What's your job?

Some chiropractors think their job is to manage a patient's health. Or fix their spine. Or relieve their pain. Or stop patients from sabotaging their health. Or restore their cervical curve. Or nag patients to make better health decisions.

No wonder practice has become a burden and the joy resulting from serving others so elusive. It simply proves that when you take on a thankless job, you shouldn't expect many thanks.

Investing your life spirit in something you can't control may produce self-righteousness or a saving-the-world-from-itself sense of virtuousness, but it's unsustainable and rarely appreciated. In fact, it often backfires, making patients feel ashamed for not valuing their health or reminding them of their inability to live up to your expectations.

When you treat patients like children, expect the immature to appear. When your intent is to project your values onto others, expect rejection followed by resentment.