I am a Doctor of Medicine who practices as a General Surgeon.  General Surgery is the oldest specialty field in surgery.  At one time, all surgery done in hospitals was done by a General Surgeon.  As medicine has gotten more complex, the fields of Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Gynecology, Urology, etc., have developed.

How would you describe what you do?

I practice in a five surgeon group in a rural area that has a 225 bed hospital   We are a private, fee-for-service group,  and not owned by a hospital.

Quick Facts!
How much do general surgeons make? The average pay is between $200,000 and $400,000. To see how much this doctor makes Click Here.

How to become a general surgeon? You’ll need to finish high school, medical school, and 4 years of residency to become a general surgeon. You can also specialize for 2 years. See how this doctor became a general surgeon Click Here and Here.

My practice is not typical of most General Surgeons, since the majority of surgeons live in big cities and sub-specialize.

What does your work entail ?

My practice, luckily, encompasses most areas of the original practice of General Surgery.  I enjoy the variety of cases I am able to handle.

I perform thyroid and parathyroid surgery, non-cardiac thoracic (chest) surgery( including infections and cancers), benign and malignant disease of the breast, abdominal surgery such as gallbladder, stomach, colon and and appendix cases, in addition to abdominal hernias.  I also do some gynecology surgery such as hysterectomies, although most of these cases are done in most hospitals by gynecologists.  My practice also involves vascular surgery, including abdominal aortic aneurysms.  I also treat skin and soft-tissue tumors, including melanomas.
In our hospital, my partners and I are also the trauma surgeons, taking care of victims of car accidents and other types of trauma.

I am in the office one and a half days a week, in surgery two-three days a week, performing 40-50 cases a month.  I usually get part of a day off each week.  Although I took call every other weekend earlier in my career, I now take call every fifth weekend.

How did you get started as a general surgeon?

In high school, I always enjoyed my science classes.  Our school had career days, and the physicians who would talk were always happy in their careers, and I started to look harder at this profession.

During college, an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) surgeon in my home town took me into surgery to watch him work (probably can’t do this now days) and I was hooked.

I went through medical school, though, thinking I would be an Internal Medicine specialist, but during my internship several of the Surgery residents took an interest in me, and I switched to General Surgery.

What do you like about being a general surgeon?

I like the personal rewards that General Surgery gives me.  I enjoy taking a complex medical problem and figuring out what is wrong  or being able to take a sick patient to the operating room, working hard during the case, and, most of the time, having the patient recover and be better than they were before the surgery.  The majority of my patients appreciate the care they receive by me and my partners, and this in itself is very rewarding.

In my particular practice, I enjoy the variety of diseases I can care for and the cases I can perform.  I would be bonkers if I had to do the same thing every day, like a cataract surgeon (although they are at the bank and golf course hours before me!)

What do you dislike?

I dislike several things:  having to deal with insurance companies and Medicare, both of whom are constantly trying to cheapen my services and talents; getting up at night to take care of folks who are drunk or drugged and are in automobile accidents, hurting themselves or others ; taking care of people who have spent a lifetime not taking care of themselves, and having them expect miracles from my care.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

Since I live in a retirement area, about 60% of my income comes from Medicare (most Surgeon have 35-40% Medicare).  25% is private insurance, 5% Medicaid and a growing percentage, 5-10%, is no insurance.

We write off a significant amount of care, counting the discounts of Medicare and Medicaid, in addition to the charity care.  The IRS does not allow us any deduction for this free or discounted care.

How much money do you make as general surgeon?

I make approximately $325,000 a year.  No one knows what will happen to medical reimbursement with the new health care bill.

What education or skills are needed to be a general surgeon?

A budding Surgeon must be focused.  In college,  I recommend seeking counsel with your college’s pre-med advisor, who can steer you to the courses you will need to get in med school.  Good grades, not making stupid mistakes out of the classroom (yes, med schools usually do background checks) and hard work help get you into medical school.  General Surgery is a five year residency after medical school.  Yes, it is hard work (total of 25 years of school and training).  Yes, I enjoyed my training and yes, I would do it again!

What is most challenging about what you do?

Staying up with the ever changing science of surgery, and keeping focused on my patients when forces like the government and insurance companies try to do something that is not right.

What is most rewarding?

Realizing that something I am able to do with my brains or my hands is important in a patient’s life.  Occasionally it is life saving, but most of the time just personally rewarding.

What advice would you offer someone considering general surgery?

The work to get here is hard, and the number of General Surgeons in the U.S. is dropping each year.  Your talents will be very valuable to hospitals and patients in the future due to supply and demand of your profession.

How much time off do you get/take?

I go to one or two surgical meeting yearly, and take an additional 2-3 weeks off.  I live in a vacation area, and enjoy my time off locally, also.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

They think General Surgery is like general practice, and not a five -year surgical specialty.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

I am working on some business ventures with my family.  I  enjoy traveling, and would like to use my surgical skills in other countries.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

I think it is important for someone entering my profession to take time for their family and become involved in their community.  Both are important parts of a balanced life.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a PGA Golf professional.

How would you describe what you do?

I own and operate a golf shop…golf retail operation. I manage the day-to-day operation of a country club.

What does your work entail as a PGA Golf Pro?

You name it. Everything from conducting tournaments, to teaching, merchandising, public relations, marketing…I mean, we can go on and on.

How did you get started?

I got started because as a kid I was a golfer, and was a pretty good junior player, and just decided at a young age that I was going to be a golf professional – either I was going to play on tour or I was going to be a club professional – and tour didn’t work out so I’m a club professional.

What do you like about what you do?

Well, for one, I’m at the golf course every day; whether I get to play or not, I’m still at the golf course every day. And the ability to interact with people on a daily basis – different people – and be able to share my expertise in something they love. Plus I’m not sitting behind a desk. I’m dealing with people on a social level for a living.

What do you dislike?

I have to deal with people on a social level for a living. The demands as far as time. I work every weekend, I work every holiday. When you’re dealing with the public, you have one policy and it’s there for a reason, and some people aren’t going to agree with it. And it’s the same as everything else, but probably demand on time is the greatest thing I don’t like about it.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

Well, I have a salary from the country club, and then I own the golf shop retail side of it, and then teaching, and club repair.

How much money do you make as a PGA golf pro?

Somewhere about eighty-five to ninety thousand a year. It’s probably right about average for golf pro’s.

Would you say there are any perks to this career?

Tons. We have endorsement contracts just like the touring professionals do. We don’t get paid as much – not near as much – but, we get all the free equipment, and balls, and everything we want. PGA members pretty much play free golf wherever they go, at any club or golf course. And then in the community it’s nice, because you kind of always have people wanting to do you favors. It’s just one of those things.

What education or skills are needed to do be PGA golf pro?

Well, I have a college degree. You need to be a PGA member. You don’t have to be, but the education process through the apprenticeship in the PGA education is a must. And then I’ve got continuing education. I’m a master professional. So the PGA education is definitely required. College education, not necessarily, but most coming into the industry now have a college degree. You have to pass what they call the player’s ability test, you take the course rating for the golf course that’s hosting it, and you multiply it times two, and add fifteen, and that’s what you have to shoot.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Probably just dealing with the variety of personalities, some people are always easygoing, some people are never easygoing. Being able to switch modes and know, “Okay, I have to stroke this guy this way, and I got to stroke this guy this way.” And being able to treat people equally but have different methods to making them, you know, understand, I guess.

What is most rewarding?

