I don’t know who normalized the idea that veterinary medicine was a profession of struggle, burn out, and hardships but that needs to change.

Yes, it’s hard! Yes, there are some days that suck, but at the end of the day your mindset sets the tone for how you view your profession and your career. Whether you are a veterinarian, a veterinary technician, an accountant, a lawyer, a nurse, or a human doctor you get to determine how much of a bad ass you are.

What are you willing and not willing to do to achieve your status?

If your are willing to do whatever it takes and loving it, then good on ya! Keep doing what you love! But if you are trying to do whatever it takes and trying to meet unrealistic expectations for yourself and hating every minute of your life, something has to change if you are going to find that work life balance and fall in love with your profession again.

You can either run it the way you want and love it, or you can let it run you… straight into the ground!

Now, I have mixed feelings with the word balance. The idea of balance is great; however, when I really think about it, balance just means average. Some people are okay with that and good for them, but if you’ve noticed the name of this blog, I am not okay with just average. I like breaking molds and doing things that others can’t do or doubt that I can do.

So how does this promote work life balance?

Well it probably doesn’t if your definition of work life balance is less work, more play.

Let’s back up a bit.

Work. Life. Balance.

The term work life balance has a general meaning that we all assume is the end all be all meaning. We also assume that it is the same for everyone across the board. But, I disagree. I’ve come to realize and learn, by way of experiences with myself and others around me, that there are many variances in the meaning of work life balance. A more accurate meaning is based on what each of us as individuals consider ‘work life balance.’

For me, work life balance is a mindset. Does that mean I’m working less, not necessarily. To me it means I’m setting boundaries. Boundaries so that I can dedicate extra time to the things that matter more to me and add fulfillment to my life. I don’t want to feel guilty for doing things in a manner that serve me and help me be at my best.

I’ve met people that actually thrive on more work and that’s their form of work life balance. Think of Oprah Winfrey, Steve Jobs, Warren Buffett, Elon Musk. You think these entrepreneurs were working normal 9-5 cushy jobs and calling it work life balance? Nope! They were probably working 24/7 and loving every second of it. But that’s not for everyone and that is okay.

Some people need other things outside their profession, and yet others need a combination of things.

In my honest opinion, I feel part of the problem is that too many of us our blaming other people and other variables for our misery and lack of work life balance. We are also looking for something or someone else to make us happy. Sorry to break it to you but you are the only one that can determine your happiness. Your boss can’t do it, your salary can’t do it, your family and friends can’t do it. It’s easy to play the victim role but at the end of the day until you end your pity party and start doing things that serve you the way you want, you will hate your profession and continue to be miserable doing it.

Believe it or not I wasn’t always happy in my career. There were times I felt stuck, frustrated, and lost. I questioned it… A LOT!

So much that I was looking for a way out and something else I could potentially transition to. It wasn’t because I didn’t love being a veterinarian or that I didn’t love helping animals. It was because I felt my job became mundane and that to me was draining. And it was always so predictable. To say I was comfortable in my job was an understatement, and that is a dangerous place to be. Especially for someone like me who is always looking for ‘more.’

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results!

~Albert Einstein

I felt that! My days literally felt like Groundhog Day everyday! Even pre-COVID. I would run into work (literally because always on that Cuban time), get through morning appointments, eat lunch in the most predictable and obsessive compulsive patterned way, finish more appointments, and then get the F* outta there!

Seems pretty work life balanced right? Ha! I guess you can say it was ‘balanced’ but it was just another day, everyday. How boring and un-stimulating.

The problem though was what was going on in my head.

Getting out of my own head and changing the way I believed a veterinarian or managing veterinarian should do things was a huge turning point for me. I started thinking less and doing more. Thinking less about what people would think of me if I did it differently, and more about what makes me happy and helps me thrive at life (career and personal).

I feel like I have been practicing typical work life balance behavior for some time now. I always aimed to get out on time and leave the clinic when I was supposed to. Sounds pretty reasonable right? Well that ate at me! Every. Single. Day. Especially coming into the role of the managing veterinarian. I was haunted by thoughts like, “I’m the ‘boss’ so I should be the last one to leave,” and “If I’m the first one to leave people will judge me for that too! Because I’m the ‘boss’.”

