Here are the most common mistakes physicians make when they are looking for a side gig.

1. Sickcare
Side Gig
Gaffes
ARLEN MEYERS, MD, MBA
SOCIETY OF PHYSICIAN ENTREPRENEURS

2. Disclosure: My present gigs
▪ eMedevents
▪ Cliexa
▪ Cerescan
▪ WebMD/Medscape
▪ Neosoma
▪ MI10
▪ SoPE
▪ ABAIM

3. Watch Out
▪ KSAs
▪ Unrealistic income and job
expectations
▪ Blind spots
▪ No plan
▪ Doctor v physician entrepreneur
▪ Wrong sandbox
▪ Clinical v entrepreneurial mindset
▪ Mindset mistakes

4. Watch out
▪ Wrong coach
▪ Quitting your day job too early or
too late
▪ No longeer adding value as the
company scales
▪ Not doing regularly scheduled
performance/necessity reviews
▪ Not asking for referrals or
recommendations
▪ Narrow networks, I-thinking

5. KSAs
▪ Education
▪ Resources
▪ Networks
▪ Mentors
▪ Experience
▪ Peer to peer support
▪ Non-clinical career guidance

6. Unrealistic expectations

7. Blind spots

8. No plan
▪ Where are you now (Hx/Px)?
▪ Where do you want to go (Tx
goals)?
▪ How do you want to get there?
(Rx)

9. Doctor v physician entrepreneur
▪ Pursuit of opportunity
▪ VUCA (volatile,
uncertain,complex, ambiguous)
conditions
▪ Create stakeholder defined value
▪ Through the deployment of
innovation
▪ VAST business model (valid,
automatic, scaleable, time)
▪ Advising is not doctoring

10. Wrong sandbox

11. Clinical v entrepreneurial mindset

12. Mindset mistakes
▪ What you think matters
▪ You can’t change your mindset
▪ Doctors make lousy business
people

13. Wrong coach
Do you need a:
Mentor
Coach
Sponsor
Therapist
Friend

14. Quitting your day job too early or too late
▪Too early: Prepare to flip the
switch before you need to
▪Too late: Burnout
▪“It’s better to be alone before
you want to be alone”

15. No longer adding value as the company grows
▪ Startup goal (<$2-5M ARR): Help to create and validate a scalable
and repeatable business model
▪ Scaleup goal ($5-100M): Grow revenues using the model and build
out products, revenues, team and systems
▪ Grownup goal: Grow revenues through the deployment of
innovation and make business model obsolete before someone
else does

16. Performance reviews
▪ Do it on a regular basis, not when it’s too late
▪ Redefine roles, goals and holes
▪ Are you measuring the right things?

17. Referrals and recommendations
▪ Ask for them and post on your Linkedin profile
▪ Testimonials on your website or other marketing collateral
▪ Return the favor

18. Narrow networks, “I”-mindset
▪Instead of robust internal
and external networks and
“T”-mindset

19. To Do List
•Find people who are working in the spots that
might interest you and interview them for a job preview
•Redo your Linkedin profile and enlarge your networks
•Create a personal and professional development plan
•Ask 3 people to be on your personal advisory committee

20. To Do List
•Build your entrepreneurial mindset
•Create a services advisory agreement
•Decide on your compensation model and fee
•Volunteer
•Keep a failure resume

21. Questions?
▪ Arlen.Meyers@ucdenver.edu
▪ Linkedin URL
https://www.linkedin.com/in/am
eyers/
▪ www.sopenet.org