“Life is never certain. Change is the only constant. We have to meet each day as it comes, affect what we can, and accept what we can’t control. If you

meet each day’s challenges and make choices consistent with good values, things will likely work out. Also, don’t be attached to one path. Sometimes

when things don’t go as you’d planned or hoped, they eventually work out better than if they had, at least in the grand scheme of your life. I also have

three quotes:

“Success occurs when opportunity meets preparation.” Zig Ziglar “When you’re going through hell, keep going.” Uncertain who said this

first. “Press on. Nothing in the world can take the place of perseverance.” Calvin Coolidge–there is more to this quote that is worth knowing, but it’s long. “

“it used to, but with two relatively young children it’s hard to prioritize. I still enjoy playing when I have time.”

“The key exposures were opportunities and mentorship. I couldn’t have had success without help from experienced people. I suppose epidemiology training and recruitment to an epidemiology position could be my confounders, since I was originally planning to be primarily a psychiatric pharmacist. The outcome is to be determined, but I’ve managed to find some success and hopefully have a positive impact on some people.”

“Warning: Poor study design choices may invalidate your work.”

“Helping students do high-quality work.”

“From a project standpoint, I feel like one of my most impactful projects was a dissemination project focused on improving care for people with dementia and behavioral and psychological symptoms. The approach to care that our team developed has seemingly been incorporated into various standards of care. However, I feel it’s most rewarding to watch students grow and know that something I’ve contributed has helped them become successful professionals.”

“The weekend, when I have more time to be with my family, get outside, and exercise. I enjoy work, but it’s nice to recharge.”

“I would enjoy focusing on students developing their projects, because it’s interesting to me and meaningful to them. Structured content is important to develop knowledge, but every project has unique considerations, and students learn from doing projects they care about.”

“I don’t really have favorites. Every data set has unique advantages and disadvantages. I learned a lot starting out from working with Iowa Medicaid data, so that has a special place in my heart, but there were challenges in getting all the information we wanted from what we were allowed to use.”

“I try to learn wherever I find the opportunity and am grateful for many people. Dr. Chrischilles has been an important mentor. I’ve learned a lot from Miguel Hernan’s work and think he provides useful frameworks to design meaningful studies.”

“My wife and family.”

“The ability to think critically to keep learning and growing.”

“Take care of your own mental and physical health. You can’t pour from an empty cup, and aging will eventually get us all if something else doesn’t first. Exercise, eating well, and nurturing meaningful relationships can extend your health span.”