The Pitt is an American medical procedural drama television series. Each season of the series follows emergency department staff as they attempt to overcome the hardships of a single 15-hour work shift at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, all while having to navigate staff shortages and underfunding. Each episode covers approximately one hour of the work shift. The series has received acclaim from critics for its performances, writing, direction, format, and realism. The series has also been praised by the medical community for its accuracy, realistic portrayal of healthcare workers, and addressing the psychological challenges faced in a post-pandemic world. (source: wikipedia).
The Pitt is not for everyone, as it touches on some tough topics and difficult situations that occur in a hospital Emergency room, which can be disturbing for some people. Besides the acting, the appreciation of what all hospital workers do for us, their sacrifices and so much more, there are so many valuable lessons that one can get out of this series. The one lesson we can all learn from this show is the lesson of giving and listening to feedback.
As you can imagine, an effective team of people, trying to save a life, need to effectively work together for the cause of saving that life. Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center is a US teaching hospital, where there is constant teaching for interns and residents … as well as attending physicians. The doctor that is leading the initial diagnosis is shouting out his/her evaluation while others listen, question and learn. When time allows, there is a debrief on what went well and what did not go well. The feedback goes top down and bottom up.
This topic of live and constant feedback led to a conversation I was having with someone about what is needed to take feedback – thick skin or humility? One may guide you to say that you probably need thick skin at the start of your career, but what do you really learn from being thick skinned? Will the feedback ever penetrate your ‘thick skin’? Real learning comes from being humble in listening to the feedback, reflecting on it and objectively deciding what of the feedback is correct. Sometimes the process takes time to realize the learning, and sometimes it is an ‘ah-ha’ moment where you learn right away. Bottom line, it is in your control on whether to be thick skinned or humble.
Remember
- PAIN (feedback) + REFLECTION (humility) = GROWTH
- PAIN (feedback) + THOUGHTLESSNESS (thick skin) = NO GROWTH
Powerful ideas:
- As a leader, you may not be saving lives like the Doctors in The Pitt, but know that as a leader you are impacting lives by your behaviour, actions and words.
Bonus powerful idea:
The lead song in episode 1 of The Pitt is called Baby by Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise. If you want to start off your day (or a meeting) in the right way, listen to this song every morning. Make sure you make time to dance in the streets of NY, Berkeley, Sharon, Bozeman, Palo Alto, London, Dubai, Gurgaon, Frankfurt, Singapore, Tokyo, Sydney or wherever you are, as the early sun rises.
Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise – “Baby” – Live in Bloomington 12.31.05
thought for the week 