Dr. Diddy and Dr. Lil Wayne? No, these guys are not doctors, but they share their “Secrets To Success”. Applying these principles to medicine will definately improve your chances of ‘success’.
1. Be into what you’re doing – In a field like medicine it isn’t always easy as we have to go through rotations we don’t enjoy. But these rotations are only temporary, as soon as you walk out of the hospital, shift your focus to what you’re into. Medicine is such a diverse field, there’s no need to pigeon-hole yourself. If you can’t find a field you’re interested in – create one.
2. Be You – In medicine there is always a pressure to act according to certain ‘standards’. That’s fair enough as patients need to feel comfortable around doctors, but that doesn’t mean you have to act like your seniors. Communication skills seminars about the Calgary Cambridge model are all good, but don’t let that hide your personality. All too often medical students try to find a personality that will suit their career as a doctor instead of just being themselves – I’ve tried this approach too, but it never felt comfortable. I learned instead to just be me – people sometimes think I’m crazy because my approach is ‘different’, but in real patient scenarios it has never failed me. This doesn’t mean I can’t learn new skills, I’m always trying new approaches, but at least I’m using them within a framework which is natural to me.
3. Don’t stop - Lil Wayne is always in the studio or on stage. This goes against conventional work-life balance theories. Maybe it’s time to forget the balance, if you love what you do, work ain’t work then there’s no need to balance, it becomes a part of life.
4. If it ain’t working implement change - I’ve sat in outpatient clinic listening to doctors complain about their careers saying “this is never the field I wanted to go into” – I don’t want that to be me. If something ain’t working, I’m gonna change it. Either change speciality or change career completely – to many people this might sound crazy, but seriously if it ain’t working it’s time for change. Personally I would rather experience the short term discomfort of change versus a life of struggle.
5. Sleep when you’re dead – I’m not sure about this one….
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