I almost lost it.
One of my Sunday morning rituals is to pour a cold brew, grab my laptop, and map out my week. It’s a sacred little routine that helps me navigate my week. It is a task that actually soothes me- until I opened my schedule and saw it: every single clinic was overbooked by two patients.
My first thought? “Who did this? How could this happen?”
It didn’t take long to figure it out.
It was me.
Now, I’m no rookie. I talk about time-blocking, boundaries, and saying no all the time—to clients, colleagues, and anyone who will listen. I use these tools myself, religiously.
So how did the physician coach sabotage his own week?
Turns out, my team knows my soft spots. I genuinely love being of service. I care about patients and don’t like to disappoint my staff.
All it takes is a nudge:
- “This mom is really worried about her child…”
- “The call center is in a jam, can you help?”
- “Can you squeeze this family in?”
And I cave.
Even though I’m better at boundaries than I used to be, I had to face the truth: I wasn’t going to change my nature—so the system had to.
So I hacked my clinic schedule.
I worked with admin to privatize two slots in every session. Only my core team—or I—can touch them. (Sorry-not-sorry central scheduling—I’ve seen your work.)
There were complaints at first. “You’re not maximizing your schedule.” But guess what? I was already crushing RVU targets. The productivity argument didn't have any weight behind. I held my ground.
Three months later:
- I say yes without wrecking my day.
- Overbooks are rare.
- In-basket chaos is down.
- Everyone, my patients, my team, and yes, me, is happier.
- We are piloting this model in other clinics
The answer isn’t fixing your flaws. It’s building a better system around them.
“You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.”
— Jon Kabat-Zinn
Coach's Corner
Make the System Work for You
This week, take 10 quiet minutes and journal around these questions:
- Where do you consistently get overextended?
(Be honest: Is it your patients? Meeting requests? That colleague who “just needs one quick favor”?) - What’s your soft spot?
(Empathy? People-pleasing? Fear of looking lazy?) - What systems or templates could you tweak to honor your strengths without burning out?
(Think: scheduling buffers, team protocols, inbox rules.) - Where do you need to stop relying on willpower and start relying on structure?
(Because grit isn’t always the answer—sometimes it’s a calendar rule.)
Make the system work for you. Small changes to your environment can protect your energy without compromising your values.
Your Turn to Rebuild the System
You don’t have to white-knuckle your way through your career. You can love your patients and protect your peace. You can show up fully without falling apart.
But if you’re not sure where to start, or you’ve tried and keep getting pulled back in, I can help.
Let’s talk about how your schedule, practice, or entire career could work for you, not against you.
You don’t need to become someone else. You just need a system that respects who you already are.
You’ve got soft spots. So do I. Let’s build around them.
Until next time,
Ben
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