Show notes
On the Underdog Physician podcast, Dr. Amna Shabbir— board-certified internal medicine and geriatrics physician, speaker, coach, and host of Success Reimagined—shares how pandemic stress, added family responsibilities, and severe postpartum depression led her to reframe her career, pursue a geriatrics fellowship as a healing reset, and step away from core academia to part-time post-acute/long-term care. She distinguishes moral injury from burnout as cumulative distress. She discusses perfectionism versus healthy striving, emphasizing intrinsic motivation, learning to fail, and risk tolerance for entrepreneurship. Amna describes the Early Career Physician Institute’s coaching, advocacy, and organizational cohorts focused on boundaries, communication, confidence, negotiation, and retention, and notes AI is a tool whose impact depends on intent and physician empowerment. She is also writing a book on perfectionism and emphasizes seasonality over “balance,” rest, non-negotiables, and rejecting narratives that people are broken.00:00 Meet Dr. Amna Shabbir00:46 Burnout After Residency02:17 Geriatrics And Reframing03:37 Coaching Roots And Support05:41 Moral Injury Explained07:09 Perfectionism And Failure10:30 Early Career Institute Mission13:43 Coaching Formats And Results16:44 Identity Beyond The White Coat20:44 AI And Physician Empowerment22:41 Writing A Book On Perfectionism23:58 Ditching Balance For Seasons26:36 Legacy And How To Connect27:55 Final Thanks And Resources