Stimulus - Learn Tools to Crush It in Your Medical Career

So many of our choices are shaped less by desire and more by expectation. We chase prestige, status, or recognition, only to arrive and realize we were climbing the wrong ladder. Beneath burnout and the friction, there’s often the truth that we were never pursuing what we truly wanted. In this episode, we explore the concept of mimetic desire, how it misguides our ambitions, and how to reclaim our decisions. Finally, we examine how fear of judgment and shame shape our careers more than we think, and what it takes to break free.
Guest bio: Josh Russell, MD, is double board-certified in Emergency Medicine and Palliative Care. He’s held leadership roles as a Chief Medical Officer in telehealth, artificial intelligence, and urgent care systems. He’s an experienced clinician, writer, educator, and medical editor with a passion for making complex topics accessible.
LinkedIn article that spurred this podcast
Josh’s Website
We Discuss:
Mimetic Desire: Chasing What Others Want
The Trap of “Should”: Internalized Shame
The Concentric Circles of Stressors
Finding What You Really Want
The Ladder Against the Wrong Wall
Actionable Reflection Practices

Mentioned in this episode:
Awake and Aware | March 1-4, 2026
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What if the true test of strength is focusing less on what we feel and more on what we do? In this episode, we explore a practical philosophy of action, presence, and personal agency with Dan Millman, author of Way of the Peaceful Warrior. Finally, we dig into how small mindset shifts can transform both high-stakes moments and the quiet struggles of everyday life.
Guest bio: Dan Millman is a world champion athlete turned author, educator, and teacher of practical wisdom. With a background that spans competitive sports, university-level coaching, martial arts, and academic instruction, Dan brings a rare blend of physical discipline and philosophical insight to his work.
Following two decades of spiritual exploration, he developed what would become known as the Peaceful Warrior’s Way, an action-based approach to living with purpose. Dan is the author of 18 books, including the international bestseller Way of the Peaceful Warrior, which was adapted into a feature film. His writings have reached millions across 29 languages and continue to influence readers around the world.
We Discuss:
Peaceful Warrior Philosophy in Action
What We Control (And What We Don’t)
Action Over Emotion
The Three Rules of Wise Living
The Power of Present Moment Awareness
Mastery Through Deliberate Practice
Purpose as a Practical Tool
Growth Without Perfection
Working Within Broken Systems
Practicing Life

Mentioned in this episode:
Free Tools To Make Medical Practice Easier
No fluff. Just good stuff.
Free Resources Link
Our 2026 Retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona
March 1-4. Change how you see yourself, experience your work with joy, and build mental excellence.
Learn More Here
Doctoring Done Well | Bite-Sized Wins
Every other week, a few minutes of career-elevating insight delivered straight to your inbox.
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Your work world is built on endurance, intensity, and mastery. The culture is 'always on,' and you were trained to perform in conditions no one would call normal. The work is supranormal. It sits at the edge of reasonable and regularly exceeds what is sustainable by most standards. High performers like you often find themselves on an above-the-fray pedestal, expected to be tireless and self-sacrificing. Supranormal work can unlock extraordinary performance, but the cost adds up if it goes unchecked.
In this episode, we look at where this culture came from, the cortisol spikes that shape your days, the hidden curriculum of self-sacrifice, and the countermeasures that keep you from burning out. It is a straight look at the supranormal experience and what it takes to do this work without losing yourself to it.
Awake + Aware | Our 2026 Retreat
Join us at Awake and Aware, our 3-day retreat in Scottsdale, AZ. March 1-4, 2026. Space is limited.
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🎓 P.S. This is a CME event.
We discuss:
• Why medical culture expects you to perform inside conditions no one would call normal
• What makes supranormal work different from ordinary high-stress work
• How the “always on” ethos formed and why it persists
• The hidden curriculum of self-sacrifice and the pedestal of being above the fray
• Cortisol spikes, sympathetic load, and what chronic activation does to your body
• Why self-preservation feels selfish in medicine and why that belief is wrong
• The roots of modern training from monastic care to Halsted’s cocaine-fueled stamina
• Why emergency medicine is an outlier in burnout, longevity, and physiological strain
• The concept of parasympathetic nurturing as a countermeasure
• How mindset changes biology and shifts performance
• What it takes to last in supranormal work without losing yourself

What if the best decision is to not decide at all? We waste valuable mental energy overthinking simple choices, especially when the outcomes are nearly identical. That kind of cognitive drain reduces our capacity to think clearly when decisions actually matter. In this episode, we explore how to reduce cognitive load, identify low-risk choices that can be automated or ignored, and recognize when deliberation is just noise. Finally, we break down how framing, values, and the right question can make even complex decisions frictionless.
Guest bio: Dan Dworkis MD, PhD is an emergency physician who is a clinical professor of emergency medicine at USC Keck School of Medicine. He’s also host of the Emergency Mind podcast that focuses on helping individuals and teams perform better under pressure and the author of The Emergency Mind: Wiring Your Brain for Performance Under Pressure.
We Discuss:
The Three Types of Cognitive Load
Harvesting Free Rolls
Applying Dominance and Cutting Through Decisional Noise
How to Stop Fretting Over Equivalent Decisions
Navigating Equipoise
Making Big Life Decisions

Mentioned in this episode:
5 Free Tools To Make Medical Practice Easier
Scripts for your least favorite conversations.
The quick and dirty guide to calling consults.
A 10-minute "Driveway Debrief" to switch off from work.
My favorite documentation templates.
Step-by-step guide for delivering the news of death.

Free Resources Link
Doctoring Done Well | Bite-Sized Wins
Every other week, a few minutes of career-elevating insight delivered straight to your inbox.
The Doctoring Done Well Newsletter is never lame, never spammy, and always fresh.
Sign up for our Newsletter
Our 2026 Retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona
March 1-4. Change how you see yourself, experience your work with joy, and build mental excellence.
Learn More Here

As students navigate an increasingly complex, competitive, and costly path to medical school, parents often find themselves uncertain about how to help without hindering growth. Meanwhile, institutions maintain opaque admissions practices, amplifying anxiety for both students and families. In this episode, we explore what parents need to know to truly support, not sabotage, their aspiring doctors. Finally, we pull back the curtain on everything from shadowing to AI in essays, offering a brutally honest look at what really matters in the application process.
Guest bio: Dr. Ryan Gray, a former Flight Surgeon in the United States Air Force, is the founder of Medical School Headquarters and Meded Media, where he has become a leading voice in guiding pre-med and medical students toward careers in medicine. He is the author of The Premed Playbook series, including Guide to the Medical School Application Process, Guide to the Medical School Personal Statement, Guide to the Medical School Interview, and Guide to the MCAT. Dr. Gray also hosts several popular podcasts, including The Premed Years, OldPreMeds Podcast, The MCAT Podcast, and Specialist Stories.
We Discuss:
Support vs. Sabotage
The Myth of the Perfect Applicant
Why Checklists Aren't Really Checklists
What Shadowing Really Tells You
What's the Deal With Volunteering Hours?
Service for the Right Reasons
Why Pre-Med Doesn't Mean Pre-Doctor
Using AI When Writing Med School Essays
Compressing Preclinical Education
The Price of Applying and the Sneaky Secondaries
Why Don't Schools Post MCAT Cutoffs?
How to Write a Good Letter of Recommendation and When to Say No
Thank You Notes
Letters of Intent
Should Premeds Attend Non-Interview Info Sessions?
Why Clinical Hours Are Non-Negotiable