Learn how to walk away for success.

Determination and stubbornness nearly did me in. I had 2 miles left in a race and was barely moving forward. That day was unusually hot with the heat index a steady 110° F. Of course, I had checked the weather the day before and scoffed — I had trained too hard all spring to let a detail like this get in my way. It was at the mile 11 water station that a volunteer insisted on walking with me as I drank some liquid fuel. I kept saying, “I’m fine ... I just needed some water, ” but she wouldn’t leave my side. I recall even getting annoyed.

However, the hydration gave me a brief lucid moment to realize how bad my condition was by the persisting look of concern on her face. She became a mirror that gave me probably lifesaving feedback that I had just refused to see. When we are too close, we become clouded in our judgement. After all, who quits?

In health care, we are determined to succeed. In fact, when anything is not going as planned the answer is to redirect, research more or curbside a colleague. “Quitting is never an option” is the mantra in medical training which becomes woven into the culture of any health-care practice.

Well, maybe there are times we should quit. Perhaps walking away from parts of our practice or certain procedures could open time to fill our days with more of what we enjoy.

GET AN “ABOMINABLE NO MAN”

Since I signed all my employees’ paychecks, I never knew if my jokes at work were truly funny. Even in meetings everyone was mostly agreeable with my ideas and managers were positive with feedback. People that respect you never want to say no to your ideas. But this is dangerous. You should seek out advice from people outside of your bubble that can be objective. Even Warren Buffet does this: he calls Charlie Munger the “Abominable No Man.”

One example in my journey was my struggling with a practice location that was 20% of the overall revenue but 90% of the headache. For years I kept working harder to fix it. Over coffee one morning, I was complaining to a high-school friend, once again, about the problems with that office. He paused and then said, “Enough is enough already … sell the darn practice and move on, your time and energy are being wasted. Just be more productive working on bettering your other locations.”

It hit me hard, but his advice was exactly what I needed. This outside-my-work-bubble friend gave me honest feedback. Within 6 months I sold the problem location to a younger doctor already working there who was eager to buy in. I’ve never looked back but wonder why it took me so long to make the decision. From then on, I committed to consistently find people in my life who will deliver the hard truth.

BE READY TO RE-EVALUATE

In my second year of practice, my mom gave me an earful because her friends were complaining that I would no longer see them. I explained that I had stopped seeing routine patients and refractions to allow my schedule to fill with medical and surgical consults. Overnight I quit seeing 30% of my patients. My mother didn’t understand how I could still pay the rent with this plan, but she backed off after she negotiated for me to still see three of her close friends and an uncle.

When I had started practice 2 years earlier, I had no patients and worked tirelessly to fill my schedule one patient at time. Eventually the practice became busier, but my day was filled with exams that I was not passionate about. This drove me to re-evaluate my original goals in creating my practice. After taking a hard look at my options, the answer was to quit routine exams and refocus growth with exams that allowed me to be a cataract or glaucoma consultant. This was a terrifying decision, but my gut told me it was right. In the end, the fear of walking away from one in three of my patients was less than the fear of not being passionate in my practice.

Avoid becoming like the swimmer who swam halfway across the English Channel, got tired and swam back. Any plan needs to be constantly re-evaluated, and sometimes that second look will lead you to conclude that quitting is the better solution. Always jot your plans down in pencil so it becomes a dynamic document that can reflect any internal or external changes over time. Take this document out of the drawer or electric file cabinet regularly to question your original goals or to confirm it is still the best plan. This leads to adjustments, updating or simply ending the initiative.

Finally, find a “quit” coach who will give you an objective opinion on your current strategy and help review ongoing plans. Quitting too late will only waste your time, resources and money.

BACK WITH A BETTER PLAN

A year later, I went back to re-run the race that had ended at the mile 11 water station. Fortunately, this time it was a cloudy and cool day, as my new plan was to stay home if the temperature was over 90°.

Understanding the value of quitting as an option will allow you to take more calculated chances professionally. Seeking honest, objective and even brutal feedback from someone outside of your “work bubble” acts as a mirror to pivot or even walk away from a toxic plan. Learning to be a quitter will allow you to focus your limited time and energy on growth that keeps you on track for more meaningful projects. OM

Scott LaBorwit, MD, is founder of Select Eye Care in Maryland, chairperson of the Medical Advisory Board for Vision Innovation Partners and assistant professor, part-time faculty, at Wilmer Eye Clinic of Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore. His e-mail is Sel104@me.com.