Is your bussiness on the right track

Imagine the "sorcerer's apprentice" scene in the movieeligibility but still needed a few more credits to
Fantasia, fully remade for modern times. No longergraduate from UCLA.
would Mickey Mouse confront those fast-multiplying"I'd planned to do nothing but concentrate on
brooms as they splashed water everywhere.classwork," she recalls.
Instead, the onslaught would have a new-economy"That way I could get my grades up for applying to
twist. Torrents of email would come pouring out of amed school." Nice plan, but it went haywire when she
computer.was offered a chance to play basketball for UCLA.
Fresh projects would be announced on ever-tighterShe took it, had a great time, and kept her grades up in
deadlines. And all sorts of people -- bosses, customers,advanced-science classes.
and recent hires in search of a mentor -- would marchBut when she sent out med-school applications, she
into the picture, each pleading for immediate attentionhad missed several deadlines and was accepted
and declaring: "You're the only person we trust to donowhere.
this right." Ridiculous? No, reality.For the next four years, Richardson played at the
For countless workers and managers at startups or athighest level of amateur softball -- and labored to
revitalized older companies, the excitement of rewritingshore up her medical resume. She took classes to be
the rules of business -- and the elation of buildingan emergency medical technician in Florida and got a
high-performance organizations in record time -- ismaster's degree in health from Adelphi University. She
accompanied by a dark side. There just aren't enoughhelped run a rehab program for heart patients. In 1988,
hours in the day or enough days in the week to getshe reapplied to medical schools and won a place at
everything done.the University of Louisville.
Important projects pile up at such a rate that they can'tSuddenly, medicine became all-consuming.
all be finished by 6 PM Friday. As such tasks spill"Those first two years were all about memorizing,
further and further into evenings and weekends,memorizing," Richardson recalls. "I lost my ability to talk
something deeply troubling starts to happen.to people. It was like being stuck in a dark tunnel, just
Friendships with people outside work begin toreviewing anatomy and molecular-biology textbooks.
disappear. Cherished side interests -- such as trainingThat was a very tough transition for me." Occasionally,
for a marathon or photographing a favorite beach --she played catch with her boyfriend, but other than
become distant memories. Family rapport suffers. Athat, she recalls, "I couldn't even practice softball. There
question looms: If I'm so smart, why am I not enjoyingwas no time." When Richardson took her medical
my life more? A year or two ago, true believersboard exams at the end of her second year, to her
seldom worried openly about such tensions. Thedismay, she fell two points short of passing. She knew
payoffs from a little more hard work seemed sothat she could press ahead -- and try to pass a retest
immense, and the rewards seemed so close, that itin a month or two -- but faculty members encouraged
was easy to believe that only the halfhearted or theher to think about repeating her second-year
lazy needed to pause for breath. How times havecoursework instead. That wasn't a glamorous choice,
changed. Suddenly, even well-run Internet companiesbut before long, she decided that it was the right
realize that they can't change the world in a matter ofchoice.
months. They and the people in them must paceThis time, Richardson aced her courses.
themselves for a multiyear struggle to achieve theirThat cleared the way in 1991 for her to start third-year
goals. And the shakeout in the financial markets meansinstruction, when med students get to see patients.
that personal sacrifices can't be papered over by theShe thrived -- and it was vindication for faculty
notion that you don't have to worry about how hardmembers who had recommended her admission. "She
you're working now, since you'll be in a position to retirehad this absolutely infectious enthusiasm," recalls
wealthy in three years anyway.faculty member Steve Nettleton.
Indeed, at its worst, the new economy's fast track hasMeanwhile, Richardson figured out how to keep her
become nothing more than a road to exhaustion andpro-softball career alive. In the summer, she would
disappointment -- a journey to nowhere. But thewrap up medical school on Friday afternoons, catch a
opportunities before us are so great, and ourflight to New York and then drive up to Connecticut to
expectations of what we can do from within ourtake the field as a member of the Raybestos
companies are so high, that sitting passively on the sideBrakettes. To save time, she would change into her
of the road is not an option either. That's why a newuniform en route. Even then, she sometimes didn't
question faces millions of ambitious people who stillarrive until the second inning of a game. But her coach
want to do great work but who don't want to loseat the Brakettes, Ralph Raymond, would get her into
themselves in the process: Am I on the right track?the lineup at once.
