MY FIRST KEYNOTE

My first keynote. The night before, I was wrangling PowerPoint slides at 2AM.

By noon, I was in a sharp suit, my highest heels, and running on fumes.

My speech for the Los Angeles County Medical Association Business of Medicine meeting was called Reclaiming Leadership in Medicine.

I wanted to give the physicians in that room something useful and honest. That acknowledged how hard medicine is right now, while reminding us that we are not powerless.

What I didn’t expect was how moved I would feel afterward.

So many doctors came up to me and shared that the talk gave them hope.

This was one of those moments where I didn’t feel perfectly ready; but I cared deeply and gave it everything I had.

If you’ve ever had to show up running on fumes for something that mattered, you know.