November 15, 2021

Cindy’s Blog: Lollipop Moments

Rural Health, Work Life

I recently had one of the most talented and dedicated people I know come to me and ask for guidance. They were feeling incredible self-doubt and didn’t know if they were doing enough to make a difference. Self-doubt had begun to make them wonder, “Am I the right person for this job?”  

Hearing this stopped me in my tracks. Whoa! Are you the right person for this job? You ARE AMAZING. You are doing incredible work every day. I don’t know how I could do my work without you.  

I then acknowledged that I’m mired in self-doubt as well. I’m watching everyone do everything they can to get us through this pandemic and I feel like I’m not doing enough. I figured if this person was feeling doubt and I am feeling doubt, there must be others feeling this way too. 

So, I wanted to share a short Ted Talk from Drew Dudley that resonated with me. He talks about making a difference in someone’s life when you don’t even know you’re doing it. He calls it a lollipop moment. As you listen to it, think about your lollipop moments.

I’ve been in medicine and in health care leadership for 31 years. And for 31 years I’ve been questioning my ability, influence, and sometimes even my competence. But I know that I’m doing something right because many people have come to me and reminded me of things I did or said that made a difference in their lives. Sometimes those things are big and sometimes they are small. But they were all meaningful for someone.  

When you feel self-doubt, acknowledge it because the feelings are real.  But know that much of the doubt you’re feeling right now isn’t you. It’s the situation that we find ourselves in. It’s normal to feel doubt when we’re trying to navigate things we’ve never done before. None of us have navigated a pandemic before and the ongoing moral injury and exhaustion.  

Everyone who works in health care right now is a leader, no matter our role, because the rest of the world is watching our shadow. Being a leader isn’t changing the world every day. Being a leader, especially right now, is about coming in every day – even when you’re weary or filled with self-doubt – and doing your best.  

Every one of you is making a difference for someone every day even if you don’t realize it or feel it. Think you didn’t change the world today? You changed someone’s world. That’s your lollipop moment.  

So here’s my request of each of you.  Send an email today to someone who has made a difference for you. Small, big, whatever. Need some lollipops to share? I bought two huge bags so come get them and let’s spread them around.  

And thank you for stepping up, sticking with us and making a difference for people. Together, we will get through this. 

Cindy Firkins Smith, MD, is the Vice President of Rural Health for CentraCare.