Thriving as a physician intrapreneur with Dr. WeilI Gray

If your business isn't working the way you expected, it's not because you're bad at business. It's because no one ever taught you.

How it actually works.

We were trained to master algorithms in medicine, but when it comes to revenue teams and growth, we were never taught anything. We weren't even told to figure it out. We just assumed somehow we'd know. Like it would magically make sense. But it doesn't. The era of the seven Figure Physician CEO is here. And it's not about working harder. It's about learning entrepreneurship as a system. The same way you mastered ACLs and pals, you can master the algorithm of building a profitable scalable business. That's why I recorded the Seven Figure Physician CEO audiobook. Whether you're building a medical or non medical business, and whether your goal is your first million, first 2 million, first 5 million, first 10 million, this is where the journey starts. There is no Calvary coming to save us. We are the Calvary. So. So go get your audiobook now. Www.entremd.com 7Figurebook. And let's rewrite the narrative for physicians starting today. Hi, docs. Welcome to the Entre MD Podcast, where it's all about helping amazing physicians just like you, embrace entrepreneurship so you can have the freedom to live life and practice medicine on your terms. I'm your host, Dr. Umna.

Well, hello. Hello, everybody. Welcome back to another episode of the Entre MB podcast. I cannot even begin to tell you the kind of treat you're in because I have the amazing Dr. Whaley Gray, and this is her second time on this show. We had her interviewed all the way back in episode 123. And if you haven't listened to that, you should listen to it. And actually if you have, you want to listen, listen to it again right after this. But she's back here and we're going to have a very fascinating conversation. I brought tissues just in case I need to cry. I think it will be that kind of kind of episode. And you know, I love featuring the entrepreneur's journey and I'm so grateful that she's willing to just come and share her story and behind the scenes and not just the highlight reel, like all of it. So this is going to be really, really good. So, Dr. Gray, thank you so much for coming back.

Dr. Una, it is such an honor to be invited back. I'm just so happy. One that I discovered the Entre MD podcast and then signed up to be in the Entre MD Business School. And it's just Just been an incredible ride. So thank you so much.

Thank you. I mean, you did the work. That's the thing.

You do the work.

This is so good. Some people are like, Dr. Whaley Gray. I don't really know who that is. Could you introduce yourself to the listeners?

Of course. I am Weyli Gray. I am, as Dr. Una would put it, I'm both an intrapreneur and an entrepreneur. I am a hospital employed physician in sleep medicine, and I practice in a rural area, a wonderful community in rural Vermont. And then my other pursuit is I'm the founder and CEO of Dare to Dream Physician, where I offer life planning for physicians and I host a weekly podcast with the same name, Dare to Dream Physician. And my passion is to help physicians figure out what they really want out of their life and then how to make that dream life come true sooner than they ever imagined.

I love it. And you know I love what you do, right. I Remember on episode 123, you talked about feeling burned out and overwhelmed. I think it was about to be your 40th birthday and you went through this same life planning process that you talk about, and you're like, wait a minute. My problem is not the job. The problem is I went into medicine feeling like I'll change the world. And I had all these things, and every day I clock into work, I don't feel like that's what I'm doing. And so once I was able to get my life congruent with what I wanted to do, then I felt better. Right. And so let's even follow up on that a little bit. Right? So now at this stage, you're an entrepreneur. You're an entrepreneur. What are your feelings about your work? Do you love it? Are you waiting to escape from it? Are you burnt out? Like, talk to us about that?

Such a great question. Because I often will reflect back even like a year to a year ago, and I'm thinking, wow, my life doesn't look a lot different on paper, but it just feels. Feels absolutely different. And it's both.

The.

