Are the People Around You Lifting You Up?

Twenty-five thousand steps. That was what my watch recorded in one day. For some people, that may be a normal day’s activity. For me, that was way more than my usual average. On a regular day, my average daily steps are 6000 to 8000 steps. I do exercise daily, and I am the first one to admit I am not a runner and not someone with good endurance.

What initiated the change of getting in three to four times more the steps than usual? Yes, the environment changed. I was on vacation. The more important factor is who I was with.

Vera and I have been best friends since we were in first grade. We grew up together and when she moved to the United Kingdom and I moved to the United States, we continued to be in close contact all these years. It is just natural for me to meet up with her in person at least every few years. Vera leads a very healthy life. She focuses on simple nutritious and unprocessed food and exercises daily. To give you an idea of her version of exercise, she recently finished a marathon and she also finished a 100-mile bike ride.

When Vera volunteered to plan our stay in Paris, I trusted her completely. I offered her my simple criteria of visiting several of the famous sites in Paris. I knew I would be walking more than usual – I just did not anticipate I would be walking as much as I did. The other two days in Paris I also exceeded 20,000 steps.

Going up the Arc de Triomphe was over 200 steps up. Going down to the Catacombes then coming back up to the surface was another 120 steps upstairs. Not to mention we would walk 10 minutes here, 18 minutes there. All that added up to over 20,000 steps in one day.

Without Vera, I would not have walked so much. I would have relied more on public transportation or taxi. She is a great example of what is possible. When I was walking up the Arc de Triomphe on that never ending spiral staircase, I thought I was about done after about 3 stories high. As Vera kept going and did not show any sign of fatigue, I kept on going too, despite my calves started to feel sore. In the end, I made it all the way up to the top without taking any breaks.

Vera did not verbally encourage me to keep going. She did not have to. The fact that she kept going was enough of a motivation to be like her. The fact that Vera was the way that she was – that was enough to set an example for me. In fact, I would love to be close to half as athletic as she is.

Who are you surrounding yourself with? If you are surrounding yourself with people who are loving and kind, you will also be loving and kind. If you are surrounding yourself with people who complain or gossip regularly, you will become more like that over time. If you are surrounding yourself with people who are focused and finish work on time, you will likely become like that too.

Surround yourself with who you want to be, with people you respect, with those who have the same values as you hold. Be around people who will lift you up. Be someone who will lift other people up. Do not put a limit on what you can do. When someone has achieved something, it is proof that it is possible for you to do it too.

For many physicians, the big challenge is to finish work on time. Completing the patient charts within an hour after seeing their last patient. It may seem impossible at first. When you are spending time with another physician with a similar patient load and is able to achieve that, you know that it is possible for you too. This may be your colleague, your mentor or your coach. Spend more time with that person, and you will become more like that person, and will be able to finish your work more efficiently and go home sooner.