It’s Martin Luther King Day and we honor the civil rights leader who had a dream.
Quoting from his speech on August 28, 1963, King stated, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!”
When Rev. King used the term “dream,” he was not speaking of something past, something simply nocturnally ephemeral, but of an active belief, one that will be instantiated, one that will influence action and outcome.
Certainly, the discussions on this blog are at the business level, not that of the civil rights plane. However, even at that level, the business level, the notion of a dream, a belief, an intention, can and does drive action and change the future.
Some might argue that facts are facts and that mindset can’t change them. But what might play out in the uncertain future can’t yet be called facts and mindset drives action that can and does impact the to-become-facts as they unfold for you.
At a recent conference, an instant survey of physician attendants indicated that most believed their incomes will be lower five years out.
Will payers attempt to reduce physician reimbursement over the next five years? Yes, probably.
Will more physicians become hospital or large group employees over the intervening years and will those employers attempt to ratchet down their compensation? Yes, it’s possible.
But those outcomes are not certain and neither controls total income nor one’s own particular income.
The problem with believing that your own income will be down is that you’re telling yourself to accept it, and accept it you will.
Although thoughts alone won’t change a thing, thoughts influence actions and actions influence outcomes.
How would a baseball team play if the players believed they were going to lose? Poorly; why even try. Would the team play differently if the players knew they were going to win? You bet it would.
It’s your future. You can do what you want.
But if you ask me, why not believe not only that your income will be up five years from now, but that it will be up 10 times or more. Either way, believing you’ll be better off or worse off five years from now takes the same mental energy. But those beliefs will impact your choices and your actions.
And, as an added bonus, you can employ all those other docs who are setting themselves up to accept less.
It’ll be win-win. Everyone’s expectations will be met.
