Ospreys, Stillness and Flight – 2013

Florida

The Right Decisions Support Freedom

Your career transition is approaching. 

Your vision of this new phase of your life is becoming more clear. 

You’re growing more confident that the dreams born of your imagination will become a reality. 

Your smile reflects joy of anticipation. 

You take a deep, deep breath that parallels the satisfaction you feel for what you’ve accomplished in life.

You feel deeply the conviction that you have earned the life that your aspire to live…and it really feels awesome! 

Well earned, well deserved!

 As I wrote these words, they seemed to flow easily. They describe my own life experience and that of others I know.

 A Time for You and New Feelings

This is your time for dreaming, planning, executing and experiencing the emerging reality of it all. Amidst the excitement, it’s also the time to apply the skills and wisdom you’ve developed...

Pondering, Planning and Preparedness

A common life experience is the feeling of uncertainty that arises from an inevitable, yet unfamiliar change. The kind that looms large in your horizon and accompanied by significant challenges. 

There are some challenges that minimize your feeling of uncertainty by virtue of education, training and devoted effort to a particular achievement. Most often, your education and training occurs relatively early in life, prior to launching your career. Then there are some events for which it is usually very difficult to prepare far in advance.

(With the recognition that there are a variety of practice settings, the model described here is that of a solo practitioner, as there are many elements of that which apply to other types of practices.)

Timely Training

A prominent example is your career transition. My experience as a consultant/coach on this and related maters is that there are some physicians who begin to prepare in a timely manner. On the...

Silver Creek – 2006

Idaho

Plan Now, Prosper Later

Your career transition is one of those major life events for which it is critical to prepare well in advance. 

Early on, you will recognize that the magnitude and scope of the challenge is significant. As a result, you will realize that to achieve a successful transition you will need to devote focused effort over a significant period  of time. These inevitable, initial questions will arise: 

• How do I begin? 
• What should I do? 
• In what order should I do it?

I am confident that you have learned long ago that great achievements require great preparation.

The First Step of the Path 

To begin, there are three major concerns for which preparation is essential.

The first of these is to prepare yourself, personally, to enter the next great phase of your life. As you do so, it is important to keep in mind that your spouse and in unique ways, your family, are also going through a transition.

The second...

Stability and Change – 2021

 North Shore, Kauai

 Your Transition Is a Stimulus for Personal Development and Fulfillment

Change and transition are words that are often used interchangeably. However, these two words have different meanings and what they describe have distinctly different purposes.

Lessons Learned on My Life’s Journey

My personal experience with change and transition illustrates this point. Years ago, I was diagnosed with colon cancer and then developed other medical problems. Together they created a change that ended my Plastic Surgery career and triggered my End of Career Transition. Thankfully, years later I am cured, renewed and fulfilled in my new career. 

My transition was not an event that occurred spontaneously. It was the result of sustained, focused and deliberate effort over a period of time.  That effort was directed at a particular envisioned outcome: to experience renewal and fulfillment. The means for achieving that...

Sunset Begets Sunrise – 2009

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Timing: First Things First

Your End of Career Transition involves a multitude of matters that require thoughtful, timely planning in order to experience a smooth and successful outcome. They include personal, professional and practice preparations…in that order. This article addresses the solo practitioner practice model. Knowledge of preparation for this type of scenario has the broadest usefulness to other practice types.

As you read this, please review references to previous articles that discuss these topics in greater detail.

Unfamiliar Realities

There are two major realities that you should be aware of and consider as you plan and prepare.

The first is to acknowledge that your End of Career Transition is a process, not an event. It begins as a very personal experience when you find yourself thinking about it more often than usual. As time wears on, a myriad of questions will probably preoccupy you....

Mt. Moran and Jenny Lake - 2022

The Teton Range

Grand Teton national Park, WY

One fine morning with coffee in hand, you still savor that last sip of your custom brew.  You feel peaceful. Then a fleeting thought stirs up an awareness that you are thinking more and more about your future career transition and your new lifestyle. You smile and feel warmer inside…and then you feel a twinge of angst.

These are mixed emotions: joy and apprehension. They swirl around your mind stirred up much like the sweetener you blended into your coffee.

You wonder whether this is a common experience, how successful people deal with it and perhaps when you should begin to resolve this emerging dilemma. 

You sense that you must do something. 

A Fictional Character that Reflects a Real Person 

The following is the gist of the story of Alex, a fictional character like many accomplished physicians I am familiar with.

Alex is at that time of his (or her) career when he sees his end...

Grizzly Situational Awareness - 2011

Brooks River

Katmai National Park, AK 

Practical Considerations

When the time comes that you begin to seriously consider ending your career, you will find yourself thinking about a variety of personal and professional concerns as well as matters related to your practice.

The myriad of issues that you will have to address will vary significantly according to your type of practice. Nevertheless, across the spectrum of practice types, there are some common matters, duties, and tasks that must be accomplished. 

In order to do so, you will need more than just knowledge about the known and unknown you will encounter throughout this process. You will need and greatly benefit from applying a method for planning and executing a successful end of career transition.

My  Insights Into the Model

In this article, I discuss a triad of plans that comprise my methodology with an emphasis on the sequence in which the various tasks are best...

Henry’s Lake - 2022

Idaho

Sometimes the Obstacles Are Not Financial

There are a myriad of major matters that are important to consider as you contemplate your career transition.

For many, the primary concern is whether or not they are financially ready.

Whether you are or not, there are other significant concerns that are important to think about and deal with.

There is More to Prepare for Than Financial Planning 

Sometimes there are certain obstacles to ending your career voluntarily that have virtually nothing to do with financial matters. 

Three common concerns often seem to take a backseat to financial matters.  They are critically important and should not be ignored. They are:

What will happen to my identity?

Will I be relevant anymore?

These are common concerns, and for some, a source of stress. This can cause you to hit the pause button, for the time being, on the whole idea of ending your career.

There is yet a third element in this triad of topics.

The...

The Teton Range and Snake River - 2022

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Practice Matters 

Your end of career transition is an universal challenge we all face. It affects us as physicians in common and individual ways. This includes personal, professional and medical practice matters.

This article provides an overview of practice considerations that have significant importance. A previous article discusses the rationale and benefits of undertaking proactive, preparation. More to the point, it includes the question of when and how to begin. I encourage you to review it as it presents the foundation for this and subsequent articles that I’m confident you’ll find very helpful.

The Big Picture…

There is a very close association between your professional concerns and practice matters that you must identify and consider as you begin to prepare.

These are common, significant issues for you to consider. It’s not a complete list and presented in no particular order...

Path to Swan Lake - 2022

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Professional Matters 

Your end of career transition is a new challenge we all face. It affects physicians in common and unique ways. This includes personal, professional and medical practice matters.

This article provides an overview of major professional considerations. A previous article discusses the rationale and benefits of undertaking proactive, preparation. More to the point, it includes the question of when and how to begin. I encourage you to review it as it presents the foundation for this and subsequent articles that I’m confident you’ll find very helpful.

The Big Picture…in Part

There is a very close association between your personal and professional concerns that you must identify and consider as you begin to prepare. There may be some overlap, but on close consideration, it becomes apparent that there are substantial differences. 

These are common, significant issues for you to...