Both at work. So I'm still in the same job that I was in, but it just feels so like I'm excited to go to work every day. I'm also just more comfortable to speak up at work. I used to. And I'll share a little bit more about this. I used to be someone who just like would freeze speaking and, you know, one on one with patients, fine. One on one with people, fine. But if it's like a group of more than three People like, I. Like, I didn't even know how to catch my words. Like, I would freeze up. And I don't feel that way anymore. I just feel more comfortable speaking up and asking for things, advocating for myself and advocating for others. And so that's been an amazing transformation. And I also continue to bring physician wellness initiatives to my hospital and also became medical director of my sleep department. So that's been so, like, a year later. And then with my business, it's also. I'm just. I just have fun doing it. So, you know, I'm 40 episodes into my podcast, and yes, it's. It's just. And, you know, this is. This is the podcast that started because I was listening to Dr. Una on the Entre MD podcasting. If you know that you should start a podcast, then, you know, just go do it. And when I was listening at the time, I didn't even acknowledge to myself that I wanted to start a podcast. But when you said that, when I heard you say that, I. I just. Something clicked in my head. It was almost like a, you know, a moment of, like, clarity and craziness and. But that's just been an amazing journey. And so I would say, you know, fulfillment and satisfaction and just feeling empowered. Like, those are the feelings I would say, you know, had that. That's. That's change in the last year.

I love it. And I love it particularly because sometimes, you know, I talk a lot about entrepreneurship and business and all of that, so people often mistaken it to mean everybody should leave medicine. I'm like, my goodness, no, that's not the point. The point is you get to do what you want. You just learn to monetize it. And so in your role as an. As an intrapreneur, you've learned to speak up, you've learned to negotiate, you've learned to lead. You've learned to show up like a boss. And they recognize it, right? Like, your staff. You're, you know, you're having conversations with, you know, the CEO, cfo, all that kind of stuff. They recognize it, right?

And.

And so it's very different from feeling like a cog in the wheel, but it's your entrepreneurial skills that help you do that. So that. That is just fascinating. I know someone is listening. And just before we got on here as, like, it dawned on me, like, wait a minute. This is your anniversary. You've been in the Entremdi business school for a year. And I'm like, my goodness, this is so wild, right? And somebody listening is where you were before you made the decision that I'm going to go all in. Because with the entrepreneur business school, it's not just about the school. It's also a decision like, okay, I'm going to do this. Like, I mean it, I'm going to commit to it. I'm going to embrace this process even though I don't fully know what it's going to look like and all of that. So what would you tell the person who is where you were before you decided to own all of this?

So I would say before joining the Entre MD Business school, like I was saying, I was sort of like in this midlife crisis moment where an ident crisis basically where I was like, I know I want more. I know I want to make a difference. I know I want to save the world. I don't know how to do it. I feel strongly about it, but I have no idea. Sort of like I'm scared of doing everything, you know, including, like I was saying, speaking in front of more than three people. And, and I would say for, you know, for, for that person, you know, first you want to really know yourself. What is your why? You know, and people will. I talk to physicians all the time and they say they just kind of look at what's in front of them and then they're just limited by that. Right? So whether it's. They're not happy with the way that their clinic is going, they're like, well, I guess I'm just waiting until I retire in 20 years. But it doesn't have to be that way. So knowing is it that you want to connect more with your patients doing the same exact specialty, or is it something totally different? But once you know your why, like, wow, this is my vision, this is my dream for my life and what, what I could achieve, then you don't know how to, you don't have to know the how. And this is where the entremd business school comes in. So I was just like really fired up listening to the podcast. I was binging on the podcast and was, you know, listening and then I thought, okay, this is a no brainer. I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna sign up. I know that, like, that felt right as the next step, but I if at the time of signing up, if someone was like, okay, well then you're going to go speak in front of these groups of people, you're going to give talks, you're going to do YouTube videos, you're going to do Facebook lives. I'll be like, oh no, way, I don't know how to do that. And that sounds so scary, but I just took that one step, and then from that, just that next step, that felt right. It made all the difference. And now, a year later, I can't express how priceless this decision was. And so I'm forever grateful that, you know, that I just did the next thing that felt right. And that's. That's. That's what I now have been doing ever since. And, you know, I feel more courageous. And I'm still scared. I mean, even before here, like, you told me, hey, you want to do this interview? And then you're like, okay, let's do it in two days. And I'm like, whoa, that soon? But I said yes, because I'm not going to say no. As for an opportunity to speak on your amazing podcast. And so it's. It's just the. It's like a. It's a change in attitude. It's a change in really, you know, my. My way of living.