The most rewarding thing about being a golf professional is seeing people satisfied at the golf course. I work at a place where people go for leisure. So when somebody has a great day at the golf course, when they’ve played great, or they just had the perfect day, whatever, that’s the most satisfying is…I know they had a good experience at the golf course, and hopefully, it was, in some way, in part to my management skills.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

If you want to play golf, don’t become a golf professional. And we all say that. I only play about once every two weeks. If you just love the game, and you want to play, just play golf as much as you can, don’t become a golf professional. But if you love the game, and you want to be around it, involved in it, in every different facet of it, then you’d probably be a good candidate.

How much time off do you get/take?

Two weeks’ vacation, and then in season one day a week, off season is two days a week. And then a lot of times I’ll go two and three weeks at a time without getting a day off sometimes. January and February, we’re still operating. I’m taking two days off a week – I’m taking Sunday and Monday off – but there is a lot to do, because you’ve got your whole golf season ahead of you that you’re getting prepared for. You’re working schedules out; you’re working out contracts for outings, things like that. You’re ordering merchandise for your shop and that kind of thing. So, you’re not working as many hours. I mean, I’m down to thirty-five, forty hours a week in the wintertime, but you’re still staying busy. But, you know, hey, let’s be honest, wintertime – January and February – I mean, I work for about an hour and a half in the morning, and the rest of the day I’m sitting there, you know, shooting the shit.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

The most common misconception is that golf professionals play golf every day, without a doubt. And another misconception is that we’re PGA Tour players. We’re not.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

You know, I’ve really met a lot of my goals. I’m actually in the process of setting some more. You know, for me, my most immediate goals are really related to the club here, and seeing that membership become full, and seeing that it becomes a smooth-running operation that cash flows, and is a premier club. Long-range for me, probably go work for either the PGA Tour, or the Nationwide Tour as a rules official, but that’s something I’ll do twenty years from now.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

You know, the time commitment is great. The apprenticeship…just to get to the level where I am, just to be a head golf professional, the commitment is huge, and the money is terrible. There’s a three- to five-year gut check that you’re going to make very little money, and you’re going to work a lot of hours, but you’re going to gain a lot of knowledge, and the tough thing is there’s twenty-eight thousand golf professionals, there’s only nine thousand jobs. So a job comes open, there’s a lot of competition for it. So, you’d better do something to set yourself apart.

I treat sick animals and I put up with people.

How would you describe what you do?

In veterinary medicine you’ve got to do two things: you treat the animal, and then you’ve got to use psychology on the owner. Everyday I put up with people like that. And I make the joke that one end of the leash is easy to deal with. The other end of the leash is very difficult to deal with. If a person can’t deal with these individuals that are very demanding, that read the Internet too much, that think they know everything, if you can’t look past those people, and, bite your tongue at times, you won’t get very far.

Quick Facts!
How much do veterinarians make per year? According to payscale.com veterinarians make between $50,000 and $90,000 per year. To see what the veterinarian interviewed here makes Click Here.

How to become a veterinarian?You will need a high school education, a college degree typically in a field of animal studies or biology, and 4 years of veterinary school. To see how this veterinarian got his start and what he said about the requirements need to become a veterinarian Click Here and Here.

But, you know, we’re really treating people psychologically, and we’re treating the animal in their health needs; whether it’s cosmetic surgery or whether it’s sick animals’ treatment, routine health care, or disease prevention. It’s a broad spectrum of needs that the animals have. And then you add the mix of the people into it, and that’s what we do here everyday. Everyday. And some days, if the moon is full, we the wackos…You think I’m lying, but they come in that front door one after another. The ones that you just say, “Oh, God,” you know, “they’re coming in again?”

What does your work entail?

I come in at 7:30 and I begin treatment of sick animals, and I have my practice a lot different than others. I believe that the animal is in better care at home than it is sitting back here all night without anybody around it.

When you save an animal’s life or some little old lady comes in here and gives you a hug because you have saved her animal’s life. That’s what it’s all about. Some people don’t think it is. Some people think it’s money. The most rewarding thing to me is what I do for the animal.

So, all my sick animals come in between 8:00 and 9:00 in the morning, the ones I’m treating on a daily basis. I get through that, answer telephone calls, and then spend two hours doing surgery. Most are routine surgeries: spays and neuters and ear trims and tail docks, de-claws, whatever anybody wants done to their animals. And then you have your emergency surgeries…you’ve got things that are more of a medical need rather than the routine stuff.

And then after lunch, I spend from 1:00 until 5:00 doing routine health care for animals. That’s when I have my clinics. And I used to spend—when I did large animals—from 6:00 in the morning until 10:00 at night, full tilt. Now, I’m here about eight hours a day, and I try to put everything I can do into eight hours, and that’s Monday through Friday, with emergencies at night, and a few Saturdays from eight to twelve doing routine stuff. I try not to do any of my surgeries on weekends. And then Sunday, hopefully, you sit down and you don’t have anything to do.

How did you get started as veterinarian?

At some point I finally decided that was what I wanted to do for my life’s work. I knew it when I was fourteen or fifteen years old, but it’s something that takes many people a while to figure out. There’s some place along the way that the light finally comes on and says, “This is what I want to do.” It doesn’t always work out that way, but that’s what most people in veterinary medicine do.

What do you like about what you do?

I like the challenge of diagnostics. I like the satisfaction of saving an animal’s life. I like the things that we do to make animals live longer, live more productive lives, spaying and neutering, and all healthcare. Now our cats are living to seventeen or eighteen years of age, and our dogs are fifteen and sixteen, and when I started practice, if you had a fourteen-year old cat, it was old. And then once in a while, it’s rewarding when somebody comes up and thanks you for what you’ve done for (Fifi) or (Foofoo). If money was in it, I wouldn’t have done large animal. Because large animal[care] was rewarding; delivering calves and treating sick animals, and the fire engine calls were lots of fun, but there was no money in it. There never is any money.

The animal has very little ability to tell you where it hurts; whether they’re feeling better or whether you’re doing the right thing…Diagnosing sick animals is the most challenging part of it all…

Now, the equine specialists, they get lots of money. But it takes a person that can really bullshit to be an equine specialist. And it takes a certain person to be any kind of a specialist. You’ve got to kind of bullshit your way through it.

What do you dislike?

Probably the biggest thing I dislike about it is having to put up with the general public. I don’t mind the hours working. Some people do, not me. But, people griping, complaining about a bill or, you know, it just kind of…you can be having a great day, and somebody come in and complain about their bill, and it just ruins your whole day. That’s the thing that I hate about it. I really do.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

Disease prevention, vaccinations, routine healthcare is probably where most of the income is generated. Surgery can be a source of income. The sale of healthcare products: flea products, heartworm preventions, even prescription dog foods is another source of income. Probably the thing that you get least for your time is in diagnostic and treating sick animals, as far as your percentage of time you spend with an animal, compared to what you do with the routine things: the vaccinations and healthcare…But, those are your areas where you make money.

How much money do you make as a veterinarian?

When I was doing large animal; obstetrics, delivering calves, doing that was the most exciting part of the practice. Because every one was different. The exciting part of what I enjoy doing more than anything in this practice is surgery, whether it’s general surgery or whether it’s emergency. I enjoy it because it’s just me and the dog in there, and one other person. I think it’s probably the most rewarding part of this thing is the surgery that you do: the saving the lives, the making lives better. I just enjoy the hell out of surgery.

What education or skills are needed to do be a veterinarian?

