McKinsey Consulting Gigs For Physicians

McKinsey & Company, a management consulting firm with nearly 9,000 consultants in 90 offices across 50 countries, is hosting two exciting summer programs for students working towards advanced professional degrees: Insight Healthcare and Insight Engineering & Science.  

These programs will give non-MBA advanced degree students an insider's look into management consulting.  Each of the comprehensive seminars will cover a range of topics important to those who are exploring alternative career possibilities.  Program agendas include an overview of management consulting, an introduction to the type of work we do, a management consulting case study, and an opportunity to network with colleagues and participate in social activities. 

Insight Healthcare
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
June 23 – 26, 2011 Application deadline: April 20, 2011  

http://www.mckinsey.com/careers/apd/Opportunities.aspx >

Qualified Applicants for Insight Healthcare should be:

• Completing an MD, a medical internship, residency or fellowship in 2012 or 2013
• Completing a PhD or post-doc in healthcare related disciplines including biology, biomedical engineering, chemistry or immunology in 2012
• Currently residing in the United States or Canada
• Available to attend the entire event starting at 5:30 p.m. on the evening of Thursday, June 23rd and ending at 1:30 p.m. on the afternoon of Sunday, June 26th

No business experience required. All expenses will be paid by McKinsey & Company.

There are more nonclinical jobs

Crafting Your Elevator Pitch As A Physician

What is an elevator pitch? 

There are many explanations, but essentially it’s about “selling” yourself by describing who you are and why someone else should care - in 30 seconds or less.  Interestingly, the term is taken from the early days of Internet explosion when web development needed venture capital.  The best companies were those that could explain a business proposition to the occupants of an elevator in the time it took them to ride to their floor. 

For you, an elevator pitch is probably as essential as a business card. You need to be able to say who you are, what you do, what you are interested in doing and how you can be a valuable resource in a short enough time period to avoid losing the interest of the other person.  Most people won’t want to listen for more than a minute and many busy people (and everyone is busy) will listen for a shorter time than that.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you build your elevator pitch.

Get quiet with yourself first:  Make sure you know what you really want to communicate.  Ask yourself some focusing questions.  Can your point be boiled down to one sentence?  If not, it probably needs clarifying.

Have a provocative opening:  Stories work well for this.  They tend to paint a picture in the listener’s mind and help build that emotional connection. 

Make sure you have one main point you want to get across to your listener.  Once you figure that out, figure out why your listener should care about that point (how it fills his or her needs).  If you can say it in a way that the listener cares about, he or she is much more likely to “hear” it. 

Keep it simple.  Remember, you want this to be a 30-45 SECOND (not minute) monologue. 

As you build and practice your elevator pitch, here is a good acronym to keep in mind: S.U.C.C.E.S.

S:  Simplicity.  Start with one sentence that gets attention yet is simple. This is the most important part because it grabs the listener’s attention.  That’s what you want.

U: Unexpected.  Keep the listener’s attention with something he or she might not expect.

C: Concrete.  Use relevant analogies or metaphors to bring things to life or to paint a picture in the listener’s mind

C: Credible.  Use recent statistics or highlight your past outcomes and accomplishments to demonstrate you know what you are talking about.

E: Emotional connection.  Try to use stories and or methods that speak to your listener because they involve things important to the listener (for example, if the listener has kids or likes to run, keep this in mind and relate it to what you are trying to say)

S: Stories.  Stories are a good way to keep that emotional connection and to keep the pitch interesting. 

The hardest part for most of the doctors I work with is getting started.  It’s hard to make the time and feel the energy it takes to feel your creative juices flowing and it’s hard to know what to say.  We all have lots of stories – things that have happened to us, times when we felt like a failure, times when what we did resulted in success despite all odds.  But then that little seed of doubt creeps in and we wonder, “Is this story even going to be interesting to someone else  - or does it just make me look like a jerk?” 

Get past that. Laugh about it.  Shake your head and realize, “It might,” and then write it down anyway.  You just need to get started.  You can revise it later or change it all together when you do remember that brilliant story with the right blend of humor, humility and substance.  Or maybe you’ll just shrug and remember that you’ll never have the “perfect” antidote; we are all human and that is reason we connect to stories in the first place. 

Then, set yourself up for S.U.C.C.E.S.

The Value Of Cross-Semination

This is a great place for me, since I've been Freelance for 40 years. and can speak to its freedoms, but also its foibles.

While it's fresh -- so fresh it's only been over for an hour -- I'd like to write about the value of cross-semination & fertilization of medical (and other) creative and productive minds, all with goal-directed drive and enthusiasm both to further their own interests and to make the world a better place.