I love it. So, first of all, you say find out your why. Find out what your dream is, what your vision is, right? And figure that out. You don't have to know the how. And I think that, you know, in the. In the entrepreneurial world, in the real world, that's the way it works, right? Jeff Bezos had no idea he'll end up with the Amazon he has now, right? Like, that's not the way it works. When Elon Musk started with PayPal, I.

Don'T think he knew he would be.

Trying to take people to Mars. So it's kind like you start from where you are, you know, make a decision, own something, own your dream, and then start looking for how can we then make this work, right? And even in the how, you may not know everything, but if you know the next step, you take that, right? And that's the theme. But, you know, like, so that's. That's beautiful that you. You said that. I hope everybody got it. Now, the reason why, you know, this is for. For you, the listener, the reason why I reached out to Dr. Whaley, I was like, I need to get you. You on this podcast, is because there was something she talked about doing, and it was something that was scary for her, and she gave the most beautiful debrief on her process of getting it done. And I'm able to look at it and say, okay, even though she's talking about overcoming a fear here, this fear applies whether you want to launch a business, you want to make a decision to Launch a business. You want to scale your business. Whether you're deciding, okay, this is the year I hit seven figures or this is the year I hit multiple seven figures or eight figures, whether it's your decision to hire a team, whatever that decision is, and there's fear in your way, I really need you to pay close attention to this because this is the process. Okay.

All right.

So, Dr. Whaley Gray, talk to us about what this thing was. All right. The fears you felt around it and then what you did. Yeah.

So, you know, being in the Entre MD Business school, I see so many of my classmates kind of overcoming their fears and just doing things. So one of the things I've always admired about my classmates, and, you know, I'm going to shout out some of them, like, Dr. Mitra Iyazafar is one of them. You know, she does a Facebook Live every Monday at 8am for her private practice, and that was, like, the scariest thing for her, but she just did it, and she started doing it every week. And I look at her doing that because I am also someone who was thinking, Facebook lives. Oh, no, that's, like, the last thing I want to do. I'd rather do, like, anything else in the world. That's dreadful. Except for a Facebook Live. But as I'm sort of just sitting there and absorbing and observing, almost unconsciously I start, it almost like, builds my own courage. So something happened about two months ago where I became really interested in a topic. So I shared before that, I am a sleep physician, and I became very interested in this intersection of ADHD and sleep, and this is, like, a completely new topic for me. So I started researching and reading more just about ADHD and what that's like. And then because I'm a sleep physician, I'm like, oh, wow, I need to start applying this in my work as a physician because I haven't been as helpful as I think I can be in this. So it's basically a new interest that intersected with what I already know. And as part of that journey, I joined some Facebook groups. In one of the groups, people would pose questions about maybe some of the sleep struggles that they have living with adhd. And so, like, just one day out of the blue, I just answer because I'm like, you know, I'm a sleep physician, and I don't know too much about this, but, you know, I can tell you this part. So some people will, like, respond it. And then one of the group admins just mentioned, oh, wow, there's a sleep physician. In the group. You know, I didn't know that. That's great. And so I just, Because I knew this is a topic that I was interested in, I just replied and said, well, I mean, I'm happy to give a talk to this group. And by the way, I, like, just looking back, I just joined this group, you know, like, maybe a few weeks ago, and I. There are no talks. Like, this is not part of what they usually do in the group. But. But I just thought, well, you know, the best way to learn something is to give a talk on it. You know, which is a crazy thing because this is. Again, I told Dr. Una before, like, before signing up for EBS, I was done with talks. You know, I had graduated in medical school and residency and fellowship, and I had to do talks for that. But, you know, who would actually volunteer to do a talk? But that's a different, you know, that's, that's a growth. Definitely a checklist there. But I, I, so I just asked, and then they're like, oh, yeah, that would be great. You know, that I think, you know, people were surprised that I would even offer something like this. And then I. So I immediately did another post and said, okay, I'm going to prepare for a talk for this group. And this is like a few minutes later, you know, I'm going to do a talk for this group. You know, what kind of questions do you guys have about sleep? And, you know, so many people replied. I was really surprised, you know, at the level of engagement. And people would just tell me, like, okay, this is what. Maybe I have a patient suffering from. Or, this is what I'm suffering from. My family members suffering from. Or, you know, or this is what I've seen other sleep doctors do. Like, is this what's. What you guys usually do? And there I probably got a, you know, at least 20 questions or topics from that and then interrupt you and.

