Time travel.
A joke? Or can you do the equivalent right now?
It’s a familiar theme in literature and even television. H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine. Quantum Leap. Even Dr. Who.
But this isn’t a post about science fiction. And it’s not a post about metaphysics.
It’s a post about determining where you are in your practice and especially the business of your practice. It’s about who determines that place, you or someone else. And, at its heart, it’s a post about losing the old lockstep notion of a career that, for physicians, can be traced back to elementary school — the notion of having to work your way up the ladder.
But why are you convinced that you have to work your way up the ladder step-by-step? Why can’t you simply jump, skipping ahead as many rungs you want, taking a quantum leap from your present position to another more desirable one? You can.
This has parallels in connection with the commoditized healthcare market we’re presently in. Some cower in fear, metaphorically and actually, of the creative destruction decimating medical group stability. But at the very same time, there are some physicians who’ve made tremendous leaps in respect of their success and in the success of their groups. They haven’t let societal trends dictate their future. This requires a different mindset. A mindset that you’re not trapped by the circumstances.
On an almost daily basis, I get personal emails, email threads, and listserve entries bemoaning the sender’s circumstances – it’s like a parody of senior citizens sitting around the pool, one out doing the other with stories of maladies and discontent. Yet at the same time, I’m dealing with a professional who is in his late 80s and who is planning his next big move with the mindset of someone in his 50s. He’s not playing the game – or rather, he’s playing his own game.
What game are you playing? What league have you put yourself in?