Well, of course, you have to have four years of college. With the right classes, the right grade point average, having an advisor that gets you down the right path, being in a state that has a veterinary school has a lot of advantages. This state does not have a veterinary school, so they have to rely on contracts with other surrounding states to take so many veterinarians a year. Some people even if they don’t get into a veterinary school on their first application, they have to continue on with maybe a masters in some field, or just continue on with some more education. And then there is four years of veterinary school. There is no internship unless you want to specialize in something, and go and have an internship with a qualified veterinarian that is a specialist in his field. And that’s it on education. That’s it. You know, really, if you get in and go out and practice, it takes eight years.

A person should like sciences, they should like math, they should like to work hard, have as high a grade point average as you can have, and most of them have to work for a veterinarian, either during summer during their four years before they get into school. You have to have some degree of intelligence. You have to apply yourself and be able to make a four point grade average or as high as you can get to a four point average. Sciences and math are so important, you have to have a desire and ability…And some people just can’t get science. Some people can’t get math. And you’ve got to have skills in both of those areas in order to make your way in college and toward the prerequisites that you have to have for veterinary school.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Diagnostics. The animal has very little ability to tell you where it hurts; whether they’re feeling better or whether you’re doing the right thing. You have to rely on the owner, you have to rely on the sixth sense. Diagnosing sick animals is the most challenging part of it all…Diagnosing and being able to have a working relationship with that animal to know whether it is doing better, and taking history from the fifteen to twenty minutes you spend with a person in there…I can’t have somebody come in with a sick dog, and drop it off and say, “Here, fix it.” Because I’ve got to have a whole lot more information than that. Diagnosing sick animals is probably the most difficult and challenging of all the things that we do.

What is most rewarding about being a veterinarian?

When you save an animal’s life. When you save an animal’s life or some little old lady comes in here and gives you a hug because you have saved her animal’s life. That’s what it’s all about. Some people don’t think it is. Some people think it’s money. The most rewarding thing to me is what I do for the animal.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

Be damn sure this is what you want to do. It’s a long ways through veterinary school. The first year is probably the most grueling part of the whole thing. The gross anatomy where you’ve got all these species of animals to learn about. You have to have dedication, and have patience, and you need to have a work ethic.

It ain’t an 8-5 job, there are many times you have to put in longer hours. I’d say that most veterinary students come away from school with about $150,000 in debt, and that takes a lot out of your income to start with. It’s a difficult road the first five years out of school. You just don’t come out of veterinary school and say, “Here I am. I’m a veterinarian,” you know, “…and you’re going to get this big salary, and life is going to be great. It’s not. The person needs to have patience, and want, and have a desire. There has to be that desire to be a veterinarian. Just because it looks like it might be monetarily rewarding, it won’t be for a while.

How much time off do you get/take?

Personally, all I take off is one week a year. And I’m not the normal. Most veterinarians today that go into a group practice, they will get probably a month off a year. I would say that’s going to be pretty well normal. But not for somebody that’s a single-man practice. You don’t get to take off a week here, a week there, you know. People get tired of you not being around and go someplace else, because it’s very easy for them to just go across the street or down the road. Here in this town we have seven or eight clinics.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

That we make lots of money. That is the most common misconception. We are probably the lowest paid of all the professionals. If you talk about lawyers and dentists and even chiropractors. You could even put chiropractors in there. You know, we’re probably one of the lowest paid professional group that there is. That’s the biggest misconception. That we are filthy rich, and we ain’t. We just…we’re just about like anybody that has a business. Just making it…

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

It’s to be able to slow down in five years and to work part-time. I don’t ever foresee completely retiring unless I am unable to perform. This has been my life work, so I’m not going to give it up that easily. I don’t want to give it up that easily.

What do you do for a living?

I’m the owner and operator of a restaurant and bar.

How would you describe what you do?

I’m the owner and operator of a restaurant and bar which is a very high-volume operation here in Madison, Wisconsin. We’re located just adjacent to the University of Wisconsin campus. We are predominantly, what you would call, a pub-type operation, serving bar food and, of course, alcohol. There are literally thousands of students living directly across the street, and we are a very popular place here in the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison.

What does your work entail as a restaurant owner?

I was an absentee owner for a good share of the time, to the extent that there were managers operating the place when I was doing work and away from here. And then in 1985, I left the television business and have been full-time on the premises doing all of the marketing and promotion and overseeing the operations for the last 22 years.

we’re actually known as Madison’s official birthday place…We have 50 to 60 birthday parties here every day, 7 days a week…Our record is 103 birthdays in one day. Our youngest is one-day old. Our oldest is a lady that’s 108…Virtually everyone in Madison knows the Nitty Gritty as a place to celebrate your birthday. We make kind of a big deal out of it…They are very special people to us.

We have one hundred employees to manage during the height of the school year when there are events at the Kohl Center and the University of Wisconsin is in session.  We have a very high-volume, fast-paced operation, with a capacity of a little over 400. We’re able to serve food to probably 275 seated at one time.

How did you get started?

The business over the course of the 39 years since I’ve been the owner has evolved a great deal. I’ve had, basically, two overlapping careers. I’m a professional broadcaster by trade. I have a degree in radio and television and I was in television here in Madison, Wisconsin for 25 years, from 1961 to 1985. In the early 60’s I did kids’ shows, and then transitioned into becoming sports director from 1975 to 1985. I was the broadcaster for all the Wisconsin football and basketball games on television. And in 1968 I purchased what is now the Nitty Gritty Restaurant and Bar that we have talked about.

What do you like about what you do?

The part that appeals to me is I’m a very outgoing, extroverted type person, and I see this not as a food and bar business, but as a people business, which is a very, very old, worn cliché. I really enjoy the interaction with the people. We have a birthday theme here, we’re actually known as Madison’s official birthday place so many people come on their birthday. We have 50 to 60 birthday parties here everyday, 7 days a week, in addition to our regular clientele that are here for events or just for eating our food. Our record is 103 birthdays in one day. Our youngest is one-day old. Our oldest is a lady that’s 108. We’re a place where the Governor comes, the Mayor is here, the football players are here, the coaches are here. Virtually everyone in Madison knows the Nitty Gritty as a place to celebrate your birthday. We make kind of a big deal out of it. We have birthday balloons, we get their name up on an electric birthday board, we give them a glass mug that they are able to keep, and they get to drink free beer or soda while they’re on our premises. They are very special people to us.

..it’s really very rewarding when people leave our building and say that they’ve had a wonderful experience here and that the food was very good…It’s rewarding knowing people enjoy being here, and that you’ve had an opportunity to make people happy, and they had a wonderful dining experience

It’s the kind of thing where people come up to me and say, “This is the first time I’ve been here for my birthday, but this is one of the most memorable birthdays I’ve ever had, thank you for all your hospitality.” Those are kind of things I enjoy and that we capitalize on and have made the foundation of our business.

What do you dislike?

I dislike that the hours are very difficult in this business. We are pretty much of a seven-day a week operation. And then the second most problematic thing is dealing with employees. It can be difficult managing that. Although, I think we’ve done a very good job in not having the type of turnover that many of the restaurants in our industry have, and that is because we try to take care of our employees to the extent that we make them kind of a part of our family. We work hard, we play hard, and we want people to enjoy their time that they’re here working at the Nitty Gritty.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

We make money in our business by selling food and by selling alcohol, and by setting margins that we hope will be able to pay the bills plus enable us to make a few dollars on the side.

How much money do you make as restaurant owner?

A couple hundred thousands dollars a year is easily attainable in this type of business.

Are there any perks to this career?

The perks are that you just have that gratification of knowing that you’ve done a good job and people are happy and you’ve helped them have a wonderful dining experience.

