There are those who spend their careers so engaged in their work that it defines their very essence
Retired Endodontist, Dr. Robert Fleisher is a wonderful writer who says about retirement “your mind and soul must be ready.” What I say is that the mind and soul needs tending to for all your years. Living in anticipation does not create a great today. “Waiting until…” does not make the most of the now.
It occurred to me that when most people are asked, “So tell me about yourself,” they respond, “I’m a lawyer.” “I’m a teacher.” “I’m an Endodontist.”
Work, then, has become a symbol of our value and our total identity. And when work disappoints or frustrates or angers us or causes us to withdraw, where do we turn? Where is there to go if you have not cultivated an exciting, interesting, satisfying personal life.
I’ve been reading a very compelling book: The end of burnout. Why work drains us and how to build better lives. To summarize, “Going beyond the how and why of burnout, a former tenured professor combines academic methods and first-person experience to propose new ways for resisting our cultural obsession with work and transforming our vision of human flourishing.
What if THESE are the best years of your life?
What if all it would take is a shift in thinking to create a more multifaceted life? Would it just take a promise to yourself that you’re not just going to give at the office. You’re going to give to yourself and those you care about as well. There are so many things out there, but often you find life is too busy to search out hobbies and interests while you are actively engaged in your profession. That, in my mind, is a mistake.
As my mentor, Kendrick Mercer always said, ”Life is a process. We have to enjoy the process or we’ll hate the end.”
I know people who live in anticipation. As soon as we can afford a bigger house …then I’ll be happy. As soon as my practice earns $XXX, then I’ll be happy. This, of course, puts too much unrealistic pressure on work. Endodontics gives us a lot (a good living; a sense of helping others; and challenging work) but it can’t fulfill us in the same way that love, children, travel, hobbies, interests etc. can.
Pardon me for preaching but I feel so strongly about living a balanced life and as the cliché goes, finding time to smell the roses. Life is for enjoying every single moment. There is no destination, only today.
If you want to explore new possibilities, let’s schedule an introductory call. Just go to endo2endo.com/contact or email me at dr.simcock@endo2endo.com.