One of the books that has had the biggest impact on me is called “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor Frankl. Dr. Frankl was a Jewish psychiatrist who went through WWII in concentration camps. Through the incredible suffering he experienced and witnessed he developed the theory that humans create extraordinary lives based on the meaning they give to their lives.
People can endure huge suffering and difficult conditions when they give it a powerful meaning. The meaning of life is not a single answer; it changes as your life changes. The meaning of life is the answer to the question “what is my life about right now?” This is opposed to Freud’s theory that we do everything to gain pleasure.
And while medicine is certainly not anything like the concentration camps, it can be very challenging and not always ‘pleasurable’ so the meaning you give to what you do will determine whether it feels like you’re doing what you’re meant to, or whether it just becomes mechanical and you feel like you’re going through the motions.
Has medicine lost some of its meaning for you?
I wonder if you can recall why you chose your career path as a doctor. If you can recall why, was your choice governed by some sort of vision that gave medicine meaning for you and has your vision remained the same or has it changed? Do you still consciously have a vision that gives your career meaning? At the start was it to make a difference and to save lives? Was it to create a great income to provide for your family? How about spending time with your loved ones? Or becoming the best in your chosen field?
How has it changed and more importantly, have you thought about how it’s changed and are you clear about what it is for you right now?
If you notice a sense of disconnect between your work and the meaning behind it, then maybe it’s time to schedule some time away, somewhere you can take time out to think about what’s important to you, the beach, the mountains, a café, wherever you won’t be distracted by life.
Now you’re in the right place to remember your vision, the meaning you originally gave your career. Is your original vision still why you’re in medicine and does it give meaning to what you do each day? If it is still real for you, but you’ve become a bit disconnected, then take some time to think of the moments in your work where you feel genuinely fulfilled and connected to your vision. Can you have more of these moments, or do you need to consciously amplify your experience in the moments that you do have so they sustain you?
Use it to work out what you’re really meant to do
But what if you find yourself lying on the beach staring out to sea and you just know you’re not fulfilling your vision in any way at all and therefore medicine has lost its meaning for you? Ask yourself, what is my career all about for me right now? Use this question to work out the empowering meaning from what you are currently doing, or to find a new path that will achieve your original vision if that still holds true; it’s all about the meaning you give it, not what actually happens.
Schedule the interruptions
What gives your life meaning will change as your life changes. From time to time you will need to go the beach (or mountains, or café etc.) and consciously check in with your vision and what meaning medicine holds for you now. Schedule it; don’t let yourself become too disconnected to giving your work an empowering meaning.
You’re okay
If you’ve struggled to prevent your work from becoming mechanical, you’re probably normal. Life changes, the meaning of your life changes, and if you schedule interruptions to revisit your vision and take any corresponding action, chances are you are exceptional.
Dr. Sam Hazledine