ABSTRACT
Encouragement means holding others to high standards, recognizing their potential and not underestimating them. It can mean encouraging them, not just to become self-reliant and capable of achieving their goals, but to develop integrity and the character traits that accompany it. In the public setting, physicians can find innumerable opportunities to make functional contributions to the communities in which they live and work, and these provide an opportunity for leadership. Not-for-profit health clinics represent another environment in which physicians are often called to demonstrate leadership. Within the US Military, physicians are often called upon for leadership through a variety of roles, ranging from administrative roles in military medical institutions to managing the health and well-being of both soldiers and noncombatants in the theater of warfare. Policy setting bodies such as advisory committees, boards of directors, and other elected and appointed positions can also present unique challenges for physician leaders.
