Photo Credit: Lemon_tm

Hardeep Phull, MD, shares five key lessons for clinician career journeys, focusing on the necessity of risk-taking, failure, and reinvention.

I recently gave a keynote lecture to an audience of trainees about my personal career journey. The goal of my talk was to show through my own personal triumphs and setbacks that taking risks, failing, and reinventing oneself are not optional, but necessary on the growth journey toward becoming an authentic physician.  Highlighting five key lessons that I picked up on my own journey, I encouraged students to view events on the “winding path” of life as opportunities, not unlucky ruts, weaknesses, or distractions. On the journey of science, medicine, and life, it is sometimes challenging to get lost, not realizing sometimes that the best way forward is getting out of your own way.

Lesson 1: Get Going & Start Somewhere

• You are exactly where you need to be.
• There are no mistakes.
• The only mistake is not making the most of where you are at.

Lesson 2: Speak the World’s Universal Language

• Empathy is an ability available to all of us.
• It is important to develop universal truth and compassion.
• See the world through the eyes and shoes of someone else.
• Travel and experiences “off the beaten path” create these opportunities.

Lesson 3: Transcend Artificial Boundaries

• To whom the world is opened, boundaries become shifty and artificial.
• Limits break down.
• Growth becomes unapologetic.

Lesson 4: Embrace Discomfort & Failure, the Substances of Reinvention

• Learn to fail.
• It is not fatal.
• It is not final.
• The only competition that matters is you versus your past self.

Lesson 5: Life Is a Brief Reality, Not an Expectation

• To whom much is given, much is expected.
• Settle into the person you are meant to be.
• Resist the demons of imposter syndrome.
• Find refuge in the things that will never forsake you: truth, love, and legacy.

I personally could not make up a better journey than the one that ended up happening through various twists and turns. From a series of exploratory “one-liners” on my CV, I was able to gain momentum to create a track record of hard-earned successes, lessons, and reflections across 14 institutions over 20 years. This success was not based on accomplishments, but rather the ability to pick up and appreciate different values, cultures, and viewpoints while developing skills in and a passion for clinical medicine, precision oncology, medical education, social media, writing, mentorship, empathy, leadership, and advocacy.

Ultimately, any of our career journeys speak to the importance of gratitude and mentorship, proving that “it takes a village” to develop any physician or oncologist. To this end, for all mentors and mentees alike who are reading this, I challenge you to continue giving and seeking the rewards of mentorship which contribute to our collective, lifelong development and growth.