The restaurant business is the most highly regulated in this country, so you need to be prepared to deal with the health department, fire department, police, neighborhood associations, building ordinances, people coming in and sticking thermometers in your soup at high noon when you’re very busy. If you can’t deal with those kinds of things, you’re not going to be a very happy person and you’re not probably going be very successful in this business.

The rewards are in the compliments that you receive, and the awards that you receive, and the public recognition that you receive. And when you start having those kinds of things happen and prominent people come into your place and people are talking about you, those are all very, very rewarding things.

What education or skills are needed to do this?

I don’t know if there are any special educational qualities that you need to have. I think there are plenty of people in this business that are not really college-educated, although I think it certainly would help if you wanted to take some business courses. I think you would want to take some courses in public relations and you’d probably want to take some courses in improving your speaking. Social skills are also very, very important. And I think that depending on the type of operation that you have, that’s where your emphasis would be on getting those skills. If your skills are in the area of culinary-type things, then you want to look at technical schools that will provide you with those skills. There are many of the top scale-type restaurants where the chefs are the primary owners and operators, and so you could come out of that type of background. Or there’s other types of people who just want to be a management-type leader and just have to have the people skills and the social skills that will enable them to know what they want and effectively communicate that.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Just the day-to-day operations and dealing with all of the things that can happen. Over the course of my 39 years here, I’ve seen just about everything. We’re dealing with clientele that are very demanding at times, you’re dealing with people that want everything perfect. You’re dealing employees that are troublesome sometimes, employees that have a mind of their own and don’t want to do things the way you’d like them to be done, employees that are not present when they are supposed to be or are late. Those are the things that are most troublesome in the industry that you have to deal with on a daily basis. And I can honestly tell you that in 39 years, from a management point of view, that has not changed…those are the things that you deal with on a day-to-day basis. The one thing that comes to my mind right now is we’re dealing with an issue which seems very minuscule to some, but it’s important to us. And that is the fact that there’s a helium shortage right now. We can’t get helium to blow up the balloons that we want to give away to the people that are having birthdays. It’s just not available and there’s a worldwide shortage, and we’re not going to get any helium into our market here in Madison for probably another three or four months, if we get it then.  So this is something that seems a very small thing, but to us it’s very important.

What is most rewarding?

While it certainly can be financially rewarding, it’s really very rewarding when people leave our building and say that they’ve had a wonderful experience here and that the food was very good and our bartenders are the best and all of our servers have wonderful personalities and it was a pleasure to be here and they can’t wait to come back the next time. It’s rewarding knowing people enjoy being here, and that you’ve had an opportunity to make people happy, and they had a wonderful dining experience, which is the reason that they go out in the first place.

What advice would you offer someone considering owning a restaurant?

Anyone that is considering this career or business has love to be around people and has to be a very outgoing type person if they’re going to be the owner/operator. From a management point of view, it’s important that you are able to look at the big picture while also being willing and able to do everything that all of your employees would do. If it means cleaning the toilets, and that happens on occasion when your cleaning people don’t show up or if the cleaners don’t do a good job, then that’s what you have to do. You have to be a jack of all trades. You have to enjoy working mornings, noons, nights, holidays, weekends, because that’s the nature of this business. When everybody is out partying or having a good time on New Year’s Eve, chances are you’re going to be open and working in your establishment till the wee hours in the morning, and then you’re going to get up the next morning, and maybe even have to go clean or to have to go into work because the next day is another day.

How much time off do you get/take?

It depends. In the early days of my operation, I didn’t take off at all. I probably didn’t have a lot of vacations for the first 15 or 20 years. Since that time, I’d maybe take a few days off – never more than two or three at one time – and now later on, in my particular stage of my career, I feel that I can get away for probably a week or two at a time. I have adequate management that I feel comfortable when I’m not in the establishment. But when I return, there are still notes and cards and things like that from people that were here that expected me to be here, that were upset that I was not here. So, when you have that kind of visibility it can be difficult to get away. You’ve just got to take that in stride, and follow up with those people and make sure that you let them know that you’re sorry you missed them, but that you’re looking forward to their next visit.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

I think that the common misconception is that it’s an easy type of business to operate. That anybody can do it and that once you hang out your sign and tell people what you’re doing and what you’re serving, that lines are going to be a block long and that people are going to come in and they’re going to love you no matter what price you charge, they’re going to love paying the prices and they’re going to love the product. And also from the alcohol point of view, people think that opening a bar is very simple and easy and you just sit at the end of the bar and have a drink in front of you, and you just have to wave to everybody and say hello and watch the world go by, and that all you do is just sit there during the day, and at night, you open up the cash register, and take the money to the bank and that’s all there is to it.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

My goal in this career, eventually, is to retire. I’m at a point where I think that that’s probably going to take place pretty soon. I think that some of my upper- management people, if they can put it together, will probably take over my business within the next year or two. It’s been a very wonderful career, so I can’t complain. But it’s very difficult on people that want to get away and have family time because you’re pretty much on the premises working most of the time, and it can be a very, very hard life. I commend everybody in this business that has been able to be successful because there’s a very, very high percentage of failures in the restaurant and bar business. In fact, it’s very difficult for anyone to get money together to set up and operate a bar and a restaurant because the banks are very unwilling to do that because the risk rate is so high. It’s not an easy thing to go to a bank and say, “I got this idea. Here’s what I want to sell. I’m going to sell tacos with bananas on top, and everybody’s going to love them and we’re going to make a million dollars in the first year I’m in business, so give me two hundred fifty thousand dollars to open up this restaurant.” Those things just don’t happen very often. You’ve got be pretty grounded. I think there’s an expression in the banking industry that there’s two things that they want stay away from; restaurants and bars and sporting goods stores. Those are probably two of the things that would be the most difficult sells that you’d have to make to get the bank to give you money to open up those types of operations.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

Well, nothing more than the fact that you have to enjoy what you’re doing. If you don’t get up in the morning and look forward to going to work and have a good attitude and have a positive attitude about what you’re going to do and try to give everyone the best service possible, the best product possible, the best environment possible, then you probably are in the wrong line of work. If you just want to be a 9 to 5 person punching the clock, where you just want to sit at the desk and relax and look at a computer screen all day, this is definitely not the business for you. This is a business where you have to be outgoing, you have to think out of the box, you have to be looking at the big picture. You’ve got to deal with employees, you’ve got to deal with customers, you got to deal with advertising people and salespeople. You’re going to be receiving all kinds of requests or special favors from all of the charitable organizations, we give away thousands and thousands of dollars in gift certificates every year to all of the charitable organizations. You have to have a community involvement in order to get that kind of visibility. You have to be very positive about everything you do. The restaurant business is the most highly regulated in this country, so you need to be prepared to deal with the health department, fire department, police, neighborhood associations, building ordinances, people coming in and sticking thermometers in your soup at high noon when you’re very busy. If you can’t deal with those kinds of things, you’re not going to be a very happy person and you’re not probably going be very successful in this business.

I’m the president of a logistics outsourcing company.

How would you describe what you do?

The company does transportation, warehousing, and all related technology to help people manage the flow of their products from the manufacturers out to retailers. I run the company, which consists of about three hundred and twenty people distributed around the country. Our main office is in California, and now our new office is coming to Fayetteville.

What does your work entail?

There’s not been a normal week in a pretty long time. But, I guess, for the most part I spend time talking to clients on solutions to some of the issues they’ve got.

A lot of people want to do some sort of entrepreneurial thing.  Most people keep thinking about it and thinking about it, but they never actually do anything.  If you’re wanting to do something, just do it already and don’t agonize over it for the rest of your life.

I spend time trying to work with our training partners, which are retailers, warehousing companies—other warehousing companies—trucking companies, recruiting people, managing people, managing issues that come up with people, selling, figuring out our marketing plans, so it’s lots of different pieces.

