The Long game
What a marathon taught me about endurance beyond preparation — and why surgical training has its own version of mile thirteen.

Average Black Surgeon: Confessions from a Life Misunderstood

The Last Smack

I was four years old when I realised I could not control everything — but I could control myself. The last smack became the first lesson in resilience.

Eleven out of ten

The mark scheme said 10 was the limit. I was given 11.
That extra point wasn’t about perfection — it was proof that ceilings are often self-imposed. Sometimes excellence isn’t scoring full marks. It’s redefining the scale.

Sports Day

I was never the fastest. So I chose the harder race. Winning the 400m taught me something the 100m never could — sometimes persistence beats talent.

Hackney Marshes

Before sunrise, alone with a football and no audience. Improvement rarely happens in public. This is what unseen repetition really does to confidence.

When everything slows down

There are moments when everything slows down. Movement becomes instinct. Preparation becomes effortless. This is what it feels like when performance meets mastery.

The Motorway Lesson

I couldn’t master the clutch — until the pressure increased. Sometimes performance sharpens not when things slow down, but when they speed up.

The First Cut

Mentorship is rarely announced — it is earned quietly. One theatre list, one opportunity, and a lesson about hierarchy and preparation that never left me.

Teamwork

Teamwork isn’t slogans or shared credit. It’s stepping beyond titles when it matters. This is what real surgical collaboration looks like.

Shadow of My Father

Legacy, lineage and quiet encouragement.

Sports and Medicine

Networking before you know you're networking

The moment I became better at surgery

One month into being a consultant, grief replaced fear. Faced with a brutally complex case, the fog lifted. In that moment I stopped worrying about judgement and started operating with purpose.

Outcome 3

A moment when your career feels like it might collapse. Rumours spread, confidence disappears, and the system closes in. Sometimes survival requires finding another way forward.