Being a doctor is an awesome profession, but it’s far from perfect.
Society at large idolizes the hard work, dedication, and status that being a physician entails.
But I would argue that there is a significant subset of individuals who want to become doctors,
but probably shouldn't.
In this video, I’ll help you figure out if you’re one of those people.
What’s going on guys, Dr. Jubbal, MedSchoolInsiders.com.
As many of you know, Med School Insiders is much more than just a YouTube channel.
We have been offering courses and services on our website for people who are interested
in either getting accepted to medical school or matching into residency.
It may seem counterintuitive, then, that we would be making a video focusing on reasons
one should not go into medicine.
From a business perspective, we should want as many people to go into medicine as possible.
After all, that would be the most profitable to us.
But Med School Insiders is about much more than that.
We seek to create a better future of happier, healthier, more effective doctors.
And a big part of that philosophy is keeping it real with you all, and cutting through
the nonsense.
Unless you’re in the thick of it, it’s hard to truly comprehend what it means to
go through medical school or residency.
I’ll do my best to cut out the noise and help you decide whether or not this field
is a good fit for you.
Here are 4 signs that becoming a doctor isn’t for you.
First, parental pressure. If parental pressure is a significant factor
in your motivation to go to medical school and become a doctor, do yourself a favor don’t do it.
I’ve seen dozens of students enter medicine due to family pressures and it almost never
ends up well for them.
They usually either quit in the middle of medical school, or if they continue on, their
disdain for the profession and their life is heavy and readily apparent.
Some have even told me that they wish they could quit, but they feel trapped because
their family would disown them, or their significant student loans have them cornered.
It’s a tough situation, no doubt about it.
But if you continue down the demanding and arduous path of becoming a doctor because
your family wants you to, it does not end well for you.
Being honest sooner is almost always better than being honest later.
The pain and hurt of quitting once you’re already a couple years into your training
will almost certainly be worse than being upfront and quitting sooner.
Number two, hating people. You know the type - the people that get easily
frustrated by others’ seemingly endless stupidity or incompetence.
If you’re not patient with people, then being a physician probably won’t make you happy.
Some medical students joke that they’re pursuing pathology because they don’t like
people, or even surgery so that they can put the patient under anesthesia so that they
stop talking.
But the reality is, every field in medicine requires good people skills and regular interaction
with others.
Sure, in pathology you’re not interacting with patients as much as a psychiatrist or
primary care doctor would, but you still need to regularly coordinate with other healthcare
providers to understand and analyze the specimens and provide tailored guidance to the healthcare team.
Similarly, a lot of surgery involves face to face interaction and clinic time.
Even as a surgeon, you’ll be spending about two days per week in clinic, not operating.
And on surgery days, you’ll still be spending a lot of time speaking with the patient and
their family pre-op, with the healthcare team intraoperatively, and with their family again post-op.
Be warned, not all patients are kind or appreciative of your work.
If this is a deal breaker for you, think long and hard about your decision.
Number three, You’re Allergic to Hard Work. Even if you’re incredibly intelligent and
skated through high school or even college with great grades and minimal work, that will
not sustain you.
Trust me.
I have a few friends who have brilliant minds, so getting into medical school was pretty easy for them.
But the adjustment to the vast quantities of information you need to learn in medical
school is a different animal entirely.
I would argue that intelligence has less to do with being successful in medical school
than you think.
It’s more closely tied to work ethic.
Medical school requires more memorization than critical thinking abilities, and that’s
far less dependent on intelligence. And same with residency.
The hours are long, and the amount of knowledge you need to acquire and hours of experience
you need to put under your belt are nothing to scoff at.
If your idea of hard work is a 9 to 5, five days per week, then medicine isn’t the right
career path for you.
And number four, Medicine Isn’t Your Main Focus. If you’re like me and have a variety of
professional interests and pursuits, then medicine will not be conducive to your long term vision.
To be successful as a clinician, medicine has to be a central focus in your life.
Sure, you can have side hustles and hobbies, I’m not arguing against that.
But to make significant progress in other professional pursuits while pursuing medicine
is neither feasible nor sustainable.
Many medical schools do not allow their students to work on the side because of the intensity
and rigor.
Schools understand that medical school is expensive and you want to get a job to help pay the bills, but
it’s much more likely to contribute to burn out and overall harm your medical school performance.
In residency, your hours will be even more intense and your lifestyle even less conducive
to pursuing side hustles.
And depending on your specialty of choice, attending life won’t be a walk in the park
either.
Looking across all specialties, only 13% of physicians work fewer than 40 hours per week.
Most of them work between 40 to 60 hours per week, and a quarter of them work between 60
and 80 hours per week.
If you’re going into something surgical, expect your hours to be on the higher end
of the spectrum.
Now Before You Go, These four points aren’t meant to be hard
rules, but if you do find yourself identifying with them, then I advise you seriously reconsider
medicine as your career of choice.
There are many other ways to make a comfortable and rewarding living with far less effort or sacrifice.
Being a doctor is a special profession for a special breed of person.
If after hearing these points you are still set on becoming a physician, then more power
to you.
At Med School Insiders, we want to help make your dream become a reality.
We offer the highest quality, systematically designed courses and
services to help you become an effective doctor.
If you’re a pre-med, check out our Pre-Med Roadmap to Medical School Acceptance, which
lays out a customizable template with high yield content to help you craft your college
career and set yourself up for a medical school acceptance.
If you’re further along in the process, our How to Ace the Medical School Interview
guide will help you put your best foot forward and maximize your chances of securing that
sweet sweet acceptance.
For a limited time, you can get 25% off your purchase of any of our courses with the coupon
code WINTER2019.
This offer is valid for only the first 50 customers, so get yours while the coupon is
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Additionally, all courses come backed with a 100% 30-day money back guarantee, so if
you are not satisfied for any reason, let us know and you’ll get a full refund. No questions asked.
Talk about a sweet deal.
Thank you all so much for watching.
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