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: process
Showing 10 results:
Progress Through Process
I’ve been spending a lot of time lately in complex work with many moving parts: helping design a longitudinal faculty coach training with the STFM CBME Faculty Coach Training initiative, and collaborating with colleagues through an AMA-funded Precision Medicine education grant with GAFP. In both ...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jan 28, 2026
adaptability
attention
chunking
coaching
development
discipline
discomfort
focus
growth
improvement
incremental
integration
learning
mastery
mindfulness
observation
patience
persistence
planning
practice
process
progression
reflection
resilience
skillbuilding
What’s Your Fuel Level?
It’s the start of a new year, and for many of us, change is on the horizon.
Sometimes that change is self-initiated. Sometimes it’s suggested by others. Sometimes it’s formally required. In medicine and academic life, change often shows up wrapped in goals, milestones, improvement plans, or feedb...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jan 09, 2026
academia
agency
alignment
autonomy
behavior
beliefs
change
coaching
compliance
confidence
defensiveness
discipline
education
emotions
feedback
fuel
goals
growth
identity
importance
integrity
leadership
learning
meaning
medicine
motivation
needs
ownership
process
purpose
readiness
reflection
reframing
resistance
sustainability
thinking
transformation
values
Holding Pattern
This is Week 4 of a 5-part series exploring those moments when you care deeply about an issue, and nothing you do seems to move the needle.
So far, we’ve looked at three different approaches to that situation: • Week 1: Redefining success when outcomes aren’t changing • Week 2: Navigating real co...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jan 09, 2026
academia
agency
alignment
ambiguity
becoming
belonging
calling
choice
clarity
coaching
dignity
discernment
endurance
engagement
equilibrium
fulfillment
holding
identity
leadership
liminality
maturity
meaning
medicine
middle
patience
physicians
presence
process
purpose
resilience
restraint
steadiness
tension
threshold
timing
transition
uncertainty
urgency
values
wisdom
worth
When Influence Stops Influencing
Every physician leader I coach eventually reaches the same moment. They’ve done the work: gathered data, built coalitions, shared meaningful stories, aligned it to the core corporate values, used every bit of their Crucial Conversations skill set, emotionally intelligenced the nuances, and framed...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Dec 10, 2025
acceptance
agency
alignment
boundaries
burnout
change
clarity
coalition
community
connection
discernment
energy
exhaustion
frustration
influence
integrity
leadership
mentorship
metrics
perspective
process
purpose
reality
reflection
regulation
resistance
strategy
systems
values
Endurance, Recovery, and Trust: What Medicine Can Learn from an Ironman
I logged 24,000 steps a couple of weeks ago, not competing, just spectating. Cheering at an Ironman turned out to be its own endurance event!
Somewhere between the cowbells and the cheers, I found myself thinking about what it really takes to sustain that kind of effort. Not just on race day and ...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Nov 07, 2025
adaptability
adaptation
awareness
balance
discipline
effort
endurance
flow
focus
integration
microbreaks
momentum
patience
persistence
preparation
presence
process
recovery
recovery load
reflection
resilience
restraint
savoring
threshold
training
trust
The Award Not Won: Story and Reflection
It’s that season again. Graduation programs. Thank-you speeches. Awards. A flurry of new titles, public praise, and quiet appreciation.
We do this because it matters. Recognition is powerful. Appreciation even more so. But in the messiness of human systems, it doesn’t always land how we intend.
I...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 27, 2025
acknowledgment
alignment
appreciation
authenticity
belonging
care
celebration
community
compassion
connection
contribution
encouragement
equity
gratitude
humanity
humility
impact
inclusion
integrity
leadership
mentorship
mindfulness
presence
process
purpose
recognition
reflection
service
stewardship
support
systems
values
visibility
well-being
Keep Digging (And Savor the Moments Along the Way)
Dinner was beautiful. A nice evening, bold flavors, shared stories of challenge & success, and laughter with friends who are in simlar trenches.
The meal came with this quote came tucked in tableware:
“Work. Keep digging your well. Water is there somewhere.”
It stayed with me—not just because it...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 12, 2025
community
connection
depth
digging
effort
endurance
flow
fulfillment
grit
grounding
hope
meaning
nourishment
patience
persistence
presence
process
resilience
savoring
season
stillness
support
uncertainty
waiting
work
Winning Reflections
As we close out 2024, I want to point our minds toward the wins. What you learned, what impact you made, how you grew, etc. You all know it's one area I like to be intentional and savor.
Last week, my own coach just elevated the process for me by 1. recognizing something I was unknowingly doing a...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 11, 2025
affirmation
awareness
celebration
coaching
communication
confidence
energy
feedback
growth
insight
intentionality
leadership
learning
mindset
positivity
preparation
process
progress
recognition
reflection
reinforcement
repeatability
rumination
savoring
self-awareness
shift
success
sustainability
team dynamics
widsom
Story and Reflection: Lessons from Strife
During my part of my time as core faculty, I gained many humorous memories and more valuable (even if somewhat unorthodox) lessons. We were a large group (12 in all), and for a short while, the makeup of personalities and dynamics created some unruly situations. Many memorable and laughable lesso...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 11, 2025
adaptability
agreement
collaboration
communication
conflict
consensus
culture
decision making
emotional intelligence
emotional regulation
facilitation
feedback
group dynamics
humanity
humor
leadership
lessons
perspective
process
productivity
psychological safety
reflection
regulation
relationship preservation
repetition
resolution
self-awareness
strategy
strife
systems
teamwork
yes-and
The In-Between Reflection
A story with three invitations for you to reflect. A few months ago, a friend asked if I would consider a small part-time role that seemed exciting in some respects and daunting in others. (Plus, the potential to be distracting even). I quickly did the reflex thing that I rarely do - I said, "Of ...
by Dr. Tonya Caylor —
Jun 08, 2025
alignment
balance
boundaries
calling
centering
clarity
commitment
decision
discernment
integrity
mentorship
peace
priorities
process
purpose
reflection
service
surrender
waiting
wisdom
Joy in Family Medicine – Stories & Reflections