I'm talking about the excellent Harvard Writers course put on by Julie Silver and her team in Boston. 3 days of intense learning, exchanging, and re-invigorating.

I have just finished responding to today's front-page article in the New York Times with a letter I hope they'll print, that is on the very subject for which I enrolled in the excellent conference from which I have just emerged, my head spinning with ideas. I was looking for an agent or publisher for my book which is about the life of a generalist and deals with the coming extinction of the true generalist physician.

The article in the NYT was about a daughter with a new family negating her father and grandfather's generalist career, which for them was all-consuming, and opting for ER medicine which she believed was "more challenging" but shorter hours.  I wonder how many read that article in the NYT and what their "take" on it was. This was mine:

"As a female Family Physician,with 3 children and 7 grandchildren, practicing solo for 40 years I must congratulate Gardiner Harris but also respond to "More doctors reject long hours.”

One can pace oneself for family, limit one's hours with creative arrangements and still render quality generalist care to one’s own patients over years. That includes caring for them when they are sickest in hospital, where there is no real proof that hospitalists deliver "more proficient" care than one’s own generalist. The management of ongoing and acute problems daily are just as creative and challenging, if not more so, than emergency work.

With true generalists extinct, we are all at peril. Everyone needs a physician, broadly trained, who knows and cares about the patient as an individual. Patients know that doctors are far from interchangeable. Hospitals and insurance companies wish they were, to facilitate what is becoming the "widgetization" of Medicine."

I am also very interested in other physicians', (generalist or specialist or superspecialist) opinions on what I call the coming extinction of the true generalist (not the recreated triage officer/midlevel "primary care"persons that are being equated w/ a serious, broadly-trained generalist physician, whether in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine or Pediatrics.).

About: Pepi Granat, MD is a Family Physician, Board Certified in practice in South Miami, Florida, and Clinical Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Miami.

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Nonclinical Careers: Owning Your Own Niche

"If you can, be first. If you can't be first, create a new category in which you can be first."  - Al Ries & Jack Trout, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

There's something innately attractive about uniqueness.

To be unique you need to dominate a niche. I don't care what niche it is, but you need to dominate it.  If you can't dominate the niche where you are, you need to create a new one.

How can you tell if you're considered to be unique? Pretty simply. There's a single two word phrase that people use to describe someone who's dominating a niche. You'll hear it used all of the time as a recommendation: "The best".

It doesn't matter what you're the best at, only that you're the best at it.

Now all uniqueness is not created equal. If you're 'the best orthopedic surgeon in the country', you're going to be sitting pretty. If you're 'the best orthopedic surgeon in Evanston, Wyoming', it's less of a talking point.

Perhaps you're in cosmetic medicine like a lot of the docs that I know. It's probable that there are  dozens of plastic surgeons, dermatologists, and medical spas that are in your target area and trying to get to your target clients.  How are you going to set yourself above the noise as the single choice? How are you going to get those patient referrals?

How are you going to position yourself as 'unique' in order to compete?

You're going to find something that you can be the best at.

You may be in family practice or internal medicine. Fine. You're clinical practice is general in nature, but that doesn't mean that there's no uniqueness to be had. You always start where you are.

Sure you have patients that already love you. So what. So does everyone else.

Like everyone in cosmetic medicine, already know that you’re ‘target’ is generally going to be women. You’re right of course, more than 95% of your clients will be female, but what else do you KNOW about the women that want YOU to be their cosmetic medical provider. If you’re like the average medspa, even those that have been doing this for years, not that much. You’ll also be able to deduce pretty easily that women looking for Botox. or fillers, or cosmetic surgery are generally over 30 and less than 55 or so. Right again. That’s a ‘second qualifier’. In fact, those two items put you on par with 99% of what cosmetic clinics know about their Botox and filler patients… but that’s not the end.

If this sounds like you, then you’ve joined the 99% of other providers who think they should target EVERYONE instead of a small, focused niche. In the best case, these clinics limit their success, in the worst, they set themselves up to fail miserably.

You need to learn how to target your perfect client with laser-like focus. With the right niche targeting, you’ll be able to tailor and optimize not only your services, but also your medspas pricing. And when you learn to target your services SPECIFICALLY to this person – making it truly personalized – they will pay virtually anything, and they’ll thank you for it.

Of course targeting this way isn’t easy. It takes a little work so it’s generally ignored by the lazy.

Let’s go through a quick example to set the stage. Imagine that you’re hired by a medical spa or laser clinic and you’re told, “Help us get more patients.”

The first question you ask should probably be, “Who are you trying to reach?”

If the response is, “Well, everybody. We just want a lot of them.” Turn in your notice. You’re doomed.

What’s wrong with this approach?

