I recently shared a conversation on The Next Step with Alejandro Vera, a 2023 master’s graduate from the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry, who’s now pursuing his PhD.
One part of his story. really stuck with me, and that was the year he took between finishing his master’s and starting his PhD.
That year wasn’t about filling time. It was about making space to think, to reflect, to be sure.
“I think if I had applied on my original timeline, I don’t think I would have eventually made it into the kind of top program I wanted and where I’m at now at [University of Texas Medical Branch],” he said.
“That was difficult in itself, but I think what was important was intuitively feeling what was right and following what I was intrinsically motivated by. And I think that built the opportunities for myself in terms of finding the right program for me, applying for it, and knowing how to present the career I wanted to build to those who were considering my applications.”
It’s easy to underestimate how valuable that kind of pause can be.
It seems like more and more in our work and daily lives, we celebrate speed, output, and momentum. But sometimes, maybe the best thing you can do for your progress is to slow it down.
When you give yourself room to pause, you start to see things more clearly:
- The project that no longer feels right.
- The idea that’s quietly been pulling you in a new direction.
- The next step that finally makes sense.
Momentum matters, but meaning does too. And if you never stop to reflect, you might just get really good at going in the wrong direction. Alejandro’s story is a reminder that a pause isn’t wasted time.
That year between degrees wasn’t a gap. It was groundwork.
🎧You can hear Alejandro’s full story on The Next Step podcast on YouTube, Apple, and Spotify.
Have you given yourself permission to slow down lately? Tell me about it.
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