Leading Well in Medicine: Why Our Training Misses the Mark

Most physician leaders are never truly taught to lead well.

We’re often promoted to leadership roles because we are excellent physicians, efficient operators, and deeply committed to the work.

Physicians who are tagged as leaders are the ones who pick up the shifts no one wants, answer messages late at night, work through lunch, and always meet our metrics. We are servant leaders who get things done.

This is not the same as leading well.

Healthcare leadership today is more complex, more human, and more nuanced than this.

It asks more of us than productivity and problem-solving. It requires emotional clarity and the ability to tolerate discomfort. It requires trust—in ourselves and in others.

It asks us to model not just competence, but rest, integrity, and presence.

As leaders, we set the tone in every interaction—through what we say, how we say it, what we prioritize, and even through our silence. If we are burned out, reactive, or disconnected, that energy flows through the system and is felt by every person we lead.

This truth was at the heart of a recent conversation I had with KevinMD on his podcast, How to Lead from the Heart in a System that Rewards Intellect.

We explored what I call the “sacred irony” of physicians—especially women leaders—who are experts in the heart, yet rarely tend to their own. In our medical culture, overwork and self-sacrifice are celebrated, but time for reflection is almost nonexistent.

I introduced my core leadership philosophy, which is grounded in the biological principle of diastole—the rest phase of the heartbeat. Just as the heart cannot sustain life without that pause, neither can a leader sustain themselves or their team without intentional rest.

This sacred pause is not a luxury; it is essential for clarity, courage, and sustainable leadership.

When we shift from leading with intellect and control to leading with intention, authenticity, and embodied wisdom, we create space for deeper connection and a healthier culture of medicine.

We become the kind of leaders who steady the room simply by walking into it—leaders who influence not just through policy, but through presence.

If you are curious about what traditional leadership training rarely covers—how to lead with a lens of wellness, how to communicate with clarity and courage, how to manage your energy as carefully as you manage your time—I invite you to explore my new program Leading from the Heart.

This group is where women physicians learn the skills that allow us to ruminate less, self-sacrifice less, and people-please less. It’s where we step into being calm, grounded, wise leaders who create systems where both patients and physicians can thrive.

Ultimately, leading well is not about how much you can accomplish; it's about how well you lead. It’s about how well you can be.