Think about it this; when was the last time you went out of your way to purchase a product that was just right for you, but it was also “just right” for your retired father and your 18-year-old neighbors kid? If you found such a product would you buy it? Would you pay a premium price for it? Of course not.

You’re looking for something that speaks directly to you. That serves YOUR needs – not your needs and everyone else. That’s why a woman will spend $600 on a Kate Spade handbag instead of the Target knock-off, men buy ‘men’s razors’ when cheaper women’s razors work just fine, and why your perfect target patient will pay you a premium and beg you to treat them.

Take note of this point because it’s important: If you’re targeting to EVERYBODY then you’re selling to NOBODY.

It may sound counter-intuitive but it’s true: The more you niche yourself, the more money you can make.

An excellent example of this is Johnson & Johnson Baby Shampoo. It’s been around forever and you probably already know the ‘No more tears’ slogan. Know who their market is? It’s not babies. Babies don’t by shampoo. In fact, it’s used by adults far more than it’s use on babies. Why, because it’s ‘niched’. It says right on the label who it’s for… even though they know that more adults use it.

You’re not offering exercise videos… you’re P90x who’s blowing the doors of of sales by targeting the hardest workout for the hardest bodies.

You’re not selling cooking lessons…  you’re selling cooking lessons for new brides.

As a generalist, you have to make sure that you are one of the best in the industry, have unique service offerings, and you are considered accomplished in a few other fields. 

If you do it persistently enough, you will OWN that niche. People will not be able to imagine that niche without you.

The secret to commanding premium rates is in identifying a very specific niche that buyers demand, and focusing on that niche while excluding everything else.

There's no really good short cut around this. If you don't already have any unique skill set, you're going to have to develop one. You can't hoodwink everyone into buyers by just saying that you're better. Decide on a single special attribute or 'specialty' and make it your own. Actually BE better at it in some way.

Oh, by the way, you can only pick one niche.

Have the confidence to find your niche, define who you are, then declare it again and again and again and again.  If you target your martket smartly, over time you will own that niche.

Your Book & Its Niche

By Julia Schlam Edelman MD, FACOG, NCMP

Ten years ago, I set out to write a book for women 35 and over, with a focus on menopausal issues.

Not long ago, open discussion of menopause was taboo. Much has changed in the modern information era, and today women are inundated with facts and recommendations. All too often, the recommendations are contradictory. Women who try to keep up with the latest medical developments may become overwhelmed, frustrated, or even fearful.

My goal was to help women be informed and reassured, while enhancing their ability to manage their health. Based on my experience with patients, I expected that women who learned how their bodies change during midlife and beyond, would be positioned to make healthier choices.

Publishers did not find this compelling. They said I needed to have a stronger “platform.” This, I learned, is code for: “You are not a household name.” “You are not a famous actress whose cover photo will prompt women to follow your advice.” “You have not discovered a new cure for hot flashes, low sex drive, or aging.” Finally, “you have not been on Oprah.” As a board certified gynecologist and certified menopause practitioner with more than 25 years of experience caring for women, I watched with dismay as a dozen rejection letters from top publishers rolled in.

The breakthrough came when my literary agent suggested submitting the book proposal to Johns Hopkins University Press (JHUP). While I had heard the JHUP Executive Editor of Consumer Health speak at the Harvard CME Publishing Course for physicians, I had crossed JHUP off my list. After all, they had recently published “The Only Menopause Book You Will Ever Need.” Despite this, the JHUP editor and its physician board accepted the proposal and published Menopause Matters: Your Guide to a Long and Healthy Life in January, 2010.

Here are two examples of features that distinguish Menopause Matters from its competition. Perhaps they will help catalyze your thinking about positioning your book:

Discussing the rationale behind the medical recommendations

When discussing evidence regarding the use of natural and alternative remedies, prescription medications, and lifestyle changes, I provide a broad range of options. For example, readers are exposed to the risks and benefits of taking prescription hormones compared to taking bioidentical hormones, as well as discussing the implications of their lifestyle choices. There is no “one size fits all approach.” As readers, and their medical providers, are aware, “one size fits all” does not work when shopping for shoes, clothes, or medical advice.

Case Studies

Menopause Matters contains more than 50 short stories or “cases” that depict women with hot flashes, heart disease, breast lumps, thin bones, poor sleep, worse moods or low sex drive, and shows how these women make decisions with their physicians. This demonstrates how doctors and patients can work effectively together, and makes MM livelier and easier to read.

I hope that these examples help you with your book. If you would like to read a chapter of Menopause Matters: Your Guide to a Long and Healthy Life to see for yourself if I met my goals, please go to www.JuliaEdelmanMD.com, where the first chapter is posted, as well as the table of contents and four professional reviews.

