As you consider leaving clinical medicine, you will get well-intentioned advice from loved ones, mentors, and career experts. A lot of it will be excellent and worth listening to.

However, listen with a discriminating ear. Does it fit your situation? Does it feel right to you?

Here are 6 pieces of career change advice that might not be right for you and what to do instead.

1. “Start with your WHY.”

While asking WHY you want to leave is important, you may need to back up and ask these questions first:

“Who am I?”

Who do I want to become?

What really matters to me now?

What are my values?

Think about how you or your context have changed since becoming a doctor.

Maybe you now want to be a mom who’s really present with her children? What matters now is a flexible work schedule.

Maybe you now find yourself practicing in a healthcare system that’s no longer aligned with your values? You may want to change your practice environment.

2. “Don’t run away, go towards something.”

This is sage advice. Except, sometimes, “running away” is an act of radical self-preservation.

If you’re so burned out you don’t know who you are (or even your “why”), you may need to leave the situation and give yourself space and time to heal and restore. Then you can reconnect with who you are, what’s important to you, and what you want to go towards.

I’m a big proponent of taking time off, like taking FMLA or a long vacation to get back in touch with what you want.

Caveat: You cannot run away from yourself. This is a tough one. When we’re desperate and just need to get out, it can be challenging to separate our tendencies from what’s wrong at work. You might not recognize you’re running away from yourself until you find yourself in the same situation in a different job. And it’s not the end of the world because you’ve learned something about yourself in the process!

3. “Don’t quit one job before you have another.”

Most of the time, this is reasonable advice. Especially if your financial situation requires regular income.

This advice might not be right for you if your mental or physical health is under threat, you’re exhausted and vacation hasn’t helped. Or you’re so burned out, you don’t know what you want.

If you’ve tried your best to make things work in your current job: adjusted your schedule, said NO to things that deplete you, or even gone part-time and you’re still struggling, quitting might be right for you.

Caveat: Before you quit, take a financial inventory and try to have a minimum 6 months of living expenses saved.

For a discussion on pros and cons of quitting one job before you have another, listen to the Carpe Diem podcast episode, Should you have a job before quitting?

4. “Just finish med school/residency/fellowship.”

In general, I agree with this sound advice. However, if you are absolutely miserable, your mental or physical health is suffering, and you can’t see your way forward, you may need to quit!

Quitting when you haven’t finished training works well if there’s something else you want to do instead. It’s a tougher road if you have no idea what else to do.

To hear how a physician left medicine before completing residency and found her own path, listen to Chelsea Turgeon MD tell her story (starts at 7:45 minutes).

5. “You’re such a good doctor, your patients love you, and you’ve been successful. You can’t quit now!” 

But of course, you’ve been successful! You’re smart, driven, and determined. You did well despite not liking it! Truth is, you would be successful at almost anything you did. It’s OK to no longer want this. 

No-one wants to be a ‘quitter,” but what is it costing you to continue on a path that’s no longer right for you?

When I was thinking about leaving medicine, I received similar advice, “Don’t quit now! Wait 4 more years until you become eligible for retirement benefits.” This was good advice, but I could no longer step on my core values of freedom, autonomy, and family. I did not wait and that was the right decision for me. I’m free and happy in a way I could never have been while waiting for those retirement benefits.

6. “This has been your dream since you were 6 years old. You’re just going through a tough phase. It will pass.”

Only you know if your discontent is just a phase. In general, if you’re waking up most mornings with anxiety about work and feeling tired most of the time, it’s probably time for a change!

It’s OK to let go of the dreams your younger self gave you. You’ve changed and so can your dreams.

A client shared the story of the 6-year-old in her who dreamed of practicing medicine to do house calls, spend lots of time with families in their homes, and leave with a chicken and loaf of bread as payment. She could not find such a practice!

These 6 pieces of advice, in general, are wise and time-tested. However, make sure advice is right for you.

You don’t want to keep doing what’s expected of you. You want to start being who you’re becoming and doing what’s aligned with your values.