5 Steps to Ride Out a Non-Compete Without Uprooting Your Family

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In 2025, I celebrated a monumental milestone: I saw a patient within 20 miles of my home. While this may be a daily occurrence for most physicians, it was something I could not do for 18 months due to a non-compete clause from previous job.

When I left my previous position as an academic cardiologist, I was stuck with a non-compete clause: I could not practice cardiology within 20 miles of my practice for 18 months. In states where they are enforceable, they’re incredibly effective – dissatisfied physicians who would otherwise leave decide against it because the cost of uprooting their families is too great. My family and I just finished riding out that non-compete period without moving or disrupting the wellness of my wife and kids. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1: Build a worst-case scenario fund.

As soon as I seriously began to consider leaving my job, my wife and I started building a side fund to cover a scenario in which I couldn’t practice medicine for 18 months. We already had an emergency fund in a high-yield savings account that would cover 6 months of living expenses; we spent the next few months upgrading that to a 12-month fund. Given our household situation and the favorable job market for cardiologists at the time, that was conservative enough for us. Pick an amount that will allow you to sleep at night.

This often-neglected step is critical because it sets the stage for all future conversations with employers or clients. Negotiating from a position of strength gives you the power to advocate for necessary changes to your position, walk away from an unsalvageable job, or secure favorable terms for a new position. You never want to be in a situation where you must bluff or plead during a negotiation.

Step 2: Be clear about the future you want to build

My purpose in leaving was to create a more sustainable, part-time career where I could prioritize our health, marriage and family. I wrote guiding principles about the future I wanted to build and got feedback from my wife to make sure we were on the same page. Here are a few: Leaving this job will be the best thing that ever happened to our marriage. The net effect of my job change will be MORE flexibility and agency for my wife’s interests and career, not less. I must make at least half of what I made in my old position within a year. And I promised that if I could not accomplish those things, I would go back to a full-time job, possibly even the one I was about to leave.

No matter what principles guide you, sticking with them will be difficult. Leaving the beaten path is difficult for doctors who have spent years following a regimented and predictable path. It can be isolating and disorienting, and you will face immense pressure to stay on that path. If you leave a toxic job without a clear mission, it is too easy to lose yourself or even return to the familiarity of your old position. I was tempted many times. Having a clear vision of the future I was building got me through.

Step 3: Explore and choose new sources of income that fit your vision.

Practicing medicine outside the non-compete radius, medicine-adjacent or non-clinical work are all options to get you through a non-compete. For me, I chose to do locum tenens work about a week per month, being the best house-husband possible for the rest of it and undergoing the training necessary to pass the Certified Financial Planner™ exam and build my own financial planning firm for physicians.

It’s critical to do Step 2 first or you will be tempted to grasp whatever opportunity comes first even if leads away from your ideal future. For example, if you choose to do expert witness work, be clear about the role it will play in your career and the impact it will have on your personal life. Is this just temporary work to get you through the non-compete? Or will you continue this after your non-compete is over because it fits your long-term vision?

Step 4: Make a Plan B and C

Once you decide to pursue another source of income, make a Plan B and C if that source of income suddenly dries up. Whatever your plan A is, it could become unsustainable, terminated, or unsuccessful in ways you can’t possibly predict. Operate under the scenario that it WILL fail and create a plan of what to do if that happens. It will undoubtedly be devastating, but at least you will already know what to do.

This happened to me – many locum tenens jobs allow either party to cancel with 30 days’ notice, and I had multiple gigs canceled, leaving me with as many as 3-month gaps in employment. My Worst-Case Scenario Fund from Step 1 gave me the financial runway to execute my Plans B and C, and that is how we powered through.

Step 5: Give notice and help your colleagues with the transition

Only after Steps 1 through 4 should you pull the trigger. Give notice starting with your leadership, and then let your colleagues and patients know. Be gracious and fully dedicated to them through your very last day. They will suffer from your departure, so take every opportunity to help ease that transition. Even if you have no desire to do so, remember that you will need referrals from your former colleagues anytime you need to credential at another practice/system. You are not leaving the area, and keeping those bridges unburnt is critical. Ensure you have a clear paper trail specifying when the non-compete clock starts to prevent ambiguity in the future.

With the right mindset and planning, you can take power back from a non-compete clause and chart your own career.

DocEmpowered provides wellness-centered financial planning services designed exclusively for physicians. If you want the power to serve their patients, families, and communities on their own terms, get started here.

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