Ask because somebody's saying, like, wow, she's so brave. Right? So when you were offering to do the talk, was there fear there? Or you were like, no, this is exactly how I roll. Like, and if there was, what made you still offer to do it?

I, of course there was fear. I was like, I've never done this before. I haven't. And I've never, you know, I've never given a talk to a fairly large Facebook group of. You know, there was probably like 800 physicians in this group. And also they're physicians, so they're all like, experts, right? You know, there are people who are like, experts in this field and you know, people who have specialties that I would love to know more about too. So. But I'm like thinking to myself, but I am a sleep physician. And you know, someone here expressed that, wow, it's great to have a sleep physician in the group. And I'm like, I know sleep, you know that. And it's Dr. Una that helped me realize that all of us have a zone of genius. Even though as physicians we always, you know, we tend to have imposter syndrome, we're always like, oh, even though we're board certified in this, like we still don't feel like we know enough. I mean, that's all true. That's a good attitude. You know, you want to be curious and you want to be a lifelong learner, but at the same time, I see patients every day and I talk to them every day about their sleep. So I've sort of just come to embrace that this is my zone of genius. So even though there may be people here who are experts in all these other fields and maybe other sleep experts too, I'm just going to talk about what I know. And so I, even though I've never actually done a face to face Facebook live or a talk in front of a large Facebook group before, I just thought, you know, why not? And I gotta say, it helps that every week I see my entre MD classmates, you know, do their scary thing because I'm like, oh, there's Dr. Yazifer, you know, doing her Facebook live. And I know because she shares how scary that it's probably less scary over time. But at least when she first started, that was like, you know, the thing that would make people vomit. And so I'm like, okay, well, you know, also in the entremd business school, we always talk about your comfort zone is your danger zone. So if you're always comfortable, you're not growing. So I'm thinking, all right, that's. These are all the, like the unconscious things that are turning my head where that made me, you know, post and said, you know, agree to do the offer to do the talk. But yeah, it's almost, I didn't even have to think about it. It was almost like an unconscious decision.

I love it. Okay. Comfort zone is the danger zone. So stay away from it. When you find uncomfortable things, embrace it. Got it.

I love it.

So you did this post and you got all this feedback, which for everyone listening, this is a brilliant thing, right? If you're going to do a talk, the whole idea behind a talk is you Want to serve. You want to answer questions that people are actually answering. You want to go in the conversations they're having in their head. So that's like a super brilliant thing you did, asking them. Because then your talk is relevant, right? And they're just like, oh, my goodness, she, she gets me. Right, which is what you want. So that's brilliant. So you did the post and then what happens?