So again, even though my actions followed the idea of work life balance, the thoughts in my head and the guilt were negating the benefits of said action.

“Should I stay even though I finished my work for the day? Are people going to judge me because I leave on time?”

And this is just one example of the thoughts that ate at me, becoming one of the reasons I resented my career. It was adding ‘made up’ stress in my head to add to the actual stress of my job.

What’s worse is that the judgment is coming not just from the outside population but also from our own! And this needs to stop! We need to encourage and empower each other to stay sane quite frankly.

Why have we adopted this idea as veterinarians that the more we do and the more we suffer the better we are at our job? Eye roll!

No one needs to work themselves stupid. I swear it is a thing. Just think how you feel after a long day or week at work – exhausted and brain dead! Definitely not the work life balance mindset. Sounds more like the perfect set up for burning out, hating life, and hating your career.

Don’t get comfortable with being comfortable!

Here’s another perspective for you all to think about.

Work life balance does not equal getting comfortable and staying comfortable in your career. At least that’s not my idea of work life balance. The human brain needs stimulation. We were not made to figure life out and then just stop growing. If that were the case we would still be writing telegrams and traveling by horse and carriage, but I digress.

Most people are aware that in order to grow and learn we need challenge. And even though challenges are uncomfortable to work through they add fulfillment to our lives.

Anything that has lead to a feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment has come with challenges. Getting through undergrad. Applying and being accepted into vet school. Moving to a different country. Running half marathons. Graduating vet school and becoming a veterinarian. Completing a veterinary internship. Competing in bodybuilding competitions. Accepting a position as managing veterinarian. Starting a blog.

I think you get the point. Think of all the challenges you have faced and how overcoming them has helped you get to where you are today.

Was there any challenge that didn’t propel you to a better self? Probably not.

I think we need this type of challenge and stimulation in our lives. If we take these challenges on in a way that serve us it definitely promotes work life balance. The key though is making sure it serves you in a positive light and adds fulfillment to your life.

What does all of this have to do with work life balance?

I know it seems like I’m just rambling now, and I probably am a little bit. My point again is that work life balance is a mindset, not an actual thing or relating to a schedule. It is different for everyone, and you need to know that you are in control of this!

Achieving the mindset of work life balance goes hand in hand with loving your profession. Anyone ever heard the quote:

If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.

~Mark Anthony

This right here is the ultimate work life balance mindset!

Take this blog for example. It is more work and more time I have to dedicate to veterinary medicine. But, it is a challenge I choose to take on.

Is it scary? Hell yeah! Is it time consuming? Absolutely! Does it add fulfillment to my life? 100%!

Sharing my knowledge and my passion for veterinary medicine has sparked a new love for the profession. Connecting with other colleagues from all over the world and learning about all the opportunities we have as veterinarians is pretty freaking amazing! It excites me to know that there are other veterinarians that also want to see the profession change.

I feel that the veterinary profession in particular, among others, has to come together as a whole and start making changes for the betterment of our quality of life and the future of veterinary medicine professionals.

Why are we among the highest suicide rates? Why do so many of our colleagues suffer from mental illness? Why are 40% of vets considering leaving the profession (based off of a survey from the British Veterinary Association)? This is not okay!

Is it because our profession is always complaining and blaming and lacks initiative? Under staffed, over worked, under paid. All adjectives I’ve heard throughout my career to describe it. We need to be the ones making the change. Things are starting to evolve for us and we need to get off the old train and get on the new train for the profession.

More and more veterinarians are seeing the potential and opportunities outside of the walls of a vet clinic and that is exciting! We are changing the stigma around burnout, compassion fatigue, and lack of work life balance in our profession.

Being able to bring awareness to so many about this makes me feel amazing! By sharing a different perspective on work life balance I am hoping that more and more colleagues and other professionals start realizing their potential without crashing and burning. We can continue doing what we love without becoming disgruntled human beings!