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Why We Need to Give the Process Time

This summer, my cousin Cindy has been raising Monarch butterflies. Two weeks ago, when I was visiting her for the weekend, she gave me a chrysalis to bring home. She’d already done the bulk of the work, feeding and caring for the caterpillar. I left with a mesh-sided carrier and an expected due date of 7 days. I was instructed on how to determine the gender and that I needed to choose a name.

The Payoff of the Equity Lens

Before becoming a physician coach, back when I was a full-time writer, I attended a talk on racial health disparities for a piece was writing for a national non-profit whose mission is improving the US healthcare system. The speaker shared an image that I have now shared with others many times since.

Creating Time with the Fab Fifteen

About a year ago, I was handed a challenge: create a live video to post on social media every day for 15 days.

I hated the idea.

I’m an introvert and prefer one-on-one conversations and small interactive groups. What I don’t love is sharing before an audience that I can’t see. But I couldn’t resist the chance to stretch myself.

Is Guilt or Shame Driving You? The Perspective of a Physician Coach on Why It Matters

Mar 2, 2023

Someone once tried to convince that guilt and shame were identical. A recent trip to the hospital had me musing about my belief in the difference–and why it’s important.

Need Communication Skills? You Already Have the Basics

Feb 2, 2023

I’ve been coaching women physicians for more than five years now, helping them build lives that work personally and professionally. We start with the places where they have the most control to make changes. Charting efficiency, prioritizing sleep, delegating what they...

When Flaw-Finding Gets in Your Way, Try Asking Yourself This Question

Jan 5, 2023

If you’re a perfectionist like me, you’ve probably already noticed the flaw in this sign. The fact that bicycles can’t actually dismount reflected an error I just couldn’t NOT see. I stopped to snap the shot, then saw that the photo was flawed: off-center and...

Finding Yourself in Acorn Space

Dec 1, 2022

“Time and space to reclaim, or discover and nurture, the natural gifts and interests that make you uniquely you, driving you to be the fullest expression of yourself and make life worth living.” Sounds amazing, right? That’s how Eve Rodsky defines “unicorn space” in...

When You Can’t See Where You’re Heading

Nov 3, 2022

“A meandering path, often unicursal, with a singular path leading to a center.” That’s how the Labyrinth Society defines the walking maze that is their namesake. What’s interesting to me is that the path is both singular—as in there’s one right way to the end—yet also...

Taking Comfort in the “I Don’t Know Hallway”

Oct 6, 2022

Like most toddlers on their first day of preschool, I don’t like uncertainty. In fact, I tend to flee from it. A pending lab test that might be serious. Whether I’ll get Covid and be unable to attend that upcoming family event. If I should stay or leave my current job...

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The Challenges Women Physicians Face: What’s Needed to Shift from Striving to Thriving.

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Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH, PCC

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