So I did the post and people would ask, oh, when is the talk? You know, is it going to be recorded? You know, like, I want to get in on this. I want to hear this even if they didn't have a specific question. And so I was like, oh, wow. You know, and so I just was looking for the, for people's replies over the next few days. And then I, then I thought, well, people want to know when it is. And you know, I'm also just asking because I, before I post before, before, like offering a date, you know, I made sure to speak with the or dm, the admin. And you just make sure like, okay, this is what people are asking now. And you know, I would love to do this. In fact, I even said I have enough questions to do like four or five talks. So, you know, I'll just start with one because it's not going to cover all of this, all of the questions. And so they were on board. So once I, you know, once they were on and had, I just looked at my calendar and I said, well, this is not going to get any less scary if I wait too long. And so I just looked at my calendar. I'm like, okay, at that point it was probably maybe like three days after I posted the question, I looked at my calendar. I'm like, okay, well, this weekend I actually have a block of time. So I just picked a date. I think it was like three days from the day that I was looking at. So I just asked, I told the admin, I'm like, okay, this is when I'm planning to do it. I can do it on this day. And the response I got was so funny because she said, oh, it was such a short period of time. You know, how do you prepare a talk in such a short period of time? Now inquire minds want to know because did you pick that day?

Because you were like, I have all the content. I figured out all the things I'm going to talk about. What was your motive for picking a day so soon?

My motive was to just, what, What? Part of me, the scared part of me is like, I just need to get this over with, because it's just gonna.

It's.

It's. Otherwise, it's. I'm just gonna be nervous about it, you know, for. So let's say if I pick it in two weeks, I'm just gonna be nervous for two weeks. So if I pick it in three days, you know, it's just three days of being nervous. And. But the other part is going back to the trusting your zone of genius. Right? And this is where I think physicians really just, like, it's hard for them to believe until they act more on it, which is I talk to my patients every day about sleep, and these questions that are posted are, you know, maybe a little bit of a different flavor or slightly different circumstances, but it is what I do every day. So just trusting myself in being able to deliver in my zone of genius. I think that was the other part. So one was the. Okay, overcoming anxiety. But the other part is just. Just believing in the process.

Love it. Okay, take us on.

So, okay. And then. So I announced the. The date, the time, and then I was like, oh, I. You know, then I got to prepare this talk.

Like, no kidding.

And, you know, for. And I shared before in the previous episode, and it is still part of my tendency. I am a procrastinator, so. Which is why I'm like, I better just, you know, once I announce it, it keeps me accountable. Like, I can't just sit there and twiddle my thumb because I'm like, this date's coming. I'm looking right now. And so I just started. Actually, one thing I did was I copy and pasted just the questions, you know, so no identify information. I just put it into a Word document so that I'm not that. And then I'm separating because, you know, there are all sorts of different questions about sleep. So I'm like, well, this is for insomnia. You know, this is maybe for sleep apnea. And so I just separated by categories. And then I just started organizing a talk. So I. I did research. So I did a literature search on PubMed. And, you know, sort of look, because some of the things, like I said, you know, even though I'm an expert in sleep, this new is something I'm really interested in. So it was fascinating. So then I get to do my literature search and read, and I just started doing my outline. And in fact, it was even. I did it the day before the talk. So I was reading more articles and then doing my outline. And then the day of the talk, and I just. I told my Kids. I'm like, oh, I got to do it, you know, I got to do a live talk. Oh, the other part was the tech. So I didn't know how to do it. I've never done one before. So I didn't know how to do a Facebook Live. And I did, I had done one as like a guest. And I remember even for that, you know, we had some technical difficulties. So I'm like, well, I gotta, you know, figure out how to do this. So I'm not fumbling with the tech. So I did an announcement post to the group. So I, I did a, like a two minute Facebook Live. Which by the way, hitting the Go Live button was really, really scary because like. Cause I'm like, oh, wow, I actually have to talk now because I've done a lot of, you know, recordings. I've even recorded for virtual talk. But it's different, it's a different feeling when you go live. Which by the way was why I picked the live format. Because I could have picked a recorded format or another format. But I'm like, you know what? One, this will help me grow as a person if I am able to do a live talk. And the other is I don't have to worry about, I don't have to rerecord it like 10 different times, you know, trying to make it perfect. It's in real time and it's one and done.

