Inspiration: Words to Prevent Apathy and Disengagement

Glowinski Avatar by Dr. Paik WU CAP'13 Graduate

Some graduating residents have asked about the quotations I cited in my 2013 graduation speech: this blog post is derived from this speech.

On the early morning of June 20th, the day of the WUSM Psychiatry Graduation party for the General Psychiatry Residents and our Child Psychiatry Residents, I was "leafing" through Flipboard (http://flipboard.com/) and read a Harvard Business Review Blog post on workforce engagement. According to this piece, the rate of engagement (i.e., interested, attentive and active participation in one's job) is low across the board and across generations and, this among doctors and nurses as well. The numbers cited are alarming: only about one third of physicians or nurses are engaged in their jobs. 

Thus, I arrived at the graduation party, equipped with inspirational quotes, meant to ward off the specter of disengagement in our graduates.


1-On always remembering the importance of childhood; ours and that of others, especially our patients: "One is from one's childhood like one is from a country. "
(Antoine de St. Exupery)

2-After years of investment and commitment to becoming a highly specialized physician, be true to your choice and don't do it half you know what. Ovide said: "It is better to do evil well than to do good badly."

3-You can not choose fun over your work all the time but never lose an opportunity to have fun at work; what follows is my favorite American quotation by far, from Mark Twain in Life on the Mississippi: "Now and then, we had a hope that if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."

4-Take care of yourself and those around you. "Il faut cultiver notre jardin." (Voltaire in Candide.)

5-Question your assumptions and beliefs, be humble and never become smug: "The doubt is the beginning of wisdom." (Aristotle)

6-Be enthusiastic and passionate but....not a hothead: "A little impatience can ruin a big project." (Confucius)

7-Especially for times of doubt, when you are not sure that you are making a difference and capable of having an impact: "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." (Maya Angelou)

8-To keep boredom and mindless routine at bay, always, always keep learning: "If you posess a library and a garden, you have all you need" (Cicero)

9-Always keep growing and don't be afraid to embark on new professional directions or adventures: "Success is dangerous. You start copying yourself and copying yourself is more dangerous than copying others...It is sterile." (Picasso)

10-Finally, from me, not a wordsmith, but one who wishes all the graduates to be engaged and passionate. Do not feel bad about the many times you will put others above your comfort or sleep or serenity. In the end, unless this sacrifice is excessive (and you must learn to recognize your limits), you will rarely regret going above and beyond but will regret the opposite.

Till Later,

Anne