I personally avoid two subjects on my own digital platform – politics and religion.
I do this consciously, not because I don’t have views or opinions, but because my views and opinions are so strong that if I engage online then I will draw significant negative attention, and this is not part of my Ikigai, my purpose, my mission.
Therefore, online at least, I am not a physician-citizen.
However, if you choose to be one that’s great, but several words of caution.
- Do so consciously. Don’t develop a platform about cancer prevention and then, on a whim, start tweeting about the Russia Investigation, or your views on gun control, or abortion. Accidentally getting into an aggressive tweet storm, or suddenly being trolled by a political action group isn’t going to be much fun if you haven’t prepared for it.
- Consider your employer. If you want to engage politically online, you are intentionally engaging in conflict, and this could have repercussions outside of your own personal sphere of influence. You have to know what your employer’s rules are about social media, and if you don’t know them you could get blindsided with a call from HR or even worse.
- Be polite. Don’t do or say anything online that you wouldn’t feel comfortable saying in person, in front of your mother.
- Consider whether or not this is part of your ikigai. Deep engagement in politics, whether online or offline, takes significant emotional capital. If you have an Ikigai separate from politics then ask yourself if the distraction is worth it, and if you don’t know your ikigai, then you certainly are best off discovering this rather than spinning your wheels creating political noise and fluff.
Anyway that’s about it. If you are called to be a physician-citizen that is wonderful, but do it considerately, carefully, and consciously.