When You Feel It’s Too Late
By Dr. Geoff Carullo, DVM, FPCCP, DPCVSCA
What if you wake up one day and realize you are no longer young in this profession?
What if the clinic is quieter.
The phone rings less.
The younger veterinarians are faster, sharper, more updated.
What if you look back and feel like you did not build enough.
Did not save enough.
Did not lead enough.
What if you feel like you failed.
And time will not rewind.
This is the part no one talks about in veterinary medicine.
We celebrate the achievers. The awardees. The presidents. The innovators. But there are also those who quietly carry regret. Those who feel stuck in old habits. Those who became defensive instead of adaptive. Those who chose pride over growth. Those who now feel left behind.
So what do you do when you think it is too late?
First, you stop pretending.
Denial wastes more time than mistakes ever did. If you have been sarcastic, confrontational, dismissive of change, admit it. Not publicly for applause. Privately for clarity. Growth begins where ego ends.
Second, you stop competing with the past.
You cannot reverse 20 years. But you can redirect the next five. Skill can still be sharpened. Attitude can still be refined. Leadership can still be learned. The brain does not expire at 50 or 60. It only hardens when pride refuses to soften.
Third, you become useful.
- If your surgical hands are slower, teach.
- If your clinical confidence is strong, mentor.
- If you made mistakes, tell the truth about them so others do not repeat them.
Legacy is not reserved for the flawless. It belongs to the honest.
Fourth, repair relationships.
- If you burned bridges, rebuild one.
- If you mocked younger vets, encourage one.
- If you led with ego, lead with humility now.
People remember the last version of you more than the worst version of you.
And finally, forgive yourself.
Regret is heavy. But it can either bury you or mature you.
You are not disqualified because you stumbled. You are only disqualified if you refuse to evolve.
In this profession, it is never truly about who started strong. It is about who finished with character.
Even if you feel like you failed, you are still breathing.
You are still licensed.
You are still capable of influence.
Time does not reverse.
But direction can still change.
And sometimes, the most powerful leadership comes not from the loudest achiever, but from the veteran who says,
“I was wrong before. Let me show you what I learned.”
That is not failure.
That is redemption.
Dr. Geoff Carullo is a Fellow and the current President of the Philippine College of Canine Practitioners.
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