10 Things I Wish I Knew As a New Attending

As I record this in early July, new Residents and Fellows are starting clinical rotations. And over the next several months, recent graduates, new Attendings, are starting their new roles as "the grown up" in the room.

What do I wish I understood when I was in their place?

Today I'm sharing 10 things that I wish had understood 14 years ago, as I prepared to be an Attending. In brief, they are:

 1. You will always look more calm and more organized to other people than you feel inside.
 2. Your program wanted you to succeed; your job wants you to bring in money.
 3. You will have to relearn or learn how to say no.
 4. There will always be more to do than time to do it. Be picky, be selective.
 5. Boundaries allow you bandwidth
 6. No one will watch out for you but you.
 7. You will never be done learning; the better you take care of yourself, the more bandwidth you will have for curiosity and growth
 8. The amount of admin tasks will metastasize, especially if you are willing to do them.
 9. You have more choices than you know.
 10. Your job is not to have all the answers

What would YOU add to this list? Whether you've been out of training for a year, or 20, let me know what you wish you had known. Email me at megan@healthierforgood.com (yes, I read this myself) or DM me on IG at @MeganMeloMD

As promised, here is a link to a 2022 article in Medical Economics that showed PCP require 26.7 hours per day to provide comprehensive care to their patients: https://www.medicaleconomics.com/view/primary-care-physicians-need-26-7-hours-a-day-for-comprehensive-care-for-patients