If I had to start over from scratch

You’ve already heard about why I’m starting over with this email newsletter.

(if you missed the first couple emails… catch up on my unexpected “email hiatus,” my being spread too thin, and my rant about the traditional 9-5 not working for highly skilled experts looking to live a life by their design here & here.)

It got me thinking about the topic of “starting over” in general.

So today, I wanted to share…

What I would do if I was “starting over” as a traditional, employed clinician looking to create a lifestyle that worked for me.

Right now, I live with my wife and two kids in the south of Spain and couldn’t be happier. I have mornings all to myself and work mostly between lunch and dinner. We have the time and freedom to travel around Spain –and Europe in general.

But if I could time travel back to when I was a physician fresh out of training…

… excited about going into practice but worried about having to start paying my loans…

…here’s what I would do:

1. I would start building something for myself on the side.

For the longest time I was too concerned about what my peers would think about what I did online. So I kept my thoughts and ideas to myself.

Now, I know that in order to monetize your skills and expertise you need to be known. Just start by sharing and engaging with other people online. Being consistent on one platform is all you need!

2. I would not start by trying to sell coaching or courses at mid to high ticket prices (>$500).

I remember spending hundreds of hours across several weeks building a course that I could sell for 2k or more. As you might suspect, after all this work was done, it turned out nobody bought.

These days, I recommend starting with low ticket products and, in the case of coaching, offering a session for free in exchange of a testimonial or case study. These are much more valuable in the long run for a business..

3. Ask yourself, “how small is big enough?”

I spent almost a decade obsessed about “10x’ing” my income because I thought that’s what I needed in order to live the life I wanted to live. Turns out you first need to get clear on what that life looks like.

Unless you’re planning to be the next Jeff Bezos, you’ll find you need to make a lot less money than what social media has you think. If I was starting over, I’d make sure to be super clear on what I wanted my life to look like and then figure out what’s the smallest / simplest business I can create that will fund that life.

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I hope getting these insights is somewhat (or very!) useful to you as you plan your own lifestyle.

This is a bit of the kind of content I’m planning to share on the newsletter. If you’d like to stick around, click here and let my system know to add you to the new list.

🤟🏻 Dr E

ps. I’d love to hear if you have any “a-ha moments” or follow-up questions from this email. Hit “reply” and let me know.