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Comparison Is the Thief of Joy
Comparison is the thief of joy. But sometimes comparison is how you realize you're being taken advantage of.
While completing the workload of two people, she was reprimanded for not doing enough.
She told me tomorrow she was going to call out.
She had looked at the assignments before and after hers and noticed something: they had more staff, fewer patients, and a more manageable workload.
On a normal day she was hard to read, but today I could clearly see anger. When I asked what was wrong, she said she was "just tired."
I remembered when she used to tell me she didn't mind the extra work. She was almost always the only person in her role.
And honestly? She could do the work of two people.
But the question is: should she?
When I first met her, I told her to pace herself. Talk to her manager. Advocate for herself.
She couldn't receive it then. She could handle the work, so there wasn't much to complain about. But after enough days where exceptional becomes expected, you lose your zest for performing exceptionally.
Now she could hear me.
She told me this wouldn't happen to some of her teammates because they would refuse the assignment or argue with the manager.
Then she got quiet. Almost like she was considering doing the same.
And after being held accountable for going the extra mile, I would consider it too.
When the conversation ended, I wondered who was actually to blame.
Was it her for accepting assignments others wouldn't?
Her coworkers who established boundaries around what they would carry?
Or management?
Because at some point, they learned something too:
She could handle it.
And that's where patient ratios become more complicated than numbers on an assignment sheet.
Competence can hide understaffing.
The patients get cared for. The tasks get completed. The shift doesn't implode. From the outside, the assignment appears to have worked.
But the staffing didn't work.
She worked.
Yesterday's "thank you for doing so much" became today's "why isn't this done yet?"
Her ability to manage an unreasonable workload had become the justification for continuing to give her one.
And maybe that's why seeing someone else's assignment bothered her so much.
Comparison didn't steal her joy.
Comparison gave her a reference point.
She finally saw that the workload she accepted as part of the job wasn't necessarily part of the job.
Patient ratios matter. Staffing matters. Acuity matters.
But there's another number we rarely put on the assignment sheet:
How much extra work have we learned this particular person will tolerate?
The question was never whether she could do the work of two people.
She could.
The question was why her ability to do it meant she should have to.
She could do the work of two people. The question is should she?
Comparison Is the Thief of Joy
Welcome to the Conversation
Healthcare is complex. The way we think about it doesn't have to be.
This is a place to explore the questions that don't always have easy answers. Why do good healthcare professionals struggle in systems designed to help people? Why do some teams thrive while others burn out? How can we build careers that are both meaningful and sustainable?
Through articles, observations, humor, and honest conversations, I explore the ideas that shape modern healthcare—from clinical thinking and workplace culture to the everyday moments that change how we see our profession.
I don't claim to have all the answers. I simply believe that asking better questions leads to better thinking, and better thinking leads to better practice.
Whether you're here to challenge your perspective, find encouragement after a difficult shift, or just enjoy a story that reminds you you're not alone, I'm glad you're here.
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