Doctors at Work
This podcast aims to help doctors create successful and meaningful careers. I'm having conversations with a range of doctors who have successful and meaningful careers, and with non-doctors who have expertise in careers, performance, leadership, and psychology. Let me know what you think, please subscribe and share, or suggest topics you'd like me to cover! Mat Daniel
How to plan a fellowship. With Manuela Cresswell. Episode 131
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In this episode of Doctors at Work, Manuela shares her tips on planning a fellowship. It's important to start early and to make contacts with fellowship directors and current fellows, and to ask open questions about the clinical opportunities, timetabling, and trainer support. Every doctor is different and every fellowship is different, so the key for trainees is to know what they want, need, and aim for, and to align their fellowship training with their personal objectives.
Manuela Cresswell is a consultant ENT surgeon with interest in Otology and lateral skull...
How to create your own leadership opportunities. With Talia Barry. Episode 130
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In this episode of Doctors at Work, Talia, an A&E consultant with portfolio roles in patient quality, professionalism, and education, shared her career journey, emphasising the importance of taking on new challenges, and having a mindset that learns from failures. Her own leadership career was created by herself, so the career was not about searching for the perfect career out there, it was more about creating the kind of career that is right for her. Having mentors is important, and we talk about how one might find one. We also talk about...
How to cultivate a mindset for success. With Thibaut Ottomer. Episode 129
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How you think about the world will influence what you do and what you achieve. In this episode of Doctors at Work, Thibaut tells me about the importance of mindset and its impact on leadership, and we talk about boundaries, procedural skills, and career progression. We discuss growth vs fixed mindset, self-awareness, self-sabotage, and the importance of seeking help when needed, and we highlight the importance of reconnecting with one's purpose and passion in work.
Thibaut Ottomer is a certified NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) coach and founder of Liberty Coaching. His mission...
Leadership in your early career and the importance of networking. With Sharmi Haque. Episode 127
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Sharmi is a medical student, and also works as a strategy consultant, and teaches leadership. In this episode of Doctors at Work, she discusses her diverse roles and experiences. We talk about the importance of understanding leadership theory, and she shares tips on how to get leadership experiences which includes the need to capture achievements and look for opportunities. We discuss the importance of networking, and of knowing how to pitch yourself, especially since many career opportunities are not found on jobs websites but are instead created by you.
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How to create a portfolio career. With Elle Todd. Episode 126
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In this episode of Doctors at Work, Elle Todd tells me about her journey from full time medicine to pursuing a portfolio career, highlighting the importance of self-reflection and proactive exploration in determining one's career path. The discussion covers various aspects of career transition, including the challenges of burnout, the benefits of a portfolio career, and the importance of aligning one's values and interests with their profession. Some key questions to ask is what is it that you want, and where do you want to be in 10 years time. The conversation concludes with...
Personal branding for doctors. With Greg Williams. Episode 125
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All of us have a reputation and a personal brand. In this episode of Doctors at Work, Greg and I discuss the concept of personal branding. We talk about where our reputation comes from, including the importance of digital presence. There are benefits to a positive personal brand, both financial (if working in private systems) and reputational, but there are costs too including professional help and the headspace needed. Changing one's personal brand is definitely possible, and indeed may be desirable as the world around us changes.
Born and raised in...
How to be a great leader. With Marie Lyons. Episode 124
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Marie Lyons is an ENT consultant who has held multiple senior leadership roles. In this episode of Doctors at Work, she shares her leadership journey from medical school to her current role, highlighting her experiences and motivations along the way. She discussed the importance of formal training, cross-divisional collaboration, and personal growth in leadership roles, emphasising the need for humility, self-reflection, and open communication. Marie also reflected on the challenges faced by aspiring medical professionals and the importance of fostering resilience and a healthy attitude towards failure in younger colleagues.
Marie...
Mental imagery in surgery. With Brian Westerberg. Episode 123
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Learning practical skills such as surgery is challenging. In this episode of Doctors at Work, Brian Westerberg tells me about mental imagery. This is a technique that he has found through his elite sport contacts. It helps him anticipate and "practice" surgical steps, and is a way to train new surgeons too. We also talk about mindfulness, exercise, the importance of having non-judgemental support.
You might also like episodes 56, 80, 82, 108 on performance psychology, and episode 98 on the impostor syndrome.
Dr. Brian Westerberg, an Otolaryngologist specializing in Otology and Neurotology is...
Career decisions through serendipity: moving countries, wellbeing, and working as a voluntary-assisted dying practitioner. With Bu O'Brien. Episode 122
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In this episode of Doctors at Work, I have a conversation with Bu whose career spans multiple countries. She is now in Australia working as a GP, and also as a voluntary assisted-dying practitioner. She tells me that her career has evolved though a series of organic steps, focused on what she was enjoying, and what the opportunities were. With a backbone of General Practice that she can always return to, it has been easy for her to explore work as a breast physician as well as in voluntary-assisted dying. Her top tip...
Bringing wellbeing and lifestyle medicine to patients and doctors. With Sui Wong. Episode 121
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Sui is a neurologist who has had a creative career pathway - she took time out of training to do charity work, is a trained yoga teacher, she studied lifestyle medicine, and wrote a book. In this episode of Doctors at Work, she talks about how her own career decision making, and tells me how she developed innovative ways to deliver clinical care using her knowledge of lifestyle medicine. We focus on wellbeing for doctors, and talk about the mind-body connection, and the importance of healthy eating and exercise.
Dr Sui...
How to plan your post-CCT fellowship. With Simon Fleming. Episode 120
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You are coming to the end of your training, what next? Many doctors choose to do a fellowship. In this episode of Doctors At Work, Simon talks about the different reasons for doing a fellowship, the different fellowship types, and we discuss how to actually obtain one. The key is to recognise that fellowships are a deeply personal decision, so really know what you are wanting out of one, and start planning early.
Simon Fleming is an orthopaedic hand and wrist surgeon, medical education Ph.D and culture change advocate, with...
