This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Oliver Kharraz, the 53-year-old CEO and cofounder of Zocdoc, based in New York City. It’s been edited for length and clarity.
I grew up in Germany and attended college in Munich. I got an MD and a doctorate in neuroscience. I became the most recent doctor in a 300-year family tradition, and previously practiced clinically.
During college, I built my first company. I provided internet access to a few local companies and offered data storage and remote access solutions. I had the choice to either drop out of college and make it internet-ready or sell it. I sold it in 1994.
I then spent seven years at McKinsey as an associate principal, which was great training for me — it was sort of a prelude to some of the things I had to do at Zocdoc later. I worked at the Munich office, then transferred to the New York office in 2004.
I started Zocdoc, an online service that lets people find and book in-person or telehealth appointments for medical or dental care, in 2007 with two cofounders, one of whom I met at McKinsey. We were in the process of starting several companies and discussing our personal experiences with the healthcare system. As we talked, it became clear to us that this was a better opportunity than what we were pursuing separately.
I became the CEO in November 2015. Here’s a typical day in my life.
I wake up naturally at 4:30 a.m. after four to five hours of sleep
I’ve always been an early riser and feel most productive in the hours before sunrise.
I grab my phone and look at the company numbers. I have several reports that the system automatically sends, so they’re waiting in my inbox. I look at our KPIs, and if something looks off, I might shoot off a couple of questions to the team. I frequently send those out with an 8 a.m. timer, so people don’t get scared about why the CEO sends emails in the middle of the night.
I then read for half an hour, a mix of history, biography, philosophy, and health industry news.
I then exercise for 30 minutes
This is a newer addition to my routine, despite my medical background. At my age, I try to alternate between cardio and weights and aim to keep my pulse consistently above 140.
After working out, I take a long shower to think and brainstorm
Once a week, I dedicate this shower session to imagining a hypothetical competitor to Zocdoc and how they would try to put us out of business. This mental exercise is key to staying ahead of threats.
I find that setting aside time in the shower to process the information I’ve taken in over the last 24 hours is helpful. I take long, warm showers, nearly in sensory-deprivation mode. I think the main job of the CEO is to be a bit of an oracle, predicting the future.
After my long shower, I enjoy family time with my wife and daughters over breakfast
I would say I make breakfast half the time, and my wife makes it the other half. I’m increasingly skipping carbs and choosing Greek yogurt, nuts, seeds, and maybe some berries. The rest of the family still eats bread, and so there’s bread, butter, honey, jam, and eggs.
I then drive my twin teen daughters to school and deliver my own dad podcast filled with family history and important lessons. I do what I can to give them a frame of reference for the very complicated world around them, values, an understanding of incentives, and how to get things done.
Depending on traffic, it takes 15 to 20 minutes to get to the office after dropping my kids off at school
I live in Brooklyn and drive to the Zocdoc office in SoHo. I go into the office five days a week because it’s important to me to be in person.
When I arrive at the office, my calendar is stacked with 10 hours of back-to-back meetings and work blocks, all aimed at Zocdoc’s next stage — planning up to five years into the future, managing risk, creating a bigger moat, and always keeping the company three steps ahead (thanks to my shower sessions).
I have a weekly meeting with a core group of lieutenants to review macro updates on the company. I then have one-on-ones with a lot of my leadership team. I also have office hours where anyone can book time with me and chat about any topic.
One of my philosophies is that while I’m working, I keep my office door open, so anyone is welcome to walk in and chat to me about whatever they think I should know.
I sometimes get around to a formal lunch, but I’m not consistent
If I do have lunch, I mostly eat a few hard-boiled eggs and some Sriracha. It’s quick, gives me a set number of calories, and is high in protein.
After lunch, I have more meetings, but I spend a good chunk of time external-facing, talking to customers. I also speak to regulators, investors, and prospective partners.
I use AI extensively and believe that leaders who ask their teams to use it should lead by example and use it themselves first. I created an AI Chief of Staff to handle rote work, challenge my thinking, explore ideas, and surface second-order effects.
A common AI prompt I use is: “Argue the opposite side and tell me what I’m missing.” On the personal side, I’ve also been using AI to build tools that take more admin off my family’s plate.
I leave the office anywhere between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m
On the drive home, I listen to news and audiobooks at 1.5x to 3x speed. Although I drive to work, I take the subway throughout the day to and from external meetings as needed.
I have dinner with the family and spend some time with the kids. A point of pride for me is that my kids still love it when I help with their homework, even though they’re teenagers and know everything.
My mother-in-law lived with us for 13 years. She was excellent for the family’s nutrition, and she had her repertoire, so we mostly ate that. More recently, we’ve gone a lot broader and mixed up our diet. We go out to eat on weekends, and we’re all foodies.
After the kids go to bed, my wife and I spend time together. We’ll watch some TV and enjoy “Only Murders in the Building”, “South Park,” “Succession,” and “Industry.” Sometimes we watch movies as well.
My wife and I say goodnight at 10 p.m., and then I go to sleep.
I try to minimize work on the weekends, but I do work
My theory is I belong to Zocdoc from 4 a.m. on Monday until 10 p.m. on Friday, and then I belong to my family. It’s not to say there aren’t the occasional work trips, meetings, or calls on the weekends, but I try to minimize them.
We spend a lot of time together as a family on the weekend. I enjoy reading philosophy and history for fun. I also enjoy fishing.
