Take your time

Kinnitty Forest Walks, Co. Offaly

Good morning. It’s nearly Christmas and I don’t want to spend this cheerful season revisiting and discussing non-cheerful things. So I’m keeping it light today! I just want to share some quick but crucial advice.

If you’re considering a career change, you’ll need time to sort through the pros and cons of staying in or leaving your current career. Then you’ll need some more time to figure out your next step. 

Time is not easy to come by when you’re working in medicine, as you well know. Considering we often feel guilty about taking a sick day when we need it - and I’d say a lot of us are guilty of seeing a sick day as an opportunity to catch up on life admin instead of actually resting and recovering - taking time out of work to figure out our lives seems… unlikely. Nevertheless, you’re going to need that time to figure things out. So whether you take a few weeks' holidays from your full-time job, take on locum work part-time, or leave and live off savings for a while, you’ll have to give yourself the time and space to think and to explore your options.

In my intern year, I didn’t set aside time specifically to address my doubts about clinical medicine, instead, I spent many sleepless nights and anxious Sundays ruminating over the pros and cons of a medical career. I did reach a conclusion, in the end, but at the expense of my sleep and my health.

I finally took time for myself after finishing my intern year and after my two-week stint in Psychiatry. I left medicine and did not take another job for 10 weeks. I imagine this would have been a wonderful opportunity for rest and reflection if I hadn’t been so preoccupied with my next source of income. My mistake going into those 10 weeks was thinking I was in a race against time to figure out my entire professional life! I spent much of those 10 weeks worried and anxious, but I did make some good choices: I went to counselling, I booked a few sessions with a career coach and I took driving lessons.

I learned two things: I probably would have benefited from setting aside time earlier in the decision-making process (and sleeping a few more hours), and I did not have to have everything figured out the moment I stepped off the hospital grounds.

I would recommend you have a look at your savings and figure out how much time off work you can afford. I would highly recommend taking some time away from work purely to rest. You need it. And then figure out how many hours you actually need to work to feel comfortable, and consider working part-time (in or outside of clinical medicine). 

Use your free time to revisit your hobbies, to think about the things you enjoy in your work and your personal life and think about your non-negotiables - the things you absolutely want in your next role and in your life. Most importantly, remove some of the pressure by allowing yourself the time to explore what you like before deciding what your next big career move will be.

When I got the job in contact tracing, I realised it was an opportunity to see what working outside a hospital could be like. It was an opportunity to experience a different work environment and a non-clinical role and to learn what works and what doesn’t work for me. I realised I might like to try out a few more temporary jobs to learn more about myself and about what’s available outside the clinical medicine bubble.

It’s been a year and 5 months since I left medicine and I’m still taking my time to figure things out. I will admit, I oscillate between feeling comfortable and feeling anxious, and I constantly need to remind myself that it's okay to take my time. There is no need to jump into another big career. There’s nothing to say I can’t work odd jobs while I’m figuring out what makes me happy. Every odd job and every creative project I take on is going to teach me something about myself and about what I want and don’t want in my next role. Plus, you never know, one of these odd jobs might stick!

A friend sent me an inspirational quote recently, reminding me not to worry about the ultimate goal - I will get there eventually, all I need to focus on right now is my next step. Thank you, Amy. Visit this link to hear it yourself.

Here’s an episode from The Medic Today podcast which touches on the topic of taking time to figure out what makes you happy and offers other great advice from Career Coach and Medical Writer, Dr India Duane. In Dr India’s words, “take some time out to consider what you really want to do, and don’t be ashamed to take that time.”

Lastly, here’s a very fitting song my brother shared with me, titled “Taking my time” by Elements of Music. Thanks again Michael!

Wishing you all a very merry holiday season!

“I can’t see a way through,” said the boy. 

“Can you see your next step?”

“Yes.”

“Just take that,” said the horse.

-The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy