Dr. Ana Maria Gonzalez-Angulo is a highly experienced medical oncologist and professor. She has taught extensively at Universidad del Cauca and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Between 2012 and 2014, Dr. Ana Maria Gonzalez-Angulo oversaw clinical research and drug development activities within the center’s Department of Breast Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine.
During her career in medicine, Dr. Ana Maria Gonzalez-Angulo has established relationships with a diverse range of organizations, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the European Society of Medical Oncology. She served as an active member and part of the directive council with the National Association of Interns and Residents and as a member of the American Cancer Society Patient Service Committee, among other appointments.
Dr. Gonzalez-Angulo attended medical school at Universidad del Cauca School of Health Sciences. In addition to her training as a physician and surgeon, she holds a doctor of biomedical sciences in cancer cell biology and drug development. Her thesis explored breast cancer cases resistant to PI3K inhibition. She has earned several additional graduate degrees. Apart from medicine and biology, her interests include traveling and hiking. She is a fan of symphony and opera.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
I am up at 5:30 am. Work out for 20-30 minutes. Simple breakfast. Arrive at the office/hospital before 7:00 am. Do paperwork and read the news. I see patients from 8:00 to 6:00, including hospital rounds, with a 1:00 pm break for lunch. Get home around 7:00 pm, call the family and study/read. Watch the news. Go to bed by 11:00 pm.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I have a monkey brain, so I write down things when they come to mind, and when I see the opportunity, I bring it back and develop it. Once the idea is matured in my brain, I meet or contact people to run things by them and listen to their opinions. I take what I think can work and get to work.
What’s one trend that excites you?
I think biotechnology and the proper use of AI to improve patient care and quality of life. Emphasis in “proper.”
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
Organization and a good team around me. Also, time outside work doing things I enjoy (music, theater, art exhibit, reading, hiking).
What advice would you give your younger self?
Do not sweat the small things and make more mistakes to learn from them. Life is not only work.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
I should have gone into archeology and not medicine and sciences.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
To read. Not only science, but history and philosophy, also fiction. I find it disappointing how little some people, ‘specially the young, read.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I try to take a breath. Stop and think. If it is a person making me feel like that, I excuse myself (I have little patience) and calm down, trying to put myself in their shoes.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Following Randy Pausch’s advice about the brick wall. The wall is there to help me see how much I want something and to stop those who don’t want it that much. I am resilient, and I persevere. But I also learn from my mistakes and ask and listen to those who know better.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
Unfortunately, I learned the hard way not to trust everybody. Now, I am much more selected with those I work with and even more with those who I share my personal life with. Because of that experience, I had to restart from zero and rely more in others than in myself. I learned that I can ask for help and use others’ help.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Tough question because it depends on what I am doing. I believe EndNote and Excel save me time, and Dragon helps me typing notes.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
The Choice by Edith E. Eger. It is probably the best book I have read in the past 10 years. Many lessons: 1. Survival is a choice because even in the darkest circumstances, we have the power to choose our response. 2. Finding meaning in suffering: a regular teaching from all my cancer patients. 3. Confronting the past and forgive to heal; for facing painful memories and forgiving is healthier than suppressing them. 4. Taking responsibility for one’s emotions regardless of external circumstances; this moves you from victimhood to action. 5. Freedom is a mindset: she argues that the biggest prison is in our own minds and we hold the key to liberation through self-awareness and choice.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
The Spy. I like spy stories, and the history of the Middle East conflict is difficult to understand well and always relevant.
Key learnings
- Don’t fear mistakes; treat them as opportunity for learning and growth.
- Learn to ask for help and advice but be selective about whom you trust.
- Surround yourself with good people and seek wisdom from those more experienced than you.
- Forgiveness and confronting the past is hard but liberating.
- Reading, regardless of genre, is something everyone should do.