Tonight, Season Two of The Pitt Airs.
If you’ve ever wondered what life is really like for a doctor—especially an ER physician—this series offers something many doctors say is rare: a realistic portrayal of what it feels like to practice medicine in a high-stakes environment.
You see physicians and nurses defy death, confront chaos, manage moral distress, navigate broken systems, and make impossible decisions under relentless time pressure. You see competence mixed with exhaustion. Courage mixed with fear. Professionalism mixed with humanity.
And if you’re a financial advisor watching, you might find yourself asking a quiet but important question:
“How would I ever have a meaningful conversation with this doctor about financial services?”
That question—and your willingness to sit with it—is exactly why understanding a doctor’s lived experience matters more than any product knowledge, portfolio strategy, or marketing funnel.
Why “Walking a Mile in Their Shoes” Isn’t Optional
Doctors don’t just do medicine.
They live it.
Medicine shapes how doctors think, feel, decide, spend, save, invest, and protect their money. Yet most advisors are trained to engage doctors as if they’re simply high-income professionals with complicated taxes.
They are not.
Doctors are shaped by:
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years of delayed gratification
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chronic exposure to trauma
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constant responsibility for other people’s lives
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perfectionist training environments
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hierarchical systems where mistakes are punished, not processed
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a culture that equates self-worth with performance
If you don’t understand that context, your advice may be technically sound—and emotionally irrelevant.
Worse, it may unintentionally feel unsafe.
What The Pitt Gets Right (and Why Doctors Notice)
Medical dramas have existed for decades, but most are exaggerated, romanticized, or sanitized. What makes The Pitt stand out, according to many physicians, is not just the medicine—it’s the emotional texture.
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The relentless pace
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The constant interruptions
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The cognitive overload
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The moral injury
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The cumulative exhaustion
Doctors watching don’t say, “That’s entertaining.”
They say, “That’s familiar.”
This matters because familiarity builds trust.
When doctors feel seen, they open up.
When they feel misunderstood, they retreat.
And most financial conversations fail before they begin—not because of fees or features—but because the doctor doesn’t feel understood.
The Invisible Load Doctors Carry Into Financial Conversations
When a doctor sits across from you, they are not a blank slate.
They bring:
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a nervous system conditioned by crisis
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a brain trained to avoid catastrophic outcomes
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a deep fear of “getting it wrong”
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responsibility for spouses, kids, parents, staff, and patients
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guilt about wanting more ease or enjoyment
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anxiety about loss—financial, professional, or personal
Money, for doctors, is rarely “just money.”
It represents:
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safety
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competence
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responsibility
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freedom
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identity
If you approach a financial conversation without appreciating this, you may unintentionally trigger fight, flight, freeze, or fawn responses—especially around investing, risk, or major decisions.
Understanding a doctor’s life isn’t empathy theater.
It’s a strategic advantage.
Beyond TV: Other Windows Into a Doctor’s World
If you truly want to understand doctors, don’t stop with one show. Immerse yourself. Observe patterns. Notice themes.
Here are a few powerful lenses.
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ER – the original chaos model
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Scrubs – humor masking emotional truth
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Grey’s Anatomy – relationships, identity, and sacrifice
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House – brilliance, isolation, and control
Each highlights different facets of medical culture: teamwork, hierarchy, burnout, ego, altruism, and moral conflict.
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When Breath Becomes Air – identity, mortality, and meaning
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Being Mortal – limits of medicine and human values
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The Checklist Manifesto – systems thinking and error reduction
These books reveal how doctors think—not just clinically, but existentially.
Why This Matters to Your Business (Not Just Your Heart)
Doctors talk to other doctors.
They share experiences, frustrations, recommendations, and warnings. Trust spreads—or evaporates—through informal networks.
Advisors who get doctors become:
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the “go-to” advisor in a practice
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the trusted resource during transitions
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the safe harbor during crises
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the name passed quietly in hospital hallways
Advisors who don’t… rarely get a second chance.
Understanding a doctor’s life allows you to:
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ask better questions
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pace conversations appropriately
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normalize emotional responses to money
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reduce shame and defensiveness
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position yourself as an ally, not an expert talking at them
This is not about pretending to be a doctor.
It’s about respecting the reality of their world.
A Better Starting Question
Instead of:
“Tell me about your assets.”
Try:
“What does a typical week look like for you right now?”
Instead of:
“What are your financial goals?”
Try:
“What feels heavy for you lately—inside or outside of work?”
Instead of:
“Here’s what you should do.”
Try:
“Can we slow this down and think it through together?”
These questions land differently when doctors feel you understand the terrain they’re navigating.
Try This: A Simple Immersion Exercise
Here’s my challenge to you:
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Watch The Pitt—not casually, but attentively.
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Notice how decisions are made under pressure.
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Observe how exhaustion changes behavior.
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Pay attention to how responsibility never fully shuts off.
Then ask yourself:
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How would I show up for this doctor financially?
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What would safety look like in this conversation?
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How could I reduce—not add to—their cognitive load?
That reflection alone will make you a better advisor.
Final Thought: Understanding Is the Ultimate Differentiator
If we could truly walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, we would serve them differently.
Doctors don’t need more complexity.
They don’t need more judgment.
They don’t need to be “fixed.”
They need to be understood.
And the advisors who take the time to understand what a doctor’s life is really like—through stories, shows, books, and lived curiosity—will be the ones doctors trust with their futures.
Try it.
Your clients—and your practice—will feel the difference.