Leadership Lessons They Don't Teach in Medical School
Leadership Lessons They Don't Teach in Medical School
Someone told me they practiced their speech while walking their dog. "Do you say it out loud?" I asked. "No," they said. That's not practicing — that's thinking. Part 3 of the series about lessons I learned from my Toastmasters contest last year covers two lessons about preparation: practice aloud to find the words make you stumble, and rehearse with real people to find out if your message actually lands.
Leadership in healthcare often feels harder than it should. Not because people don’t care, but because systems are complex, voices get lost, and good intentions collide. This post brings together the core ideas explored across Voice That Moves — communication, influence, hope, and agency — and explains why finding a clear leadership voice matters more than ever.
Why would fans cheer after their team loses a playoff game? This post uses the Chicago Bears’ surprising season to explore a powerful leadership lesson about expectations, grit, and trust. When teams show heart and exceed expectations, fans stay committed even if trophies remain elusive. A story about sports, but really about leadership and culture.
Healthcare leadership feels overwhelming because it is. Clinicians are asked to accept hard realities while still pushing for change. This post explores why leadership feels so difficult — and why learning to balance tension makes it possible.
In a time when healthcare feels harder than ever, gratitude may seem like a luxury. But for those who lead, heal, and care, it’s a lifeline. This Thanksgiving reflection shares what doctors (and all who work in healthcare) still have to be thankful for. It ends with a tip on the practice of gratitude in healthcare.
Cynicism feels clever, but it drains trust and progress. This post explores why hope — disciplined and practical — is the real leadership strategy doctors need.
Doctors often describe today’s struggles as “moral injury.” But is that the whole story? In this post, I explore how the loss of leadership voice rather than 'moral injury' explains a large part of the frustration in modern medicine.
Doctors are trained to tell the whole story first, then give the plan. Executives want the exact opposite: the plan first, then the why, then the details. Neither is wrong. But if we don’t switch gears based on context, we risk being misunderstood or ignored.