Discover how coaching for physicians empowers you to grow beyond burnout, shift mindsets, and unlock personal and professional breakthroughs.
Coaching for Physicians: Why Asking for Help is a Strength, Not a Weakness
Over a decade ago, surgeon and writer Atul Gawande wrote an article in The New Yorker about working with a surgical coach.
I was in my final year of anesthesia residency at Penn and recall being impressed by Dr. Gawande’s openness and vulnerability. While attendings mentor and teach us during residency, you’re on your own once you start your own attending role!
Dr. Gawande was focused on continuous improvement and acknowledged his need for coaching to progress. I didn’t even know a surgical coach existed, and here was Dr. Gawande creating this idea.
What I found remarkable about Dr. Gawande was his willingness to admit that he wanted to continue learning and developing as a surgeon. His learning was not complete just because he had finished his surgical training.
What is Life Coaching for Physicians?
When most people think about a coach, they think of the athletic realm—a swim or tennis coach. I’m sure many of you have also seen a personal trainer, another name for a coach.
Physician life coaches are increasingly common today, particularly given the burnout affecting the current healthcare landscape. Over the last several years, I’ve collaborated with several remarkable coaches who have changed the course of my life. Honestly, I can say that we might not have had a child without the insights I learned during coaching. I also wouldn’t have served on my group’s Board or launched Greeley Wealth. Coaching can genuinely be life-changing.
Why Physicians Struggle to Ask for Help
But there is a substantial hurdle to working with a coach. For many physicians, the biggest hurdle isn’t the cost—it’s asking for help. We’re trained to have answers, not to admit uncertainty. This is true in the clinical realm but also extends to our personal lives. But personal growth, like clinical learning, requires vulnerability.
Your incredible life exists on the other side of overcoming the fear of not knowing, asking for help, and moving forward despite the fear.
Think about an area in your career or life where you feel stuck. What if a coach could help you move forward? I know plenty of physicians who work with a business or executive coach to streamline and improve their practices.
How can a coach help? In any setting, a coach can help you achieve your goals more efficiently and avoid catastrophic mistakes, injuries, or failure. Coaching involves accountability and motivation. It helps you discover insights you might not have seen on your own.
Coaching as a Catalyst: Moving Forward Faster
I’ve found that coaching is like a personal catalyst for your life. Think back to your chemistry class—what is a catalyst? A catalyst facilitates and speeds up a process without being used up. What an excellent analogy for coaching.
Coaching speeds up the process by stepping around obstacles. Coaching helps clarify your objectives and alter them as needed as life progresses.
Where Could You Benefit From Coaching Today?
What areas of your life could be improved with coaching? Parenting? Your marriage or relationship? Your finances? Your health?
All of us would benefit from coaching in one way or another. What’s stopping us?
Is it the cost? Often, we see the high upfront cost and find it hard to justify, not recognizing the cost of inaction or the costs involved in redoing a project. Then, the time commitment in meeting with your coach and doing background work can feel impossible to create. Those could both be reasonable excuses, but I challenge you to dig deeper to see if there is any other resistance. It’s easy to hide behind a reason that is no longer a concern when you’re pursuing something easy to say yes to.
The Overlap Between Coaching and Financial Advising
Working with physicians as a financial advisor, much of the work I do in finance is coaching. Much like in medicine or sports, financial coaching helps you develop healthy habits, avoid costly mistakes, and build long-term security. It’s developing a better relationship not only with your spending and money but also how you think about money and any of the impressions you’ve created about money over your life. It’s about instilling smart savings habits to benefit you for the rest of your life and protecting your income and assets.
I’m here to help you think through the most significant decisions in your life. Money impacts every part of our lives. It’s about dreaming bigger than you thought possible. Asking yourself, “What if?” and going for those audacious goals.
Ready to Take the Next Step in Your Growth?
Where could you benefit from an outside set of eyes? What steps can you take to get unstuck today? For myself, I’d love to get proficient at swimming. This has been rattling around my head for a few years now. I’d benefit from coaching, so if anyone has any swim coach leads, please send them my way.
As a financial advisor who’s walked this journey myself, I don’t just talk numbers—I help you think bigger, dream bolder, and move forward with clarity. You don’t have to figure it all out alone. Let’s start a conversation and explore what’s possible. How can I help you move forward starting today?
Reach out to see how I can best support you here.
