HEAR FROM THE BOOK EXPERTS
In partnership with Bookside Press
Considering the Journey: One Doctor’s Perspective
Dr. Jeffrey T. Evans, DHA
Reviewed by: David Allen, Hollywood Book Reviews
Do you know anyone who is pursuing their PhD? ‘Pre-docs’, and sometimes ‘post-docs’ as well, emit tell-tale signs. As a rule, they are harried, perennially short of time, and freighted with horror tales of advisors, department chairs, and dissertation defenses which leave them and their auditors breathless and gasping.
Dr. Jeffrey Evans has been there and back. At age 52, he began the arduous yet ultimately gratifying task of achieving a doctoral degree in health administration. His story is an inspiration and a take-home lesson for all those who wish to rise to the challenge of their personal ‘impossible dream.’
Considering the Journey: One Doctor’s Perspective breaks the task down into discrete doable steps readers may not only identify with, but utilize in their own journey to personal fulfillment, academic or otherwise.
Evans is a most credible teacher and author. He fastens upon the importance of routine, of perseverance, of enlarging the research and the dissertation one day at a time. He deftly challenges the negative self-messages which unfailingly rise to the surface to obstruct the acolyte. Evans, who coached little league football – and loved it – brings his coaching mettle to bear in this handy and super helpful little volume.
The book’s take-home message is direct, impactful. Find your passion and pursue it like there’s no tomorrow. Period. Returning from Iraq, where he was deployed, Evans decided to stamp his life with the bold imprint of meaning. And like the good football coach he was, Dr. Evans patiently explains how to huddle, group, and tackle the opponent, in this case a doctoral degree.
The ultimate proof is in the pudding. Evans, a 30-year Navy veteran, worked for years as Director of Public Health at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, California. His peripatetic style, the clear, lucid, and pleasantly avuncular conversational tone of his writing — all these make Considering the Journey a super-informative, inspirational read.