How did you get started?

I was at Proctor and Gamble, Nabisco, some larger consumer package goods company, and then some large services companies, and saw a piece of the market that was not really being addressed, and that had a high level of dissatisfaction with supply chain management software and supply chain management services and how they interact. So, I decided I could fix that using the Internet and as a tool that would enable people to better manage their businesses. I left my job at the time and just started with absolutely nothing there and slowly built a company. I hired an engineering person first and then other people, and we built a sort of simple technology platform, like a beta. Then we pieced together the services. We got our first small, small client, and then we got a just a small client, and then a slightly less small client. We kept developing systems to make them better for larger clients, and then when they would ask for changes or improvements to things, we would change it and improve it, and it just got better and better over time. And we continued to grow and get larger. And that’s kind of how we got to where we are.

What do you like about what you do?

Well, I like that we are innovative. Innovating new services is fun. Selling is a lot of fun, and helping people develop their careers is a lot of fun too.

What do you dislike?

I don’t like really like the administration type work. I don’t really like to get bogged down in paperwork and accounting-types of things.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

I make money if the company makes money, and the company makes money by charging clients for warehousing, transportation, and technology services.

I think if anyone wants to go down this path, it’s not an easy path, it’s a pretty difficult path…you are taking a big risk, as much as you don’t realize it…I think the risks you know about are one thing, but there’s a whole lot of risks in your life that you’re about to take that you don’t even know exist. But you have to be okay with all of that.

When we manage more of a company’s business, we make more money. I have equity in the company as almost all of our employees do. So, if the company does really well and we have a nice sale, then everybody makes even more than they were thinking they were going to make.

What education or skills are needed to do this?

I had an MBA and that was helpful. And then more importantly, probably, is I had experience with some larger companies that I think did logistics well, and I learned. I think the best experience you probably can get is to spend some time at some larger companies that just do things well, and then you learn how to do them well, and you learn a little bit about corporate culture – and then you can use that and apply it – not even necessarily in the same industry. Sometimes it’s a completely different industry, but it’s analogous in some way, and that, I think is pretty important.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Finding good people and not allowing the company to become too slow moving.  We have to keep it moving, and keep on doing things that are outside of people’s comfort zones. And it’s easy not to do anything about that and just to leave it as it is. We came out of nowhere eight years ago because we sort of pushed it, and most people in the industry thought that it was sort of unnecessary or not a good idea or it wouldn’t work. And clearly, it has worked, and it’s very easy to become one of those companies now that says, “Well, we got a model, and it’s fine, and it’s working, and we just need to tweak it a little, and it will be even better.” And I think that the hardest part is to find a group of people that can continuously do more than just tweak it a little, because if you just keep tweaking it a little bit, you might be successful and you might be around, but you might not be around that long, and that’s the hard part.

What is most rewarding?

I think the most rewarding part is when you have clients that want to use you for more business because there’s something that you’re doing to help their business. When we grow a company’s business or solve a problem for a client that enables them to grow their business, typically that will enable us to grow our business when there’s growth because we’re sort of a part of their business. So that’s the most fun part because it solves somebody’s problem, and it helps their business grow.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

A lot of people want to do some sort of entrepreneurial thing.  Most people keep thinking about it and thinking about it, but they never actually do anything.  If you’re wanting to do something, just do it already and don’t agonize over it for the rest of your life. I think 60% of my MBA class were in the Entrepreneur Association, and out of that group I can’t think of anyone who’s done anything entrepreneurial; out of hundreds of people. Their biggest, most important thing in their life that they wanted to do, they just never did it. So, that’s one thing.

And then the second thing is if you’re going to do something entrepreneurial, and you have time and you’re willing to do it right, it’s worth going to get a job, at another, bigger company, that’s already doing something good and learning at that company. It doesn’t hurt. It seems like three years is a lifetime when you’ve just got out of grad school. But spend three years at Proctor & Gamble or at Wal-Mart or at 3M or at some innovative company that everybody in the world knows does a good job. I’m not saying you should spend twenty years there, but spend three years there, try to stick your nose into everything you can possibly do. Try to help build value at that company, and you’ll end up in all the right places, and then you typically have alternatives. If you decide you want to stay, that’s cool because you’ve done a good job and you can stay and you have a career. Or, you can decide, “You know what? I learned a lot. I’m going to do something else with it.” So that, I think is important. And then, eventually, if you really want to do it, just do it already and stop talking about it.

How much time off do you get/take?

Really none. That’s not by intent. My intention is to take a ten-day vacation every year, and four three-day weekends. In reality, I take none. And it’s been like that for six, seven, eight years. And it’s always just that something comes up and stops me from doing it. And that’s wrong, bad and dumb, but I just can’t ever seem to make it happen. But I still believe that I will next year.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

People always say, “Oh, start your own company, and you control your own destiny. Make your own hours, you can work whenever you want.” I think that’s pretty rare. I think mostly what it means…start your own company, you will be beholden to investors, clients, and employees. You need to constantly do more than other people because you’re making an impression on your employees all the time, so you can’t really spend any money and you can’t really take any time off. Anything you would like your employees to do, you got to do a little bit more of it to show them that you’re willing to do it. You’re a small company, so your clients have these huge expectations, and they’re wary of smaller companies. And then, as you grow, you need investors to come in because you’ll need capital, and then, they’re very involved in your company. So, the misconception is that you’re going to somehow control everything in your life. So if you want to do that, I think you got to do something else, which is maybe a small company – maybe run a really small business, where you really don’t have any employees, you don’t have any investors, and you maybe don’t have any large customers.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

I’d like to continue to do what we’re doing…to continue to build the company up, make it bigger, and then, once this company gets to some plateau where it makes sense for me to step out and do some other things, then I’d start another one or do something that’s more venture capital, private equity-related, or something like that.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

No, that’s about it, I think. I mean, I think if anyone wants to go down this path, it’s not an easy path, it’s a pretty difficult path, and most people that I know that started when I started have failed to continue with it because the market’s hard and difficult, and everything is tougher than you think. And they folded it up, and then had to kind of go back into some kind of corporate environment, and typically have taken a major step backwards in their careers. So, it’s a definite warning. You know, it’s really satisfying, it’s really cool, but you work really hard. But you are taking a big risk, as much as you don’t realize it…I think the risks you know about are one thing, but there’s a whole lot of risks in your life that you’re about to take that you don’t even know exist. But you have to be okay with all of that.

What do you do for a living?

I am a freelance artist, specializing in 3d weapons.

How would you describe what you do?

I create weapons through 3d programs for video games, magazines, etc.

What does your work entail as a graphic artist?

I create models. It entails coming up with a basic idea, adding my own twist to it, and being generally artistic with it. Most of the time, I only do weapons, so that means if someone wants something historically correct, I have to research every bit of this item they want, from the size, the shape, even the details on the handle. But I also have to go out and advertise myself on a daily basis, to make sure I don’t go without a job. I have to regularly go to various websites and areas around where I live, show people what I can do, and offer my services wherever needed.

How did you get started?

Like most other freelance artists, I just went for it. I studied in various art styles until I found the one I wanted, studied on that one for quite a bit longer, studied some more, then went out and looked for people that were in need of my services. I looked at a couple sites, set up multiple profiles on various art websites, and got  my name out there.

What do you like about being a freelance artist?

I like that I get to work on my own terms, most of the time anyways. And I also like that I actually get to create something new everyday, and be able to see my finished artwork on something that people will see on a regular basis.

What do you dislike?