So you're just embracing all the fears. You're like, where is the fear? Where's the discomfort? Oh, there you are, let's do it.

So then the day of, I just told my kids, okay, I'm going to do this live presentation. Don't use up the bandwidth. So don't use the Internet and go downstairs so that we're not picking the mic is not going to pick up your noise. And then I just hit live and I did. I mean, I could have prepared like a few more hours. But the thing is, I mean the talk was, I did a one hour long talk and it wasn't a two or three hour talk because even if I had prepared more, I wouldn't have had time to deliver it in the talk. So it was wonderful. I mean it was scary the whole time, but it was a good scary. That's what EBS teaches me is being scared is good.

Oh man, what a beautiful reframe. Right now you can embrace scary things. It was scary, but it was a good scary. So for me, I think this is so powerful because it's not a highlight reel, right? The highlight Reel is I was in this group. They wanted me to speak. I was done speaking. The response was great. What did they tell you after the talk? What did the docs who attended tell you?

So that was the other thing that, you know, of course, offering to do the talk. I had doubts. I'm like, who actually wants to hear me talk? You know? And even though people replied and said they were interested, I'm like, yeah, right. Like when I actually do it, like, they're not going to want to listen. And then I'm like, they maybe they just expect to like hear a 15 minute talk, but an hour, that's like really long. And so during the live, and this is something that I learned first of all, in ebs, like every Wednesday we have our live session. And I mean, those comments are so positive. You think you're in this group of 100 other cheerleaders and everyone's like, yeah, you just say hello. And everyone's like, hi.

Wow.

So I knew to temper my expectations because I wasn't going to be like that. But still, like people would, you know, so. So during the live, you know, there were some very helpful comments. And one I was just like, wow, someone's actually listening. This is great. And then afterwards, you know, the replay is available once you do a Facebook Live, it's just in there. And then so people would write back. They're like, wow, that was a fantastic talk. And you could see where the timestamp was. I'm like, oh, they're actually at like the hour. That's pretty amazing. And then there were tons of people who didn't even comment. Who, you know, I happen to have some interaction with the next the following week who was like, oh, I listened to your talk. It was great. And I'm like, oh, I didn't even know they listened because they didn't comment, they didn't write anything. So it's. The impact is part of it is not going to be known, but just hanging on to some of what people. And I was open to feedback too. At the end, part of my call to action, I was like, well, I love to give more talks. Give me some feedback and let me know your interest and give me more questions. So it was scary to even think, like, how are people going to receive me? But I would say, and just having done scary things in ebs, including giving talks, not necessarily a Facebook Live, but grand rounds and presentations at conferences, it is always so scary to hit publish or to hit send, but the feedback is always so worth it.

I love that and thank you for validating that right to hit publish, to hit go live, to hit send. Whatever it is, usually it's scary and it doesn't go away. And look at all the things you did. And you did all of it scared. And the next time you pick something else, you'd probably be scared, too. You know, people tell me, you're so confident. I'm like, I have done everything scared, like, every single thing. And it's okay. That's just the way it is. We just don't let our fears stop us anymore. And I think eds, we have a way of putting it. We say, I didn't die. Right? I did a Facebook live. I didn't die. I hired the person. I didn't die.

You know what I mean?

I didn't die.

Exactly.

I asked somebody, my dream 100, I want to be on your podcast, I didn't die.

Actually, they said yes.

So it's kind of like, just do it. It's fine.

And I would add that that's the immediate response. I did this scary thing, and I didn't die. And I would say that usually if you ask the same person a week later or two weeks later or a month later or a year later, not only did they not die, but they grew. And they're more. They're happier, they're more fulfilled. And it doesn't necessarily mean that that thing succeeded, but even if it failed, you learn something from it. And so that's the amazing thing about this whole entrepreneurship journey that you're teaching us, Dr. Una.

