Medical technology entrepreneur Dr. Gail Lebovic has five pieces of advice she learned from her experience as a surgeon.
Key Details
- Find what drives you toward success and serves as a personal North Star.
- There are no small ideas or innovations; small ideas can have huge impacts and sales.
- Learn from your big “aha moments” to make a significant impact.
- Dig into the weeds, become a problem solver, and identify problems that need solutions.
- Learn to trust your intuition, avoid wishful thinking, and trust your instincts.
Why It’s Important
Dr. Lebovic is the CEO of Silicon Valley Innovations and the inventor of the innovative nasal cleaning kit Nasoclenz—and has contributed to the founding of eight companies. As she writes in a recent Forbes op-ed, her medical experiences have shaped her subsequent career as an entrepreneur by helping her develop the right state of mind to meet the demands of her new companies and ideas.
As she notes, her careers as a surgeon and entrepreneur have intersected in ways she never expected. Her prior career gave her the instincts she needed to succeed and helped her find opportunities in the market where she could invest and make a difference.
Notable Quotes
“From the outside, surgeons and entrepreneurs don’t have much in common. But for me, the two identities have always complemented one another. After decades of training and caring for patients, I can easily define how to think like a surgeon (precise, meticulous, planned, and methodical). On the other hand, entrepreneurship came naturally to me but is harder to define. Perhaps that’s why not every creative thinker, go-getter, or trailblazer crosses over into entrepreneurship,” she writes.
“Entrepreneurship is a journey that demands passion, patience, being present, and planning for the unpredictable. Most of all, it’s essential to enjoy building something from nothing—so enjoy the ride. It’s an amazing journey!”