Listen carefully, and you can hear that question beingShe had taken it for granted at the time, but now
debated at all levels of your organization, yourRichardson sees Raymond as having played a special
neighborhood, your family, and your social circle. Asrole. He was the first in a series of mentors who really
people search for answers to that simple six-wordwanted her to succeed in both worlds.
question, they must step back and ask a series ofYes, she was late to games, in a league where most
other soul-searching questions. What are my priorities?other players had dull day jobs that they chose mainly
Who are the people that matter most to me, andbecause such work wouldn't interfere with softball.
what should I be doing to strengthen those ties? Do IBut instead of being annoyed at her tardiness, he was
know how to say no -- and if not, is there a way toproud. "I remember Coach Raymond telling me: 'Dot, be
learn how? Do I know how to say yes and make itdifferent. Go and do something else with your life
count? Most fundamentally, what am I really trying tobeyond softball. Don't let softball get in the way of your
accomplish? It's tempting to argue that there are noprofession as a doctor,'" she recalls.
winning strategies, only a long line of barely tolerableAt first, there wasn't anyone comparable in
trade-offs. By that line of thinking, you can check emailRichardson's other world. Becoming a doctor was so
at 6:30 AM or help make your children's breakfast, butintense that no one was about to give her any extra
you can't do both. You can rush to the airport for aslack. But when she started her residency training at
hastily called client meeting in Chicago or linger over athe University of Southern California in 1993, things
romantic dinner with your spouse -- but there's no waychanged. She had decided to specialize in orthopedics.
to be in both places at the same time. And if you wantSome of the faculty doctors either were former
to be part of an exciting new project, say good-bye toathletes themselves or had meaningful sports-medicine
weekends that might have been spent backpacking,practices. They wouldn't let her cut corners, but they
volunteering, or simply relaxing.would help adjust her schedule so that she could
Yet some people are extricating themselves from theremind the world what Dr. Shortstop could do with a
worst aspects of the fast track -- to get on the rightbat as well as with a scalpel.
track.David Thordarson, head of the USC
In Los Angeles, an aspiring doctor has carved outorthopedic-residency program, remembers the crucial
blocks of time during more than a decade of medicalmoment coming a year before the 1996 Olympics,
training so she could become an Olympic athlete aswhen softball for the first time would be an Olympic
well.sport. USC gave Richardson a year off -- and told her
In Springdale, Arkansas, one of the Internet's mostto come back with a medal, if she could, in August
successful merchants has learned how to prevent1996. "We had an extra resident that year, so it wasn't
overwork from wrecking his family life. And in Sana burden on us," Thordarson recalls.
Francisco, two high-powered consultants haveRichardson did even better. She hit the first home run
redefined their jobs so that they can be successfulin the opening round of the Atlanta Olympics and then
parents too.hit the game-winning homer in the finals. When she
It's worth noting that these people are in the middle ofcame back to USC, she faced a mob scene of
their careers and are struggling right now to findreporters, hospital workers, patients -- all wanting to
answers to the question of how to do great work andsee Dr. Dot and her gold medal. "She was surprisingly
still live lives of which they're proud.down-to-earth about it and eager to get back to
It's much easier to talk philosophically about balance,work," Thordarson recalls.
trade-offs, and life choices after you've made yourBefore long, though, the celebration was over. It was
millions: "Oh, I gave up so much to get here. If I had it totime for more tough choices. In early 1998, Richardson
do over again, I'd spend more time with my kids, mywas doing an all day - all night rotation in the trauma
church, and with community groups." Really? Suchunit just before tryouts for the U.S. national softball
sentiment is easier to express in retrospect than it is toteam. She had planned to finish at the hospital at 8 AM
live in real time.and then catch a short flight to San Diego for the
As each of those people tries to get the balance right,tryouts. But just before her 24-hour shift ended, she
lessons big and small emerge from their experiences.realized that a patient with a broken leg and other
Simple edicts play an important role. ("Don't checkserious internal injuries was doing poorly and was in
voice mail on weekends.") So does hard thinking aboutdanger of crashing.
what's not essential at work. And at the highest level,Should she stay or should she go? "There wasn't any
three main strategies provide steady guidance.question in my mind," Richardson says. She ignored her
One, when there simply isn't time to do it all right now,official quitting time and stayed at the hospital until the
think about what might be called "the time-releasepatient was stabilized. She had missed her flight, but
career." Use each stage of life to center on differentshe decided that if she drove fast, she still could get to
goals -- so that work enjoys top billing for longtryouts on time. Partway through the drive, she asked
stretches but gives way to other priorities. Two, spellherself, Why am I doing this? "I decided that if I needed
out your own definition of success, so that you canto pull over and sleep, it was just God's way of telling
aim for your targets instead of constantly beingme, Enough," Richardson recalls.
dependent on the shifting demands of others. Three,At 12:30 PM, after 30 sleepless hours, Richardson
find or create a supportive setting. If colleagues,made it to the tryouts. Picked once again for the U.S.