Winter. Not many people are looking for 3d artists around that time of the year.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

I make my money through a deal me and the person hiring me works out. They want something, I offer a price, we barter for a bit until we both come to a price we both agree on. Also, I get half of my money when I’m halfway done with my art, then the rest when completed.

How much money do you make?

I average around 1000 a month. Not much, but I’m still new.

What education or skills are needed to be a freelance artist?

Alot. You need to have an artistic ability in general to do this. Some people think because they can pick up a pencil and draw a cartoon they saw on TV, they should be able to get money for it. This is not true. Though I am specialized in 3d art, I have also studied figure studies, landscapes, color theories, drawing, pastels, paints, as well as many other things. So to be able to do this, you will need a lot of skill, patience, and a willing to learn and to take critiques on a regular basis.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Being able to work in general. Sometimes, I just want to sit and wander around the internet, or watch a movie, but you just have to pick yourself up and get to work. You don’t have a boss, so you have to be your own motivator, as well as your own supervisor.

What is most rewarding?

The most rewarding thing about being a freelance artist, is that you get to see your finished art be used for something that people will use or play with, or even just to look at. Its also nice hearing the ooh’s and ahh’s for your artwork.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

Study. Don’t slack off and do a doodle or two a week, you will need to work on your chosen art skill almost every day. Look at reference pictures, study on your favorite artists, learn new techniques every day. In this field, you never stop learning. Also, don’t give up when you see that you don’t have anyone liking your work. Listen to them, or ask them what’s wrong with it, and improve yourself with those critiques. Take some classes as well. They help.

How much time off do you get/take?

Surprisingly, not much. Though I may not be doing jobs 24-7, I am also learning, advertising, practicing, and just studying in general.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

That its an easy job that you do whenever you feel like it. Some people may be able to do this and live off of it, but most artists starting off wont be able to. Most artists starting out wont be able to live off of their art in general for a while, that is until they get their name out there.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

To get better at what I do. As I said before, you never stop learning, so I want to be able to learn as much as I can and become as experienced as possible. Oh, and to get more jobs on big name video games.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

Its fun, though it can be tiresome. This is by far the best job I have ever had, I get to do my dream job: I sit at home and create 3d weapons on my computer. Though its non stop studying and advertising, when you get the hang of it, its pretty awesome, so if you want to do this, just go for it, and don’t hold back.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a radiologist and I also sub-specialize in interventional radiology.

How would you describe what you do?

Radiology is using technology and a variety of imaging techniques to look at the human body and diagnose problems.

Quick Facts!
How much do radiologists make a year? According to payscale.com and others radiologist salary ranges from $50,000 to $200,000 per year. For more accurate information see how much this doctor actually makes Click Here.

How to become a radiologist? You’ll need to get your high school degree, graduate medical school, and go to residency. To see how this doctor became a radiologist Click Here and Here.

That includes: x-rays, fluoroscopy, which is kind of real time x-rays; CT scanning, which is using x-rays and computer reconstructions to look at the body; MRI scanning, which is using magnetic resonance, which includes radio frequency waves and a high-strength magnetic field to look at the human body; ultrasound, which uses high frequency sound waves to look at the body; Overlay and nuclear medicine, which involves injecting a very small amount of radioactive substance in a person tagged to a substance that will go to different parts of the body and show how they’re functioning.

We’re basically Doctors’ doctors because the patients don’t come to us. The doctors have a patient, and then they have a problem that they can’t solve without our help, and so they come to us whether it’s by ordering a test or consulting us with a problem that they need help figuring out…We’re problem solvers, and a lot of the time, whatever we see and say is going to determine the course of the patient’s therapy.

Then interventional radiology is a sub-specialty. In interventional radiology, we use imaging techniques and minimally invasive techniques to do a lot of things that used to require surgery, including treating arterial disease with balloons and stints, being able to drain different areas of the body including the bowel ducts, the kidneys, and fluid collections or abscesses, any place in the body, and then also using the imaging guidance to do biopsies of almost any place using a skinny needle. So, a lot of imaging allows us to do things more targeted than having to actually open somebody up.

What does your work entail as a radiologist?

We work from 7:30 in the morning till about 5:00 at night, and other radiologists work longer hours in some places, but that’s our normal work day. And then once a week I’ll be on call for general radiology, and I usually get a call about every 15 minutes. We have (T1) lines to our homes and teleradiology so we look at the images while at our homes many times while on call. The emergency rooms just keep us hopping because now they’re conditioned to use imaging for almost everything. And so, about every 15 minutes, we’re looking at another CT scan or some sort of examination. And then at one other time of the week I’m on the interventional call. That’s not as busy, but it can be…Sometimes, I can go for an evening and not get called, but if I do get called, it means that I’ve got to go into the hospital, do a procedure that could last anywhere from an hour to four hours. And then once a month I’m on call for the weekend; Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

How did you get started?

I was in television before. Then at twenty-nine I decided I wanted to go to medical school.  I went into medical school thinking that I would do something more standard as far as medicine, like internal medicine, or surgery, or obstetrics and gynecology. But as I went through, I realized, especially at the time I was there, that the technology was booming, and CTs had just come out, and MRIs were just coming out, and that there were all of these different types of interventions that could be performed using the imaging that saved lots of money, lots of time, lots of pain.

The consulting interaction with the physicians is very satisfying because we get to scratch our heads and think through things and talk to them. And they have information that I don’t have from doing their examinations, and knowing the patient, and I have information that they don’t have about what I can do and what I can see, that would help them. And so, it’s a collaborative process with other physicians that’s satisfying.

I could usually do the procedures as out-patients instead of a week-long hospital stay, and it was all fascinating to me. So, that’s what I chose to do as a residency and then wound up in private practice.

What do you like about what you do?

We interact with almost every different aspect of medicine. We work with pediatrics, obstetrics, surgery, internal medicine, all the sub-specialties, and so there’s a huge range of things that we participate in. It’s hard to get bored because it’s hard to keep up with everybody, they expect us to know more about them than their patients. We’re basically Doctors’ doctors because the patients don’t come to us. The doctors have a patient, and then they have a problem that they can’t solve without our help, and so they come to us whether it’s by ordering a test or consulting us with a problem that they need help figuring out an answer to, or help taking care of. We’re problem solvers, and a lot of the time, whatever we see and say is going to determine the course of the patient’s therapy. So, even though, you don’t get quite as much satisfaction from the patient contact and the patients being really grateful to you—a lot of times they don’t even know that you’re the one who figured out what was wrong with them—but you do get a lot of satisfaction in knowing that what you’re doing makes a big difference in the lives of all of these patients every day.

The interventional part of it, I do have patients. I take care of them. I have patient contact and interaction as their physician; doing procedures on them, and a lot of the procedures that I do allow me to help people in ways that if it wasn’t for us they would have had to have major surgeries for. And so that’s satisfying. The consulting interaction with the physicians is very satisfying because we get to scratch our heads and think through things and talk to them, and they have information that I don’t have from doing their examinations, and knowing the patient, and I have information that they don’t have about what I can do and what I can see, that would help them. And so, it’s a collaborative process with other physicians that’s satisfying.

What do you dislike?

Well, I think all physicians, and radiologists probably as much as anybody else, are unhappy about the way the control of medicine has been taken out of doctors’ hands in a lot of ways; by the government, by insurance companies, by hospitals. The amount of bureaucracy, the amount of paperwork, the number of obstacles that are placed in your way in actually just taking care of what we’re supposed to be taking care of, is real frustrating. And in this state, in particular, because of the way that the government has changed reimbursements, we have a much lower medicare reimbursement rate than most every place else in the country. I think Puerto Rico maybe is the same. But we’ve got a real low one, and most of the other reimbursement rates are keyed off of the medicare rate.

