Episode 13: Apply 6 Lessons of the Bamboo Tree in Your Practice
December 10, 2019

Nature is our greatest teacher. If we take the time to get outdoors and be part of nature’s beauty, you will quickly appreciate the lessons that nature teaches us. Of the thousands of examples, the lessons of the bamboo tree have been paramount toward my personal and professional success. 

The Bamboo Tree

As with most plants, there are a few requirements for successful growth. They need fertile soil, water, and sunlight. And then you wait. First year, no growth. A farmer continues providing it water and waits. Second year, still no growth. In fact, years three and four yield the same results.

The magic begins in its fifth year! After five years of nurturing, water, and sunlight, growth begins. And grows and grows. By the end of six weeks, the bamboo tree has grown 80 feet! As physicians, we can relate. In our early years, while in undergraduate school, we worked hard to get into medical school. Once in medical school, we continued feeding our minds until graduation when “we did it”. 

Yet, all too often, though, we stop learning the lessons of the bamboo tree and stunt our growth in our personal and professional lives. 

Learn how to take the lessons of the bamboo tree and build a strong, life-lasting, cherished successful personal and professional life.

Let’s get started…

Build a Strong Foundation Like a Bamboo Tree

For young physicians, this is paramount. Develop the skills of great leaders to propel you forward. This is my goal for you at Medicine Revived. I want you to learn, grow and thrive in medicine by using the skills, habits, and tactics of great leaders. Learn from them.

Had the farmer dug the seed after the first or second year, the bamboo tree would have perished. It is what others don’t see that builds a strong foundation. It’s the 5 am workout. It’s spending a little extra time with a patient and their family after giving them a terrible diagnosis. 

Just like a bamboo tree, build a strong foundation first. This begins with setting big goals followed by deliberate practice and daily, healthy habits

Resources

Consistency is Key

The incredible majority of failures occur due to a lack of consistency. Metaphorically, there will be days of sunshine and thunderstorms in your personal and professional life. Stay the course, my friend. Success–true lifelong success, does not come instantly. It’s the day to day rituals that you do that will propel you forward.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is not an act, it is a habit.”–Aristotle

When you start a new healthy habit, don’t be discouraged when you do not see improvement or growth. Like the bamboo tree models, if you have not given up then you are growing. How fast or slow you are growing is immaterial in your pursuit of greatness. Keep moving forward. 

Resources

Bend don’t Break

This is one of my favorite lessons the bamboo tree and it’s especially useful in the practice of medicine. Even with great winds, the bamboo tree bends yet does not break. What a great metaphor for our day-to-day practice. There are dozens of challenges that you face each day–a difficult patient interaction, a consultant who criticized you, equipment failure, etc. There are days when it seems that the challenges overtake the wins.

“The bamboo that bends is stronger than the oak that resists.”–Japanese Proverb

The strong foundation will keep you going. In fact, your challenges may last days and weeks. In the case of the bamboo tree, winter can be especially hard for it as heavy snow bends it so much that it begins to fall. Yet, as the branch bends even more, the snow falls off of it and springs straight up. Ever ready and ever strong. 

Yes, you will encounter adversity in your personal and professional life but do not allow it (or anyone) to break you. Stand in your strength and you will not be defeated.

Resources

What Looks Weak is Actually Powerful

The bamboo is not the tallest tree in the forest. It is not the largest tree either. Yet it is the one that is still standing after a typhoon.  We must be careful not to underestimate ourselves. You were made to do something great. 

“It’s not the strength of the body that counts, it’s the strength of the spirit.”–J.R.R. Tolkien

Focus on your growth and improvement. Similar to a bamboo tree in a forest of other bamboo trees, surround yourself with people who will strengthen and support you. Lean on each other to catapult each other toward success. 

Resources

Episode 10: How to Surround Yourself with Successful People

Simplicity is its Strength

Kensho Furuya, an Aikido master, sums this up perfectly by saying that “the bamboo in its simplicity expresses its usefulness. Man should do the same.” In life and in work, we try to complicate this unnecessarily. Yet, the best solutions are the simplest. In medicine especially, we try to inflate ourselves to others–and perhaps to ourselves, to show that we are worthy of attention and praise. 

Your success in life and work depends on the notion of simplicity and humility. It is the surest way toward your wellness. True simplicity isn’t simple-mindedness or ignorance; quite the opposite.  Appreciate the simple solutions to seemingly complex problems. 

Strength through Support

A bamboo tree can surely withstand the winds of typhoon but a bamboo tree forest provides incredible strength to a lone tree. Surround yourself with strong people who can celebrate your wins and successes. Someone who will encourage you in spite of strong headwinds. 

The people you surround yourself have a direct correlation to your overall success and happiness. You are ultimately responsible for your success but a strong social circle will propel you to more success.

We all have the traits of a bamboo tree that is waiting to break free. Learn the skills, tactics and resources of great leaders to achieve a level of success you have only dreamed. Learn these valuable lessons and, most importantly, put them in your daily practices. Change won’t come quickly but it will come, I promise you. 

“The heights by great men reached and kept

Were not attained by sudden flight,

But they, while their companions slept,

Toiled ever upward through the night.”

–Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

Until next time, be good to yourself and each other.

I hope you enjoyed this podcast. I ask one thing from you. If the content I provide you helps you–helps you become a better version of you, then please share this with a colleague or friend. The share buttons are just below.

Also, if you are feeling extra loving, I would be grateful if you left a review over on iTunes. Those reviews help other physicians find my podcast. Thanks so much.

Other Ways to Enjoy the Show

Right-click here and “Save As” to download the episode directly to your computer.

Testimonials

What My Clients Say About Me

01 /03
01 /03
About Dr. Harry Karydes
Success Mentor For High-Achieving Healthcare Professionals
If you are like most high achievers, you’re already a focused and self-motivated individual. You’re devoted to healing your patients–and doing it quickly. But you’re looking for more. You’re looking for a lifetime of success in your personal and your professional life. I help busy professionals by creating habits that peak performers use every day. My mission is to give you the courage and the tools to learn, grow and thrive in the important areas of your life. To live a life of focus and balance. Yes, you can succeed at work and at home. All it takes is the intent and a mentor to walk with you. If you provide the first, I will provide the second. Let’s get started.
healthcare

Featured In