Takeaway
Matt Haig’s “The Humans” is a humorous, moving reminder that being human is messy and fragile. These aren't flaws to be fixed, but realities to be understood. Ideally, clinicians attend to both the patient’s diagnoses and their lived experience.
Lifelong learning in clinical excellence | June 12, 2026 | 2 min read
By Scott Wright, MD, CLOSLER Executive Editor, Johns Hopkins Medicine
The novel’s outsider perspective makes ordinary human behavior seem strange—this may be a useful mirror for clinicians. Our patients are often anxious, contradictory, tired, ashamed, or resistant not because they’re trying to be difficult, but because illness and fear make everyone less tidy and more human.
Humility
On humility, the book gently challenges the idea that intelligence or expertise are the highest forms of wisdom. In medicine, it’s easy to overvalue certainty and control, but “The Humans” suggests that compassion, patience, and acceptance are equally important. Physicians often come to understand that sometimes the most healing thing isn’t a brilliant intervention, but the ability to sit with uncertainty, listen without rushing to fix, and recognize that suffering is often made worse when people feel unseen or judged.
Connection and kindness
Throughout this novel, the value of connection and small acts of kindness are highlighted. Haig shows that meaning is often found not in grand achievement, but in relationships, ordinary tenderness, and the decision to keep showing up for others. For healthcare professionals, this is a powerful reminder that medicine isn’t only a technical profession—it’s a deeply relational one. The trust patients place in clinicians depends as much on empathy and presence as on clinical skill. Doctors are encouraged to protect their humanity so they can better care for others.
“Advice for a human”
Late in the book, Haig offers “advice for a human”—shown as 97 tips. I selected a few that may be especially important for those of us working in stressful healthcare settings.
1. Be nice to other people. At the universal level, they are you.
2. Technology won’t save humankind. Humans will.
3. Be curious. Question everything. A present fact is just a future fiction.
4. Read poetry. Especially poetry by Emily Dickinson. It might save you.
5. A paradox. The things you don’t need to live—books, art, movies, music and so on—are the things you need to live.
6. If you’re laughing, check that you don’t really want to cry. And vice versa.
7. Don’t ever be afraid of telling someone you love them. There are things wrong with the world, but an excess of love is not one of them.
8. Obey your head. Obey your heart. Obey your gut. Obey everything except commands.
This piece expresses the views solely of the author. It does not necessarily represent the views of any organization, including Johns Hopkins Medicine.