I love it. And that's part of why we're like, the biggest reward for being an entrepreneur is not the revenue. You will hit the revenue, but it's not the revenue. The biggest reward is the person you become. And I heard someone say, he was like, I've worked on my mind. I love the way I think. And I was like, that's odd that somebody will say that. This is me years ago, right? And now I'm like, I know why he said that. That's the product of a lot of personal development. And you're like, I love who I am now. I love the way I think, right? Like, imagine not being scared of fear, but embracing fear. Like that right there is just like, woo. Like, there's so much anxiety you don't have to deal with because the fear is just. You're just like, yeah, that's just an invitation to stop. And I usually don't take it.

You know what I mean?

That's what you reduce the fear to. So that is so good. And for everyone listening, you could be starting. You could be all the way up there, and fear will always show up. And I hope you're able to pull from this, that thing to take the next scary thing, say yes to it. Next scary thing, say yes to it, and come out on the other side. And you're like, wow, I didn't die. Right? And you take it a step further, like Dr. Gray says. But I grew. And we never know the opportunities that it creates for us. I cannot tell you how many times I've had speaking gigs from someone who just saw me doing a Facebook Live somewhere, or somebody joined the business school, but they just saw me helping somebody in a comment on Facebook.

I can't.

You don't know, right? You just embrace your fears. Now, there is something that I like to look at, which is the difference a year can make, right? And, you know, but I remember that it was your anniversary. I was like, well, I'm going to ask her, right? Because sometimes when we need to make decisions, we're like, yeah, it doesn't matter. I'll make that decision tomorrow. Or I'll think about it in three months. I'll think about in six months. But we don't realize how much can change in a year if we say yes, right? And so a year ago, you said yes to your business and then said yes to a podcast and said yes to what you're doing as an intrapreneur, which is so fantastic, by the way. What are your reflections a year later? Right?

Yeah, it is. Exactly the statement that you made. It's being an entrepreneur is about the person you become. And which I think this can speak to all physicians, because not everyone is like, I want to go into my own business, right? I want to be an entrepreneur. But when we have. Physicians today are suffering burnout, Burnout so rampant. And part of that burnout is feeling like they're helpless, that they don't have control over their life or their schedule or their finances. And what part of entrepreneurship is just believing in the possibility, knowing that there are possibilities and believing that. That you can do them? And that's like, crazy, right? Because most people are like, well, no, I mean, this is why we're not all billionaires, but part of entrepreneurship and sort of this, the entrepreneurship that you teach. Because I used to think entrepreneurship meant people were sleazy and trying to cheat people. But that's not what you teach. What you teach is be more authentic, be bolder, be. Be willing to connect with people, you know, that's networking. Be willing to serve. And I mean, that comes very naturally to physicians, but all the other skills that go along with it. And then when you serve, you also, like, you know, if you give a talk, if you help somebody, don't forget to do a call to action. Right. Because, you know, whether that's just connecting with them more or asking for other opportunities. And so a year after ebs, I would say I'm just more comfortable in my skin. I'm more comfortable being myself. I'm more confident in myself, and I'm not afraid of uncertainty, which is amazing, because for the previous 40 years of my life, most of us, as human nature, just, we want stability. We want. We want security. And those things are good. But if you can have, you know, like, if you can have an sort of the basic level to meet your human needs, and then after that, be willing to take more risk, it will be an amazing return on investment in your life. And it's. Yeah, it could come in the form of revenue, but it also just comes in the form of personal fulfillment and satisfaction.

I love it. If I were to ask the same question to your colleagues at work or your bosses at work, your spouse, what would they say? What would they say about Dr. Whaley a year ago, and Dr. Whaley now? I'm curious, because sometimes they will tell you.