bosses, and clients understand that work is merely anational team, she decided to train afresh for the 2000
part of an overall picture, there's hope. If not, theOlympics. By now, she was a half-generation older
burdens of the fast track can be endless.than many of the other top U.S. players. She was still a
Can You Chase Two Dreams at Once? Barely astandout, still good enough to bat leadoff. But it was
teenager, Dorothy "Dot" Richardson would drawtime for her to move over to second base and
crowds to watch her play fast-pitch softball. In therelinquish the shortstop position to a dazzling new
early 1980s, she was a scholarship athlete at UCLAplayer, 21-year-old Crystl Bustos.
compiling a career batting average of .367 andAt the Olympics in Sydney, Richardson turned in a
smacking extra-base hits with abandon. The momentbittersweet performance. She batted just .179 and had
when the afternoon games were finished,a dreadful preliminary-round game against Japan,
Richardson's most frantic dash began. Still dressed inmaking two 11th-inning errors that cost the United
her blue and gold uniform, she would race one and aStates the game. But she drove in the winning run in a
half miles to the organic-chemistry lab. Arrivingmedal-round, 1-0 victory against host Australia. Then,
anywhere from 15 minutes to 45 minutes late, shewhen the U.S. team played Japan again for the gold
would then scramble to her workbench -- and beginmedal, she wheedled a walk to set up the
two to four hours of chemical synthesis as part of hergame-winning run. At a press conference afterward,
pre-med training.she said that she "cherished every second" of the
Teammates thought that she was nuts. One of herOlympics.
coaches, Sue Enquist, watched bemusedly as thisWhile her softball days were nearing their end,
shortstop with light-brown hair chased goals in twoRichardson's medical career was taking off in
distinctly different worlds: sports and medicine. "Shespectacular fashion.
was a blur all through college," Enquist recalls. "I don'tAfter USC, she landed a fellowship at the prestigious
think I ever saw her slow down. And she had thisKerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles, where
unshakable belief that everything was going to workshe put the finishing touches on her skills as an
out great." For the next 17 years, Richardson madeorthopedic surgeon. There was a small competition, in
headlines with her softball skills while quietly inching herfact, among leading clinics in California and Alabama
way toward a lifelong career as a doctor. There werethat were trying to recruit her to their fellowship
delays and detours, including a dismal stretch in Floridaprograms.
right after college when the only job that RichardsonOnce she started, partners at Kerlan-Jobe decided
could get was delivering pizza. Eventually, though, shethat they liked what they saw. "She was good with
put all the pieces together, becoming both a fullyher hands," veteran orthopedist Neal ElAttrache
trained orthopedic surgeon and a gold-medal-winningobserves. "Technical ability in the operating room was
Olympic athlete.not an issue. And her interpersonal skills were
How Dot Richardson juggled those two goals is everyoutstanding.
bit as interesting as what she accomplished. Each ofShe could relate to young people, to elderly people --
her callings had intensely busy periods that demandedto anyone." Partway through her fellowship year, in
total concentration, with success or failure hanging infact, Richardson's two careers finally joined for a
the balance. Yet she gradually learned to space thosemoment. She and ElAttrache were asked to operate
high-intensity bursts so that medicine and softball tookon UCLA's best young softball player, Julie Adams.
turns and collided as little as possible. She also gotSomething in Adams's shoulder just wasn't right.
steadily better at finding friends and mentors whoX-rays showed a tiny tip of a needle, broken off from
wanted her to succeed in both worlds -- not just thea previous surgery. It was floating in the midst of
one that they knew best.Adams's shoulder. Extracting it wouldn't be easy. But
Richardson's story is rich with parallels for anyoneeveryone felt that it was Adams's best hope for a full
trying to excel both at work and at a special siderecovery.
interest.Waiting anxiously outside the operating room was Sue
Lose control and you end up with two sets of friends,Enquist, still the UCLA softball coach. Finally the doors
two sets of promises -- and a never-ending senseopened.
that you're in the wrong city, wasting time on theOut came Richardson, dressed in green surgical
wrong project at any given moment. Yet asscrubs. "Sue!" she exclaimed.
Richardson puts it, it's unthinkable to lop off half your"We got the needle out! She's going to be all right." At
identity forever and to pretend that it never reallythat moment, Enquist remembers tears forming, partly
mattered.out of joy that her best young player would finally be
"All you can do is focus as hard as you can on onehealed, but just as much to behold what Richardson
thing at a time," she says.had become. The sweet-hitting shortstop of 17
"That's what we're taught to do as surgeons." At first,seasons earlier was now a big-league surgeon -- and
Richardson couldn't get the balance right. In 1983, aftermaybe even an all-star.
four years of college, she had exhausted her softball