I don’t want this to sound like I’m complaining about how much money I make, because I’m very happy with what I do, but in order to continue a practice, you’re going to have to be able to recruit new physicians to the practice. And the problem for us, as well as the problem for other physicians in the state, is that somebody coming out of a training program looks at what the reimbursement rates are here compared to someplace else, and they have to really want to be here to make the sacrifice that they’re making financially to come here and stay here. I think we’re losing a huge number of physicians in this state to other places because of that, and I don’t see that turning around any time in the near future. So that’s disappointing to me, because we’ve always had a really good medical community here and the in the rest of the state—really high-quality physicians—and I fear that in the future, the standard is going to be lowered because the financial incentives are going elsewhere.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

We only make money when we’re doing something. We’re paid fee-for-service. We bill for what we do, and the insurance companies, the government, and/or the patients pay us for our services. We don’t own any of the equipment. Something that most people don’t realize is that there are two fees for radiology: one is a technical fee and one is the professional fee. The technical fee is paid to the facility or whoever owns the equipment that the procedures are performed on. The equipment is really expensive, and reimbursement rates for that is pretty high. Our portion of the total cost of an imaging procedure is usually between 5 and 10%, whereas the technical component is between 90 and 95%. We’ve chosen not to own imaging facilities for equipment because that puts a sort of a vested interest for us to do more procedures on that equipment, to earn more money off of it. And we felt like it was and, some people don’t have a problem with that, we just felt like it was a conflict, and it might make us make choices that were altered by financial concerns rather than patient concerns.

How much money do you make as a radiologist?

I’m going to have to guess here, but I would say that probably if you count the amount that we contribute to our pension plan and the amount that we are salaried and our bonus, and don’t count other things like insurance—health, malpractice, disability, and that sort of thing—I’m going to guess it would be right around $500,000 a year.

What education or skills are needed to be a radiologist?

Well, obviously, you have to go to medical school. You have to have a college degree to get there. So you need a four year college degree, four years in medical school, an internship, a four-year residency, and a one to two-year fellowship after that. As far as skills, they need to be a problem-solver. Some people are good at memorizing things. Some people are good at problem solving. Some people are good at both, not too many, but it’s not good enough just to know a lot. You have to be able to apply that, and in a lot of ways what we do is like extremely complex video games. I mean, we’re using images and we’re using all sorts of information to figure out the answers. And so two things that are really key are visual and spacial orientation, and analysis skills. If you are able to think three dimensionally based on two-dimensional objects—drawings, pictures—if you can think three dimensionally, you can turn things around in your mind, upside down, sideways, backwards, forwards, with limited amounts of information, then you probably have one of the major skills necessary. If you can’t do that, this may not be the field for you.

What is most challenging about what you do?

There’s really two. One is that if you’re highly trained at what you do, and something that I tell patients is “You don’t want your doctor to be excited, or surprised, or thrilled about what he’s doing with you. You want him to be a little bit bored with it.” Because you want him to know it so well that he’s seen it, and it’s second nature for him to be able to do it. And so you’re so highly trained at it that ninety-five percent of the time, you know the answers pretty quickly and pretty easily. So one of the challenges is when it’s not challenging, because you’ve done it over and over, and you know it so well is to still do it as intently and with as much perfectionism and professionalism as you would if it was the first time you had done it. And sometimes you’re under a lot of chronic fatigue, so one of the challenges is to do it just as well when you’re exhausted as you do when you are fresh in the morning.

What is most rewarding?

Well, it’s obviously financially rewarding, but I guess the major reward that most of us have is that we know that what we do makes a difference in people’s lives, and that if we weren’t there for them at the time that they needed us, that things wouldn’t go as well. We know we make a difference for doctors who are struggling with trying to help patients, we know we make a difference in the patients’ lives, we know we make a difference in our community. Even when things are hard, you feel good about what you’re doing, all of the frustrations are tolerable, because you feel like what you’re doing is worthwhile.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

Well, that would depend on what stage of life they’re in. If they’re in high school then I would say, “Find somebody who does this and then ask them if you could come visit and see what it’s really like,” and most radiologists are delighted to have people come by and spend a few hours with them and let them see what they’re doing and what it’s really like. Because some people might say, “This is something I would go nuts doing,” or, “Gosh, I’m fascinated with it, and I really would like to do this.”

If you’re in college and you want to do it, the big thing that you’re going to have to do is get into medical school, and that’s hard to do. You’ve got to get good grades and you’ve got to score well on the entrance examination. And so, the answer to that is, find out what it requires to get in and then figure out if you can do it, and then go for it. But that takes a lot of self- sacrifice to do that.

If you’ve made it into medical school already, you are not going to be encouraged to go into radiology, nor will you get a lot of exposure to radiology. And so, by the time you’re ready to make your decision about what sort of career you would like to pursue, you almost haven’t had very much information about radiology or enough to make the choice. And so, if you think that you’re interested in it—and when you’re in medical school, you’re going to have to be a little bit of a self starter and just go by the radiology department and meet the professors there, and tell them that you’re interested, and ask them to help you decide whether this is the right career for you—and get some exposure. Because in medical school, you do get exposure to primary care, surgery, obstetrics, pediatrics, and some of the other sub-specialties, but very few people get much exposure to radiology before it’s too late to choose it. I think radiology and orthopedic surgery are the two most difficult residencies to get. So the other side of that coin is that if you want to get into the radiology residency, you’re going to have to do well in medical school. And actually, that’s another sacrifice—to suck it up and…everybody that goes through medical school gets to be a doctor as long as they pass all the courses, but not everybody gets to do what they…anything they want to. You have to finish reasonably high in your class in order to be able to get to do radiology.

Two, count the costs. I was married and had a child, and then had another one when I was in medical school. And most people, when they enter into medical school at that stage of life and are married, do not get out of medical school with their marriages intact. So, count the costs. Understand that it’s going to be difficult. Understand that people who are there who are younger than you are going to have a little more energy than you, but that you’re going to be more disciplined than they are, and so that kind of balances things out. But one of the things that my wife and I did when she was completely on board with this decision, was that if, at any point in the process, our marriage was in trouble because of it, that our marriage took priority, and I would…I would bail on that and do something else. And so, I think if you have a marriage or a family and you do it, then you have to make some real priority choices in your life in order to survive it and get out on the other side.

Otherwise, doing it later in life gives you somewhat of an advantage because a lot of the people who come straight out of college are a little burned out, and they also may or may not be certain that that’s what they want to do. Whereas when I came, I was absolutely certain that that’s what I wanted to do, and I was excited to be there, and enjoyed—strangely enough, most people don’t enjoy that much of medical school—but I enjoyed most about it because I wanted to learn the things I was learning and I felt very privileged to be able to even be there. I remember looking up from a microscope one time in one of the classes, and looking around and just saying, “I can’t even believe I’m here. I’m grateful for this.”

How much time off do you get/take?

Well, this year I might not get any. Typically, radiology practices try to have somewhere between ten and twelve weeks of vacation a year, and it’s a little bit like being an air traffic controller. You concentrate so hard for so many hours, even though it doesn’t look like you’re working that hard because you’re sitting in a chair in a dark room, and it’s comfortable, and you can drink coffee and…The amount of concentration that you’re having to put forth is way more than other people understand. And so, you need some periodic breaks just to let your mind rest and to be fresh. And that’s what people shoot for. And radiologists can do that because they don’t have files worth of patients who are looking to them as their doctor. And if a specific doctor isn’t there then there isn’t the, “I’m disappointed or unhappy,” because most of the patients don’t know us personally, so as long as one of us is qualified in doing the job, it’s not too much of a problem for us to take time off. There’s some flexibility involved.

