Most people go into medicine to help people.But somewhere along the way, the system swallows that dream.

Long hours. Broken processes. Pressure to perform, not to care.

But not Chris Cannell.

Chris is a PA, endurance athlete, husband, father of three, and president of a national nonprofit in legal medicine. But more than that, he’s a man who kept chasing the spark that started it all: a sister’s cancer diagnosis, a team on the field, and a deep belief that medicine could still feel human.

In this episode, Chris joins Lon for a conversation about reinvention, restlessness, and building something better for patients, providers, and the families caught in between.

Together, they talk about what happens when you hit the ceiling of your success, when your ambition gets mislabeled as discontent, and how the right partner, the right mission, and the right moment can give you permission to lead from your gift.

This isn’t just a conversation about medicine.It’s about meaning.It’s about movement.And it’s about creating the future you’ve been quietly craving.

What to Expect:

--How a childhood cancer diagnosis shaped Chris’s calling

--What football, medicine, and leadership taught him about purpose

--The role his wife Stacy played in giving him permission to change

--What most high-performers get wrong about reinvention

--Why he’s creating a new model for healthcare through community

--What it really means to be great at something—and why most people won’t say it out loud

Key Takeaways:

-> Restlessness isn’t a flaw, it’s a clue.

-->Permission doesn’t mean control.

-->If you want to build something that lasts, build it with people who care.

-->You don’t have to know how it ends. You just have to know what matters now.

-->Your best work is still in front of you, if you’re willing to believe it.

About Chris Cannell

Dr. Chris Cannell is a doctoral-trained Physician Associate with 22+ years of clinical experience in emergency medicine, orthopedics, critical care, and internal medicine. But what makes Chris stand out isn’t just his credentials, it’s his mission.

He’s a nationally recognized voice on healthcare quality, patient safety, and medical risk, and a powerful advocate for restoring purpose and humanity to the people who deliver care.

Chris has led clinical teams, shaped national policy conversations, and built bridges between medicine, law, and education. He serves as the President of PAs in Legal Medicine, sits on multiple boards, teaches across leading PA programs, and works as a respected consultant in medical-legal risk, healthcare innovation, and clinician leadership.

But beyond the titles, Chris is a builder of people. A connector. A father. A runner. A relentless advocate for the providers who’ve given everything to healthcare and are ready to build something better.

Dr. Chris has an upcoming masterclass training as a medical legal, educational, and healthcare consultant. More details here: https://www.theapcconsultant.com/healthcare-disruptors

You can connect with Chris here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-apc-consultant/

What's NextIf you’ve ever wanted to try something different—but talked yourself out of it—this is your sign to explore the path you haven’t yet taken.

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Most people meet their doctor in an exam room. I met mine at the edge of a breaking point she didn’t even know she’d been carrying for years.

Dr. Jill Kruse grew up wanting to save lives for one simple reason: she didn’t want to lose her mother. She entered medicine the way so many elite performers do — head down, high achieving, fueled by good intentions and impossible standards. She pushed. She excelled. She endured.

And then life stopped asking politely.

Call every other night. A newborn and a toddler at home. A tiny rural town held together by two doctors, two PAs, and a pager that never slept.She kept giving.The job kept taking.And one day, her husband said the quiet part out loud:

“You’re killing yourself slowly.”

That’s the moment every physician fears.That’s the moment every high performer recognizes.And that’s the moment this conversation turns from résumé to truth.

This episode is about what happens when the life you fought to build becomes the life that’s quietly breaking you. It’s about the courage to walk away from a calling without abandoning the purpose underneath it. It’s about burnout, identity, the stigma of asking for help, and the freedom that shows up when you finally decide the cost of staying is higher than the cost of change.

But more than anything, it’s about this:

The heart feeds itself first — and you need to start doing the same.

Dr. Kruse’s story isn’t about quitting medicine.It’s about choosing herself.And it’s a roadmap for any elite performer who has forgotten that they’re allowed to do the same.

IN THIS EPISODE:

--What really pushes a physician to the edge (it’s not what you think)

--The truth about burnout inside medicine — the part nobody talks about

--Why high achievers wait too long to ask for help

--What happens when you realize a career won’t love you back

--How to reclaim identity without burning your life down

--The power of coaching when counseling feels risky

--The heart-first lesson every elite performer needs to hear

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

->Burnout isn’t failure. It’s the body calling for honesty.

->You can love your work and still decide it’s costing you too much.

->Courage isn’t leaving. Courage is telling the truth.

->The life you want won’t appear while you’re drowning in the life you’ve outgrown.

->You deserve the same care you give everyone else.

WHAT’S NEXT?

If Jill’s story hits close to home (if you’re hiding the same exhaustion behind the same smile), this is your invitation to stop doing this alone.

Join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Learn more about Dr. Jill Kruse here: http://www.flight-time-medical.com/

https://www.prairiedoc.org/

What if the version of you you're trying to fix… isn’t broken?

What if the problem isn’t your motivation, your discipline, or your job…But the story you’ve been telling yourself to survive it?

In this episode, Lon sits down with Dr. Fredric Mau, a board-certified hypnotherapist and licensed mental health counselor who left a corporate career and stepped into one of the most unexpected and effective roles in human transformation.

Together, they explore the difference between talking about change and actually experiencing it.

They talk about emotion vs. cognition, trauma vs. strategy, and what it really means to engage the quiet part of your brain that’s been holding on to the weight, the fear, and the shame for far too long.

If you’ve ever said, “I know what to do, I just can’t seem to do it..." this episode is for you.

In This Episode:

--What hypnotherapy actually is (and isn’t)

--Why your problem isn’t laziness but limbic

--The emotional truth behind avoidance, drinking, overeating, and stagnation

--How trauma and stress get stored in the body

--Why most people stay stuck in old roles for too long

--What changes when you stop telling the same story and start feeling something new

Key Takeaways:

->You’re not stuck because you’re weak. You’re stuck because you’re human.

->Hypnotherapy isn’t about control. It’s about letting go.

->Most people don’t need more insight. They need a new pattern.

->Your limbic system has been solving problems long before your resume did.

->Change doesn’t feel like a decision. It feels like relief.What’s Next?

If you’ve ever wanted to try something different, but talked yourself out of it, this is your sign to explore the path you haven’t yet taken.

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Learn more about Dr. Frederic Mau here: https://watermarkcolumbia.com/