Yeah, yeah. I've had people tell me that. Oh, wow. I noticed a change. I mean, even one of my colleagues at work told me, which, again, I didn't talk too much about the wellness initiatives I brought to the hospital, but I did all of that. That scared, too. And I had recently had a colleague tell me, wow, you know, because you did that, it made, like, a huge transformation in my life. So. So there's that just people, like, just by being. Doing things that I believe in and then some. Like, most of the time, you're not even gonna know the impact, like I was saying before. But then every once in a while, you get a glimpse, like, oh, wow. Because you put your. You put yourself on a limb and did this scary thing. Like, it changed me too. And so I think. I think it's more. What I've noticed at work is I've also learned to advocate more effectively. So I think oftentimes, and probably the way I was, like, a year ago, I would just kind of think, whoa, is me. This is like, everything is working against me and not even knowing how to effectively communicate with the leadership at the hospital. And now I don't think that way at all. It's not their responsibility to make me feel happy, but it is my responsibility to speak up, see an issue. And I think that has absolutely made a difference in how, like, in my. Basically, you know, as an entrepreneur, I think that's made a huge difference, too.

That's amazing. So amazing. And I want to say, especially, I think I say this more now that I recognize the impact of it. Even more, I want to say thank you for being an example of what is possible. Right. Because in the physician community, there are a lot of people who are doing things, who are advocating, who are becoming leaders, entrepreneurs in the space and all of that. But when you look at the ratios, the ratios at this point are really small. And so somebody may be going through something as a physician, and they're like, well, this is the way it's supposed to be, because there's no example of something different. And so here you are in a hospital. We didn't even get to talk about that piece. But you're driving wellness initiatives. You're advocating for yourself. You're advocating for a scribe. You're doing all these other things, and what you're doing is showing other people it doesn't have to be that way. You can love medicine. And I think I saw a post where you wrote about it, and you're like, I actually love what I do. Like, I love it more now, right?

Yeah.

And so for that ability to look back and say, I love medicine, I love my job, I love what I'm doing. And, you know, in the meantime, you're podcasting your life planning, you're doing all the other stuff, but you just have this whole rich experience that shows other people this is possible, you know, and so thank you. Thank you for doing that. Now people are like, where do we find out more? I want to follow her on social media. I want to listen to her podcast. Where do people find you?

Yeah, well, since we are on a podcast platform right now, you know, you can type in Dare to Dream Physician Podcast, and I am, you know, on all the podcast apps, so subscribe to that. I would love to have you listen every week and help you discover possibilities, look at the possibilities, discover what your dreams are, and help you live your dream life sooner than you expected. And I'm all over social media, Dare to Dream physician on Facebook, LinkedIn. You can also just look up my name, Weylie Gray, MD, in LinkedIn. So happy to connect with everybody. And always, always happy to be on the Entre MD podcast. You know what? What an amazing honor because this, you guys, this is so much gold. I mean, I tell Dr. Un all the time, like, this is liquid gold, aerosolized gold, like, just this. She just gives away all this for free, which is an amazing service. And so keep listening. Keep getting your dose of mba. Every. It's not even an mba. It's better than an MBA because an MBA is more like just a piece of paper and, you know, more classes. This is. This is mindset inspiration. You know, go out and do something education, which is. Which is even better. And of course, Dr. Una's book, the Entremd Method. You know, you gotta. That's the $16 MBA. So you just go get that and share that with your. Your physician colleagues.

Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you. All right, people, go find her. Go listen to her podcast. You've heard her. She's just phenomenal and amazing. And this just happened because of one Facebook post. I was like, I'm sorry, we need to come and talk about this. You know, thank you for sharing all that. Thank you for being vulnerable, like, you know, taking the curtain and letting us look behind the sc. Truly appreciate that. And for everyone listening, I will see you on the next episode of the EntreMD podcast.

Hey, if you love listening to the Entre MD podcast, I want to invite you to join Entre MD on demand. It is my signature subscription program that gives you access to a library of business courses designed to help you do one thing as a physician entrepreneur, and that is to thrive. Just head out to entreand.com forward/ondemand, and I love to have you join us.

See you on the inside.