More Or Less Adventure?

I've been away, mentally, for the last couple of months. 

I've discovered the funny thing that no one tells you - that figuring out your first job after training will be acutely stressful and emotionally trying. Well not exactly - of course I knew it would be stressful, but the magnitude was unexpected. In retrospect, I should have seen it coming. The lengthy on-ramp to a career in medicine allows you to have tunnel vision, to some extent. For the longest time, the next step ahead of you is rather obvious - med school, residency, fellowship. 

One day, somewhere in your last year of fellowship, you realize that you've just about arrived at a yawning chasm - there is no obvious next step, and you really have to decide what you're going to do with your life. Ok - perhaps a little bit dramatic, but needless to say, you can't have everything, and choosing your first job  calls into question what's important to you, and where you really want to be going (personally and professionally). You know, the Big Life Questions that you must answer for yourself, as honestly as possible.

Let's just say, you will miss the match. 

This decision making process, although difficult, is something I'm glad that we went through. It reaffirmed our priorities and refined our plans for the next several years. I also met some wonderful people. 

For a representation of the experience, I'll just share this photo of a hemlock maze from a sculpture garden in Windsor, VT, aptly named the Path of Life. The maze represents the beginning of childhood and exploration.

And a special thanks to Braeburn Siberians for allowing us to spend an afternoon with an incredible team of huskies!

I am deeply thankful for my friends, family, and mentors who have helped me so much in this process. Thanks for reading.

-R

Outsource and Make Residency Easier!

I happened to come across this article in the NYTimes, thanks to one of my co-residents. The author argues (pretty convincingly) that you should outsource certain lower value services (ie cooking, cleaning, laundering), even if you can perform them these takes more efficiently. This is all based on the economic notion of comparative advantage, a principle which should be applied to individuals, not just large corporations.

 The author makes a great analogy to student loans, where you are essentially making an investment in your future. Similarly, the 1 or 2 hours you might need to clean your house might be worth paying for, if you can productively use that time to work on something that advances your career (because we all know there's no shortage of abstracts/paper writing/studying that needs to be done). Even if hiring someone buys you an hour or two of leisure time, that might translate to increased productivity when you go back to work - in essence, something worth investing in.

 Only now - three years into residency training - am I finally beginning to understand this! I wish I had understood it earlier. We've started with hiring someone to help with cleaning, but we're certainly not at the personal chef level yet (might need an attending salary for that one...).

 I have a feeling this is something that a lot of medical students, residents, and fellows struggle with. It's really hard to justify paying someone to do household chores when you feel that you either have no/not enough income, plus or minus student loans. But, check out this article - it might just change how you look a things...