Joy in Family Medicine – Stories & Reflections
Lessons, lightbulb moments, and honest reflections from life inside and outside medicine - served with a side of perspective.
Tags: career
Showing 10 results:
Team Culture: Boundaries, Generosity, and Trust
For me, Fall is closely associated with sports. College football, one of the primary ones, but also volleyball after years of being a volleyball mom.
I have a few friends who find sports a bit pedestrian, too focused on competition, and something they’ve never really understood the appeal of. I...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Sep 18, 2026
accountability
adaptability
belonging
boundaries
burnout
career
coaching
collaboration
communication
community
competition
confidence
connection
cooperation
culture
development
empathy
flexibility
generosity
growth
growth mindset
healthcare
leadership
learning
medicine
mentorship
partnership
physicians
positive intent
reciprocity
recovery
reliability
residency
resilience
self-preservation
sports
sportsmanship
support
sustainability
team culture
teaming
teammates
teamwork
trust
volleyball
vulnerability
workload
workplace
When an Unexpected Next Step is the Right One
When I began telling people I was considering becoming the Founding Program Director of a new family medicine residency in rural Eastern Washington, the responses were not exactly subtle.
“Are you nuts?”
“Do you need me to say WTF, Tonya?!”
And, perhaps most thoughtfully:
“This doesn’t seem align...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Aug 19, 2026
access
accreditation
alignment
building
calling
career
change
coaching
collaboration
commitment
community
courage
culture
curriculum
decisions
development
discernment
education
faculty
family
gme
growth
healthcare
impact
innovation
intention
leadership
medicine
mentorship
mission
moses lake
opportunity
physicians
primary care
purpose
reflection
residency
residents
resilience
rural
samaritan
service
sustainability
systems
teaching
teams
throughline
training
transformation
transition
trust
washington
workforce
wsu
wwami
The River Gets Wider
Just prior to marrying my husband, his dad handed us an article torn from a magazine. It used the imagery of two rivers coming together to describe marriage.
The gist that stuck with my young mind was:1. Don’t be shocked by the rapids. They’re a natural outcome of two forces merging.2. Marriage w...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jul 25, 2026
acceptance
adaptability
adaptation
adjustment
balance
becoming
career
change
coaching
commitment
confidence
courage
endurance
expectations
flexibility
gratitude
growth
hope
imperfection
joy
leadership
life transitions
marriage
medicine
mindset
navigation
partnership
perseverance
perspective
physicians
preparation
presence
progress
purpose
rapids
recovery
reflection
relationships
renewal
resilience
self-copmpassion
stability
strength
transformation
transition
trust
uncertainty
wellbeing
whitewater
The Hidden Curriculum of a Career
Over the past several weeks, I’ve introduced you to John, a fictional physician whose story reflects common themes many physicians wrestle with.
He’s a mid-career family physician struggling with a career dilemma I hear often: “I’ve never stayed in one job more than x number of years. I feel like...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 06, 2026
adaptation
appreciation
becoming
career
clarity
communication
community
conribution
culture
development
discernment
evolution
experience
expertise
fulfillment
gratitude
growth
impact
insight
intentionality
knowledge
leadership
learning
legacy
maturity
meaning
medicine
mentorship
operations
perspective
physicians
progress
purpose
recognition
reflection
relationships
renewal
resilience
self-awareness
stewardship
sustainability
systems
teaching
teamwork
transformation
wisdom
John Changes the Question
A few weeks ago, I introduced you to John, a fictional physician whose story reflects common themes many physicians wrestle with. He’s a mid-career family physician facing a career dilemma I hear often:
“I’ve never stayed in one job more than x number of years. I feel I need to leave my current o...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
May 29, 2026
adaptation
agency
alignment
authenticity
awareness
burnout
career
change
clarity
coaching
compassion
connection
continuity
decision making
direction
discovery
engagement
fulfillment
growth
inquiry
insight
intention
leadership
listening
meaning
medicine
mindset
perspective
physicians
purpose
reflection
renewal
resilience
self-awareness
sustainability
teaching
transformation
transition
trust
values
Retroactive Omniscience and Having Your Own Back
Over the past few weeks, we’ve been following “John,” a fictional physician trying to sort through the emotional aftermath of multiple job changes and the growing belief that maybe he was just bad at choosing jobs.
In the first edition, he recognized the story he was telling himself and how it wa...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
May 23, 2026
adaptability
adaptation
awareness
career
career change
change
clarity
coaching
cognition
compassion
confidence
curiosity
decision making
development
discernment
evolution
growth
healthcare
hindsight
insight
intentionality
judgment
leadership
learning
medicine
mindset
perspective
physician
psychology
purpose
refleciton
resilience
self-awareness
self-doubt
selftrust
shame
stress
transitions
trust
wellbeing
John and the Honeymoon Effect
Last week I introduced you to John, a fictional physician whose story reflects common themes many physicians wrestle with. He’s a mid-career family physician wrestling with a career dilemma I hear very frequently: “I’ve never stayed in one job more than x number of years. I feel I need to leave m...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
May 17, 2026
adaptation
awareness
balance
burnout
career
career change
clarity
coaching
cognition
compassion
contentment
curiosity
decision making
development
feedback
fulfillment
growth
healthcare
identity
insight
intentionality
leadership
learning
medicine
mindset
motivation
negativity bias
patterns
perspective
physician
psychology
purpose
reflection
relationships
resilience
self-assessment
self-awareness
systems
transitions
wellbeing
John's Decision
A common theme I hear from physicians is this:
“I’ve lost confidence in my ability to pick a good job because I’m looking to leave…again.”
And honestly, healthcare is different than it was decades ago when physicians often stayed in one practice for 30–40 years. Expectations, systems, autonomy, c...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
May 14, 2026
adaptation
autonomy
balance
burnout
career
career change
change
clarity
coaching
cognition
comparison
confidence
contentment
decision making
despair
fulfillment
growth
healthcare
insight
intention
job search
leadership
medicine
mindset
motivation
negativity bias
perspective
physician
psychology
purpose
reflection
resilience
self-awareness
shame
stress
systems
thought work
transition
values
wellbeing
Story and Reflection: What Success Really Looks Like
As a new academic year begins—fresh name badges, new roles, different rhythms—I’ve been returning to a question I first heard from Dr. Kerri Palamara, a national leader in coaching in graduate medical education and Director of the Center for Physician Well-Being at Massachusetts General Hospital....
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jul 11, 2025
agency
alignment
aspirations
authenticity
awareness
belonging
career
clarity
coaching
compassion
connection
curiosity
fulfillment
growth
intention
meaning
navigation
pause
perspective
presence
purpose
redefinition
reflection
relationships
success
transformation
values
well-being
wholeness
The Dilemma: Story and Reflection
Many of you have heard me tell how being a great wife landed me in Alaska from Florida in 2007. It has been a fantastic decision. I don't often talk about the fears I had. I worried about moving an 8th grader away from good friends and the sunny beach to an unknown, cold, dark place (the story of...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 10, 2025
adaptation
adjustment
all-or-nothing
binary thinking
career
catastrophizing
compromise
decision making
emotional growth
expansion
fear
flexibility
gray-area
identity
mindset
narrative
opportunity
options
overthinking
parenting
perspective
problem solving
reframing
resilience
self-awareness
success
support
transition
trust
vulnerability
Joy in Family Medicine – Stories & Reflections
