How do you guys stay motivated?

[the Undergrad]

ok now that you guys are in med schools, im sure you guys think back how y'all used to procastinate when you were an undergrad like me but finally got through somehow and NOW ur all future docs.

well..thtas what i wanna know...HOW DO YOU GUYS STAY MOTIVATED TO DO WELL, TO BE AS COMPETITIVE AS YOU CAN????

Did any of you felt kinda unsure during ur undergrad years or even to till the day of ur MCAT, whether medicine is the right career for you, but NOW, those of you who thought that way are doing just fine in med school?????


Thnx..ill post this in Pre-Allo as well to get their opinions as well

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[CaptainAmerica]

I have always been and will always be a procrastinator. It's genetic. However, now I practice safe procrastinating. I allow myself to put off studying just until actual fear starts to set in. Fear, for me, is a great motivator. I get some of my best studying done when I am experiencing a healthy dose of the stuff. The trick is to know when it's actual fear (for me, usually about a week to ten days before a major test), and when it's unnecessary worrying brought on by listening to your classmates who have apparently mastered the subject matter 2 weeks before the test.

I suppose the ideal is to banish procrastination from your life and keep abreast of all your classes, mastering the material in a gradual, methodical fashion. In theory, this will keep you from experiencing true fear, misery, and sleeplessness just before the test. However, if you need those things to stimulate you, then procrastination can, at least in my world, be a justifiable study method. However, I HIGHLY suggest you begin by following the ideal I just mentioned, and slowly adjust toward the procrastination method. When I say I procrastinate, I DO NOT mean to wait until the night before a test to begin studying. You CANNOT, for the most part, do this in med school.

Parting thought: Is it procrastination or efficiency if you finish your studying one hour before the exam? Efficiency certainly sounds better than procrastination.

CA

 

[IlianaSedai]

The night before I started my first day of med school, I was chatting in the living room of a couple I knew (he was a resident, she a non-medical wife). I said, "To be honest, it feels a little funny because I'm not absolutely sure how I ended up here. It just happened, and it's not like I've wanted to be a doctor since I was three years old." And they said, "Sometimes the best you can hope for is to like what you are doing <B>now</B>." Without even worrying about later. The truth is, you can't really know what being a doctor is like until you're a doctor. But in the meantime, all you can do is try to get as much out of the college experience as you can, and when in med school you can try to get as much out of that as you can.

And to stay sane... don't worry about doing <I>well</I>. Just focus on doing the <I>best</I> that you can, and don't worry about the results of that. In the end, you get the same results, but with less worry.

 

[MaybeMD]

Hey tha undergrad, I feel ya. It is hard to stay motivated. But you know what motivates me the most? Coming to these forums. There's nothing that motivates you more than reading about students gaining acceptances to their top choice of med schools. It makes you think, "well if they can do it, so can I."

 

[kreno]

I worked all through high school as a busboy, and waiter... hard work... long hours. Same in college... did my extracurriculars... worked in a lab, blah blah, but stil had to work a real job to make real money. Whenever I don't feel like study, I just remember how difficult that work was, and it always motivates me to study - that is, it helps me realize how FORTUNATE I am to have the opportunities I have to be at college in the first place and helps me really center myself. My parents are really hard working, blue collar working, great people... and are motivated, but didn't have the opportunities i'm so lucky to have... so, again, just thinking how lucky I am and how *SELFISH* it is to NOT be responsible about my work really gets me going. Good luck

kreno

 

[ermonty]

kreno & Luminous_1,

You two just PERFECTLY articulated my motivations. I couldn't have said them better myself!



ermonty