About: Julia Schlam Edelman MD, FACOG, NCMP is a board certified gynecologist and certified menopause clinician with a private practice in Massachusetts. The North American Menopause Society selected her as their "2010 Menopause Practitioner of the Year".

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Here's to the Crazy Ones

I'm a Mac guy, but even if I wasn't I'd still like this ad.  It's an old Apple tv commercial and I find it very inspiring.  It's good to remember that some of the most dynamic individuals we've known were originally labeled "crazy." 

For all my physician friends who are willing to color outside the lines from time to time, well, here's to you.

Physicians & Evil Plans

Ahhhhhhh....

That's me relaxing in my favorite place in the world...Saint Simons Island, Georgia.

Just recently got back home and I am loving it.  

Most people have one of those places, a geographic location that just seems soothing.  For me, it's a little coastal island community of 15,000 people just off the coast of Georgia.  My mom grew up here.  My second daughter was born here.  My wife and I own a house here and when we are not otherwise occupied, this is where we reside.

It's my first morning back in town and already I feel better about the world.  I walked down to the ocean, called Larry over at St. Simons Outfitters about my new fishing rod, and am writing this while drinking a cup of hot chocolate in one of the two great local coffee shops on the island.  Life is good.

One of the best parts of living the island life is having some time to read an excellent book or two.  My most recent read was Hugh MacLeod's new book, Evil Plans: Having Fun on the Road to World Domination .  I have heard about Hugh for a while, and when my fellow Freelance MD writer, Dr. Mehul Sheth, mentioned him in a recent post I thought it was a good time to jump into Hugh's latest book.

For those of you who might not be familiar with Hugh's work, he is a blogger who writes at GapingVoid.com , an artist who began by drawing comics on the back of business cards, and is now a best-selling author who discusses things like creativity and how to escape the rat race we're all in.

In his latest book, Evil Plans, Hugh talks about the importance of developing an "evil plan" if you want to escape the system and begin living your life, begin being who you were meant to be.  Here's an excerpt from the book's intro...

Everybody needs an Evil Plan.  Everybody needs that crazy, out-there idea that allows them to actually start doing something they love, doing something that matters.  Everybody needs an Evil Plan that gets them the hell out of the rat race, away from lousy bosses, away from boring, dead-end jobs that they hate.  Life is short.

Every person who ever managed to do this, every person who managed to escape the cubicle farm and start doing something  interesting and meaningful, started off with their own Evil Plan.  And yeah, pretty much everyone around them-- friends, family, colleagues-- thought they were nuts.

So there it is.  Physicians need an Evil Plan.  You, specifically, need an Evil Plan.  If you're frustrated with your career.  If you want more meaning. If you have the relentless urge to create something bigger, then you need an Evil Plan and you really should read Hugh's book.

Here are some other quotes in Evil Plans that grabbed me:

• It's not that people don't want you to be successful-- they just don't want you to be successful in ways they aspire to be but cannot be themselves.
• It's better to practice a musical instrument for five minutes a day than to practice for two hours once a week.
• All artists are entrepreneurs, and all entrepreneurs are artists.  Though their tools and products may differ, both entrepreneurs and artists are in the same game-- the making and selling of work that is personally and emotionally important to them.
• The sacrifices are utterly, utterly enormous to be the best in the world at something-- or even really good at it. 

Hugh goes on to explain that while you're working in a career or job that doesn't seem right to you, begin formulating your own Evil Plan of escape.  Don't quit your day job, just begin formulating your Evil Plan and begin moving forward on it.

The beauty of living in this epoch of time is that while everything in health care seems to be going haywire right now, the internet gives us the ability to launch our Evil Plans with very little financial risk.  [Note: A blog is a good place to start. In our upcoming 2011 Medical Fusion Conference we're going to be teaching specifically about using the internet to launch your new career.  Topics such as monetizing your blog, using social networking tools, developing your own brand, etc...will all be discussed.] Had all these changes in medicine occurred a generation ago things would have been very bleak for those interested in escaping their careers.  The internet is the great equalizer, allowing Evil Plans to go forward and be adjusted/perfected with minimal expense.  

Of course, even with the internet (or especially with the internet), you still have to work at it.  Really, really work at it.

It will be excruciating.  It will be gut-wrenching. It will be breathtaking.

But when you make it, you'll be free.

So what are you waiting for?

Right now, today, begin developing your own Evil Plan.  Take that first step towards a more fulfilling destiny.  If you don't know where to begin, get a copy of Hugh's book and read it from cover to cover.  It won't take long-- it's a short book and an effortless read-- and it just might strike that spark that gets you moving forward.