You’ve built your career; you’ve achieved success. You’ve done what you thought you wanted to do, what you were supposed to do.
So why does something still feel wrong?
I help successful professionals navigate burnout, career uncertainty, and the major life decisions that shape what comes next.
Combining the science of decision-making, lived experience, and the Solving for Why® decision framework, I work with you to create clarity around what’s not working and to build a practical path forward.
You’ve Gotten Very Good at a Life You No Longer Want
Not sure where to start? That’s ok.
We’ll figure that out together
Dr. Mark Shrime: Career Mentor and Decision Coach
Dr. Mark Shrime brings radical clarity to life's toughest decisions using decision science, lived experience, and the Solving for Why® coaching method.
Most people who come to me think they have a career problem. Usually, they have a decision problem.
You've probably felt the same. You’ve tried to push through. Work harder. Become more resilient. Take better care of yourself.
But sometimes burnout isn't asking you to try harder. It's asking you to look at what's no longer working.
Because burnout isn’t a resilience problem. Burnout is a decision problem.
Let’s figure out where the mismatch is before you decide what to do next.
Read more about my decision-making framework.
-Dr. Mark
Dr. Mark has been featured in…
What Brings You Here?
I’m Struggling with a Big Decision
You're stuck between options, and every path comes with consequences. Stay or go. Change jobs or don't. Take the opportunity or walk away. How do you decide?
Discover a science-backed process to make a decision you can trust.
I’m Burned Out
You're exhausted, disconnected, or wondering how much longer you can keep doing this. You know something needs to change, but you're not sure what.
Understand what's driving your burnout and what needs to change.
I’m Looking for Something Different
Your life may look successful from the outside, but something isn't fitting anymore. You want more clarity, alignment, and direction, but you're not sure where to begin.
Get clear on what you want and build a path toward a life that fits.
I’m Struggling with a Healthcare Career
You're a physician or other healthcare professional dealing with burnout, career uncertainty, a difficult transition, or a decision about what's next.
Work with someone who understands the unique pressures of building a life and career in healthcare.
What It’s Like to Work with Dr. Mark
You don't need to have answers before you start. Together, we explore what's really going on, figure out your options, and create a practical path forward.
STEP 1 — Discover What's Really Going On
We identify what's creating the friction, burnout, or dissatisfaction you’re feeling and get clear about what you actually want your future to look like.
What you leave with: "I finally understand what's happening."
STEP 2—Understand Your Real Options
We'll look honestly at the paths available to you, pressure-test your assumptions, and uncover possibilities you may not have considered.
What you leave with: "I know what my best options are."
STEP 3—Build a Practical Path Forward
We turn clarity into action, with a realistic plan for what comes next, including addressing things like financial runways, rebranding, and retraining.
What you leave with: "I know exactly what to do next—and how to get there."
What you walk away with
I won't tell you what decision to make.
Instead, you'll gain a proven framework for making better decisions for the rest of your life. Together, we'll bring structure to uncertainty, challenge assumptions, and create a path forward that reflects who you are today—not who you were ten years ago.
Start with a 15-minute conversation to talk through where you are and whether working together makes sense.
I’ve Lived These Same Questions Too
I'm a surgeon, author, TEDx speaker, coach, and PhD-trained decision scientist. I've spent my career making high-stakes decisions across medicine, global health, academia, and coaching.
I've also burned myself out.
Three times.
I've spent years asking the same questions many of my clients ask:
What do I actually want?
What happens when the thing I worked so hard to achieve isn't the thing I want anymore?
How do I change my life without blowing up everything I've built?
That's why this work isn't about having all the answers. It's grounded in decision science and lived experience.
I've spent more than a decade helping professionals navigate consequential career and life decisions. I bring that experience, along with my research into how people make decisions under pressure, into every coaching relationship.
Learn more about my career, decision-science research, and the experiences that shaped this work.
There isn't one right way to work with me. The right approach depends on the decision you're facing, how much support you need, and where you are right now.
Find the Right Way to Work Together
A self-paced, eight-week decision-to-clarity program
Bring your hardest question and work through a structured framework designed to help you move from uncertainty to clarity.
Use it for career decisions, relationships, burnout, or other major life choices.
The Essentials Program
Build Your
Burnout Escape Plan™
Twelve weeks to absolute clarity
A structured program for professionals who know something needs to change and need clarity about their next career move.
We'll identify what's driving the burnout, evaluate your options, and create a practical path forward.
Work With
Me 1:1
A custom-built path forward
Work directly with me to navigate a complex decision or major transition, build your plan, and put it into action.
Not sure which option is right for you? That's exactly what a consultation is for.
No preparation required. No pressure to commit. Just a conversation about where you are and whether I can help.
Everything changes the minute you stop trying to “just push through”
The goal isn't simply to feel less burned out.
It's to build a life that actually fits.
That will mean making career and life decisions that you can trust. It’ll mean finding a path forward that honors everything you’ve already built.
It’ll mean separating what you actually want from what you think you should want—or what others tell you you should want.
And it’ll mean replacing decision paralysis with a clear direction, to a meaningful life and work that both fit who you are now.
The goal is not to become better at tolerating a life that doesn't fit.
It's to build a life you don't want to quit every day.
What Others Are Saying…
You Don’t Have to Figure This Out Alone
You also don’t have to hire a coach today!
Take the burnout and decision quiz
Get a clearer picture of what's actually driving your burnout and how your decision-making might be keeping you stuck
Learn About Better Decision-Making
Explore the science and principles behind making high-stakes life and career decisions.
Read My Book, Solving for Why
Go deeper into making better decisions when the stakes are high, and the ideas behind the Solving for Why® decision frameworks.
You’re Not Broken.
You’re Simply Facing a Decision No One Taught You How to Make.
You don't have to blow up your life.
You don't have to keep pushing through.
And you don't have to figure out what's next alone.
Build the tools you need to make your big decisions
No preparation. No obligation. Just a conversation about where you are and what comes next.
↓ Get Two Burnout Escape Courses for FREE ↓