified when they first enrolled at the college or university? In fact, how many entering freshmen list their choice of major as undecided? It is only during the sophomore year when a major must be declared is the choice actually made. So, career choices made at the age of 19 might be due to having taken a course that was interesting or easy, appeared to have many entry level jobs, did not require additional educational or professional training requirements, or was a form of the “family business.” Now as an adult, the individual is functioning in a career field that was selected for him or her by an eighteen-year-old.
Judging Career Success
How do we judge career success? A career represents more than just the job or sequence of jobs we hold in a lifetime. The typical standard for a successful career is by judging how high the individual goes in the organization, how much money is earned, or one’s standing attained in the medical profession.
Yet, career success actually needs to be judged on several dimensions. Career adaptability refers to the willingness and capacity to change occupations and/or the work setting to maintain a standard of career progress. Many of you did not anticipate the managed care, Health 2.0, or political changes in your chosen medical profession, or specialty, when you began your training.
A second factor is career attitudes. These are your own attitudes about the work itself, our place of work, your level of achievement, and the relationship between work and other parts of your life.
Medical Career Identity
Career identity is that part of your life related to occupational and organizational activities. This is the unique way in which we believe that we fit into the world. Our career is only one part of our being. We play many roles in life each of which combine to make up or totality. At any point in time one role may be more important than another [life saving physicians versus retail sales clerk]. The importance of the roles will generally change over time. Thus at some point you may choose to identify more with your career, and at other times, with your family.
Career Performance
A final factor is career performance, a function of both the level of objective career success and the level of psychological success. How much you earn and your reputation factor into, and reflect, objective career success. To be recognized as a “leader” in a medical field and asked to submit chapters for inclusion in text-books, medical journals or new-wave blogs such as this may be a more important indicator of career success than money.
Psychological success is the second measure of career performance. It is achieved when your self-esteem, the value you place on yourself, increases. As you can see, there is a direct relationship between psychological success and objective success. It may increase as you advance in pay and status at work or decrease with job disappointment and failure. Self-esteem may also increase as one begins to sense personal worth in other ways such as family involvement or developing confidence and competence in a particular field, such as consistently shooting par on the golf course. At that point, objective career success may be secondary in your life. This is why many people choose to become active in their church or in politics. Even though one may have slowed down on the job, or in their professional career they can be extremely content with their life.
Case Model Scenario
Consider the following situation.
You are traveling on business. Although you are on a direct flight, you have a one-hour layover before the second leg of the flight and your final destination. Leaving the plane, after having placed the “occupied” card on your seat you walk down the concourse. On the way, you encounter a friend that you knew in high school. The two of you sit to have a cup of coffee and then you realize that your departure time is rapidly approaching. In fact, you will be cutting it quite close. Running down the concourse you return to the gate only to find that the door has been closed, the jetway is being retracted and the plane is being backed away from the gate. You stare out the window watching the plane go to the end of the runway and then begin its takeoff. Something goes horrible wrong and the plane crashes on takeoff, bursting into flames. It is apparent that there will be no survivors.
Assessment
To the world you are on that plane (remember the occupied card). Traveling on business your generous insurance policy will be activated. In anticipation of being in a location where they may not have ATM machines you have a good deal of cash, sufficient for at least a month.
Conclusion
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McNally, D. Even Eagles Need A Push, New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1991.
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Filed under: "Doctors Only", Career Development, CMP Program, Ethics, iMBA, Inc., Op-Editorials | Tagged: CMP, CMP www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com, DDS, DO, Eugene Schmuckler, HMOs, job performance, job self esteem, MD, medical career, medical career identity, medical jobs, medical students, P4P, pre-med students, www.certifiedmedicalplanner.com, www.healthcarefinancials.com, www.medicalbusinessadvisors.com | 3 Comments »
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