A day in the life of a…cartoonist, Dr Toni Liu MD

“It's OK to have more than one career in your lifetime. 

Don't give into the sunk cost fallacy!”

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Dr Toni Liu MD is a Chinese American immigrant in her late 30’s. Raised by “tiger parents” with strong Asian cultural and family values, Toni is now carving out a “nomadic” way of life, travelling the world and living by her own values. Toni always excelled academically and graduated in medicine at the prestigious Brown University. However, working as a doctor never felt the right "fit" for Toni although it made her parents proud. After much soul searching Toni is now "combining all my passions in my own unique expression" and using the cartoon format, as well as writing, mentoring and coaching, to promote issues of importance.

Read on to learn more about Toni!

My first career was as a doctor. I went straight into medical school after college. I got into Brown University’s prestigious 8 year medical program, which only accepts 50 people each year. My parents were so proud. I felt I really had to do it, although I really wanted to go to art school. I did finish medical school and specialised in women’s health - obstetrics and gynaecology. I later switched to primary care. But every year just got harder to continue down that medical path as I wasn’t really being true to myself.  

I quit medicine when I was 30 to pursue my childhood dream of being an artist - a cartoonist specifically in the Japanese anime/manga style. My career has really evolved from there because I realized it's not the aesthetics. It's the storytelling. It's the message. Using the art form to educate and advocate for causes that are not just important to me, but important in the world like mental health, women's equality, reproductive rights, sexual liberation, LGBT+ and other minorities.

Toni sharing some of her therapeutic art

My routine is a lack of routine! But there are some stable pieces. Every day I like to meditate and journal, just to start the day with the right inspiration and energy. I also have a nutritious breakfast. I try to exercise at least every few days to keep myself healthy. I’m someone who gets bored if everyday is exactly the same. Some days I designate it more like a work focused day. That might be followed by more of a rest day or a play day to go out and explore and enjoy the beautiful country that I happen to be in as a digital nomad. It’s roughly 4 days of working and 3 days of playing per week.

I have found that in Asian culture there’s often an emphasis on choosing what is stable and what family wants rather than following your own heart. Individuals can be heavily influenced by others. They really don’t like to stand out. There’s a lot about emphasising harmony, honoring the family - be part of the family unit but don’t ever differentiate yourself. I would say I have tiger parents. “Tiger parent” is a term for strict authoritarian parents with high expectations. They usually only offer conditional love and demand high achievement from their children, many of whom can end up struggling with their mental health because they internalize that inner conditional critic.

“Success to me is freedom to be fully and exactly 

who you truly are and to express that true self

in your work is the greatest blessing I can

ever think of in one’s professional life”

Choosing to follow my own path felt like a betrayal to my family, and I had to grapple with a lot of guilt, shame, and outcasting around that. But I’m so much happier and healthier now, because I’m being my true self and no longer pretending to be someone I’m not simply to please others. I now know it’s OK that we have different values. If you’re just pretending, where is the growth in that? But if you’re working towards a vision that really matters to you, even if other people don’t understand it, at the very least you’ll leave behind something that you’ll be proud of. It won’t always be easy; you’ll face challenges in every field and you can’t avoid discomfort, but what matters is that you feel the discomfort is worth it. Life is hard, but you get to choose what kind of hard.

Toni’s cartoon illustrating The 5 (Asian) Love Languages

My personal vision is to bring more unconditional joy, love, and acceptance into the world, to help people realize how wonderful they are, and that it’s OK to just be your authentic self and follow your heart. I inspire and empower them directly through working with me as their mentor or coach, and indirectly through my art and writing. I dream of creating “Holistic Healing Havens,” communities around the world where anyone can come to for healing. Another dream is to publish my children’s comic books bringing awareness to stereotypes and issues that are shamed or not spoken about enough, such as bullying, coming out, body image, and eating disorders.

One career highlight was showcasing my art at a gallery in the Philippines. I also offered live sketches. That was a dream come true. I’d always admired those caricaturists who did live sketches at their booths. It was just like, wow, I can actually get paid for doing what I love!? That’s still kind of foreign to me. Another highlight was my “Tame the Tiger” online group support program, bringing people with similar experiences together from all over the country to form a lifelong community. They even flew me out for a surprise celebration with them at the end of it! I was incredibly touched.

I would say I have not fit into a lot of traditional boxes, and now I see that my differences are a strength and they’re unique. And they really contribute something that only I can. I want other people to embrace their quirks and everything about themselves too. I have written about my journey in my memoir (pictured below) with lots of practical tools and advice on how to heal and bring out your best self. 

Toni presenting her memoir and healing guide

My career advice to others would be that not everyone has just one true calling. Don’t kill yourself trying to figure out what you love best. Just try something you’re curious or passionate about, that you want to gather data on. Clarity comes from action, not thinking. Notice what makes your heart sing and simply do more of that. And if it doesn’t resonate anymore, then try something else. Let’s normalize 2nd, 3rd, even 4th careers that evolve as we evolve. 

My first career was as a doctor. Now I’m a cartoonist. They are both part of who I am. Just because I poured so much into one, doesn’t mean I have to do it for the rest of my life. It can simply be complete. That era, that chapter of my life, I’ve outgrown it. I would also say there’s no right or wrong way to live life, or any bad decisions; every path has lessons and goodies along the way. And it’s never too late to change or try something else. 

Moreover, your career doesn’t define your life. Even though we like to ask people “what do you do?” so we can make shortcut judgments about them, what matters so much more is who we are. Our job is only one part of us, and if we’re lucky, an extension of us, but it doesn’t need to be. I know some people are happy doing something stable that pays the bills, while enjoying the rest of their life. But a career does take up half your waking hours, so wouldn't you want to spend them meaningfully?

To find out more about Dr Toni Liu MD click here to view her website where you can also contact her for support on your own journey, and order her book.

To read more “day in the life” articles and much more, click here to view the blog of The Careers Company.