Unfortunately, there’s a nationwide shortage of radiologists and, as I said, it’s hard to recruit them here. So, about every four or five years, we’ll go through a period of time where our vacation drops to almost nothing because of the inability to keep adequate staff on hand to manage the vacation time. Because, basically, in our practice, if we’re fully staffed, we have a ten-man practice, and we’re paying people to be off all the time, working eight people and having two people off at all times. So, right now we’ve got eight people with nobody off. This is actually my last day off, I’ve had four days off and this will be the last time I’ll get to do that for a while until we can get somebody else in.

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?

Well, amongst the general public, I don’t think they have much of a clue what we do. They get a bill from us and they don’t even know who we are or what they’re paying for.

A second one is that the public has not recognized, over the last 30 years, how most of the significant diagnostic effort in medicine has shifted from history and physical exam to imaging, and that imaging is now becoming the new physical examination. In fact, in the emergency rooms, when people come in, often they get a CT scan before they even see a doctor. And they want us to tell them what’s wrong with them before they’ve even seen the patient. So, the actual significance and value of what we do, in terms of the decision-making process in medicine, I don’t think is understood very well by the general public. The doctors, of course do, but the public doesn’t.

And the third one is that 50 years ago, radiologists didn’t work very hard and didn’t have nearly as much business. I mean, they did x-rays and fluoroscopy. They didn’t have ultrasound, they didn’t have CT, MRI, they didn’t have interventional radiology and so they just did a few things. Those things could be done during routine working hours, they didn’t even take call for years. And so, the impression in the medical community, among the physicians, is that radiologists have a cushy job and don’t work very hard, and there’s some jealousy because of that. And we also make good money. But the reality is, though, that now, when we’re on call, we probably work harder than any other physicians because the emergency rooms are completely dependent on us, and the other doctors are dependant on us when they get into a crisis with a patient in the middle of the night.

Often, the surgeons, or neurosurgeons, obstetrics, gynecologists, and other doctors, don’t have to come in to see a patient because they can get them scanned, we can tell them what’s going on, and if everything’s okay, they can wait until the next morning to take care of it. Whereas, they used to have to come in all the time and see them. So, the workload, the call requirements, and the stress of being kind of bottom line for a lot of decisions, is far greater than most physicians have any idea of. They still kind of have the 50 year ago paradigm that we don’t work very hard and…They’re coming around because they’re starting to see. But when you read a (a lot of) CT scans in a night that’s an awful lot of work, with people who are at times potentially going to be paralyzed or die if you say something wrong. It’s an awful lot of work and a lot of stress that people don’t understand.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

Well, I want to finish well. I’ve got another 12 years or so that I’m going to practice and I want to stay competent and do a good job and take good care of patients. But I also, as much as anything else, want to try to help my younger partners continue to build their practice in a way that they will have as much benefit from it, and be able to continue to benefit our community as much as I feel like I have.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?

In general, medicine is reaching a crisis. The baby boomers are getting old. There’s a bunch more of them that are going to be needing healthcare. Our healthcare system is going to be drained financially and is being drained financially. And the imaging side of that is growing exponentially, and so, the government is going to be looking for ways to limit the amount of imaging that’s done on patients, and in the meantime, they’ve been cutting our reimbursements 10% a year or so. There’s going to reach a tipping point with that, where radiologists…all the radiologists will say, “That’s enough. I’m just…I’m done,” and they’re going to quit. We don’t have enough radiologists as it is. And so, the government is probably going to have to make a choice as to whether or not to allow imaging to be shipped overseas, to be read by people who may not have the same kind of training or credentials and don’t work at the same level that American radiologists do. That’s not across the board. There are excellent radiologists around the world, but not all of them.

And the other is that they may start to use less trained individuals to interpret the imaging procedures. Sort of like instead of going to see a doctor, you go to see a nurse practitioner. They may start using people and saying, “Okay, we’re going to allow these people to read the images.” I think the American public doesn’t really understand what we do very well, and doesn’t understand the level of care that they’re getting, and that it may be almost invisible to them if that change is made, but it will be a phenomenal change in the quality of care that they are receiving. It may not happen because the doctors who are ordering the procedures will be so uncomfortable about their medical-legal risks. Somebody besides a fully trained, credentialed radiologist is interpreting the exams…they might not allow it to happen.

But I just fear that the crunch of the increasing numbers of people, the increasing numbers of imaging procedures, and the decreasing amount of reimbursement is going to force things to occur that would be less than beneficial for the patients in the long run. And then, the legal side of it is that if physicians don’t order imaging done and something is wrong, then they get in trouble. I think probably 40% of what I do is doctors ordering these tests in order to cover their rear ends from malpractice suits. So, changing those tort laws so that they’re not so afraid, that if they don’t order these things that they’re going to be sued, and the other is training more radiologists and starting soon, because it obviously takes a long time to get them out. It’s predicted that there’s going to be an absolute shortage of radiologists for at least the next twelve years, and I can’t imagine that it’s not going to last longer than that unless they do something. So, train more of them, and reform the malpractice laws so we’re not doing so many procedures that are unnecessary.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a private Investigator.

How would you describe what you do?

Our slogan or motto is, “The right information for the right decision.” Basically, we try to discover and present truth in any situation that we deal with.

What does your work entail?

People have a tendency to think that the only thing a private investigator does is domestics, you know, who’s running around with who.

Quick Fact!
How to become a private investigator? Depending upon where you live you may need a license. Other than that it’s just determination and commitment to learning the trade. To hear this private investigator tell how he got started and what’s needed to become a private investigator Click Here and Here.

That’s maybe 10% of what we do. We do witness locates, witness interviews, gather information and talk to people in criminal defense cases. The state always has a prosecuting attorney out there to represent the state or the city. The accused doesn’t have anybody, they go out and hire an attorney and an attorney often needs an investigator, that’s where we come in.

You can’t just take one person and follow another person. It’s impossible. I was listening to a program the other night kind of like 48 Hours—it has to do with law enforcement investigations and so forth…this was an experienced law enforcement agency that said in this particular case, it took 8 people to follow one person. To do it right to, do it well, and be effective that’s probably about right.

We do work criminal defense cases, we work child custody, we locate people either for attorneys or for companies. We’ve looked for adoptive parents. An individual knows that they were adopted and would like to know a little know more information, or meet their adoptive parent. We’ll try to locate those people. We serve legal process, we do background checks, we may do surveillance for businesses in order to determine actual customer traffic compared to what a given business may be reporting. One I can think of is a business that was involved in automotive repair and the franchise—the franchisee or the franchisor—believed that the reported numbers on Saturday were below what they should have been, so we conducted two days worth of surveillance using video just to count the number of cars that went in and out of the bay doors that were being worked on and provided that to them and they worked their numbers from there. We help with what we call “due diligence,” which is if someone is getting ready to enter into a business arrangement with a party. One may have questions about the other as far as their reputation, their history, things of that nature—have they ever been involved in any bad dealings in the past—so we help them with that. We’re getting more and more calls that have to do with “My sister or someone I know has met somebody online” and they’re wanting to know more about that person before the sister takes off with the guy. We also do trademark infringement and patent infringement cases. It’s pretty broad.

How did you get started?

Our firm, last year, grossed just short of half a million dollars and the bottom line runs about 17 to 18 ½% of that.

What skills or requirements are needed to become a private investigator?