"becoming a doctor is only for people...

[XT777]

...who cannot imagine doing anything else." - http://www.studentdoctor.net/2009/04/novas-doctors-diaries/

I would be interested in others thoughts regarding the reliability/accuracy/veracity of this quote. Thoughts?

777

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[dnslay]

That's pretty close to the truth. I'd been through about 15 jobs before I chose medicine

...who cannot imagine doing anything else." -http://www.studentdoctor.net/2009/04/novas-doctors-diaries/

I would be interested in others thoughts regarding the reliability/accuracy/veracity of this quote. Thoughts?

777

 

[Mattabet]

That's pretty close to the truth. I'd been through about 15 jobs before I chose medicine

Man, I've only been through 7...

 

[Dr Roboto]

True story. If there's anything else you can imagine yourself doing, then it's going to be a lot tougher to deal with the low points of med school, namely the week before an exam.

 

[ZagDoc]

I think its pretty accurate. Going to medical school to become a doctor is one of the most grossly inefficient career paths you can choose. Your training is excessively (spoken comparative to other fields) long, you accumulate significant debt, and most would argue the pot at the end of the rainbow is full of fools gold.

If you can see yourself doing anything else and enjoying it, that career path is likely to be much more efficient, enjoyable, and fruitful in the long run.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Agreed. If you don't love it, there are too many long hours and busy weekends to make it worth it.

 

[Nikki2002]

yeah i can imagine myself right now in...law school.



jk.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

There's always the grass is greener syndrome in every career.

 

[Law2Doc]

There's always the grass is greener syndrome in every career.

While that is true, that doesn't deny the fact that the grass is sometimes actually greener. Medicine is very definitely not for everybody. There are people who are going to be happiest in some careers and not others. So if you are the type who is going to be happiest in, say, law, business, accounting, architecture, etc then you are going to be a lot less happy in medicine. The grass will in fact have been greener. And since the road to becoming a practicing physician is longer and more expensive and more emotionally trying than most other fields, it's simply a truism that if you can find something else that you think would suit you just as well, then that's really what you really should be doing. Medicine is a rough path to go down, only to find you don't actually enjoy it.

You are kidding yourself if you take the attitude that "so what if it sux -- everything sux" - the grass is always greener. Because that's just not true. There are folks who are ecstatically happy in every career. That generally represents a good match between person and job. The person who would love working in a law firm or as an accountant, isn't going to love the wards as much, and vice versa.

 

[JonathanMD]

I'd like to think that people who become physicians do this because they can't dream of doing anything else.

I'd also like to think that the grass is always greener.







I'm also a self-confessed wide-eyed dreamer.

 

[Inuranic]

I would agree. As first year winds down, I can honestly say that this has been the most brutal thing I have ever done, its far from over, and it doesn't get any easier.

(Note: I came here straight from undergrad and am just into my 20's. I don't have another career to compare medicine to.)

However, even as I lament over the ridiculousness of learning the minutiae of neuro pathways, I don't have any other career that jumps into my mind screaming "you should be here". This is what I wanted - I really haven't questioned it.

 

[durty]

that's what I've heard about neurosurgery. "If you can imagine yourself doing any other specialty: DO IT...otherwise you're perfect for neurosurg"

I guess the same could be applied to advice for pre-meds...especially if you've just reached a low point and are intent on being mildly negative/discouraging.
-durty

 

[Rollo]

I think this quote applies to every field, not just medicine.

I know too many folks who are unhappy, depressed, and have no sense of who they are simply because they hate their job. The movie Office Space comes to mind.

While I can count on one hand the number of people I know who are truly satisfied and happy with their job....they couldn't imagine doing anything else with their lives.

"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life."

 

[hussamdein]

I would agree. As first year winds down, I can honestly say that this has been the most brutal thing I have ever done, its far from over, and it doesn't get any easier.

(Note: I came here straight from undergrad and am just into my 20's. I don't have another career to compare medicine to.)

Thanks for admitting that. I think the majority miserable medical students have had absolutely no real experience in the real world. They don't know what it's like to work 80 hours a week in the corporate world, and then get laid off and end up with nothing. They don't know what it's like to be on the bottom of that so-called totem pole every day of their life for the rest of their careers!

As an M3, I can tell you that it hasn't been a cake walk - but honestly, it's been a blast. I've never felt so alive before. It's a shame so many medical students feel like this. But then again, I really think that SDN represents less than 1% of the real medical student population - and I'm glad.

For the premeds reading this: it really isn't that bad. Undergrad was bad, since there was really no use in anything we learned (for the most part). You're going to get to learn an extremely valuable skill in medical school.

As a response to this thread: I can see myself doing a million other things than medicine (and I have). But I can't imagine myself doing anything else that'll make me happier!

 

[XT777]

Do those that feel that this statement is accurate/reliable/true also feel that there is only one "right" career for you?

 

[coldweatherblue]

People can pretty much do whatever they want to if they put enough effort into it.. doesn't mean they'll be happy though. I think a lot of people can go through this thing and come out the other end fine without really being "passionate" about medicine but they're probably be more likely to manifest their regret through immature defense mechanisms. (thank you behavioral medicine.....) There's a certain combination of attributes that is really nice to have if you wanna be happy in this whole thing (imo). If you don't have those attributes you can definitely still make it through but it might be a little rougher.

 

[JonathanMD]

Do those that feel that this statement is accurate/reliable/true also feel that there is only one "right" career for you?

Yes.

I'm 26 and it wasn't pretty getting here. I can honestly say I haven't been more sure about anything else in my life.

 

[Law2Doc]

I think this quote applies to every field, not just medicine.
...

No, it really doesn't. The quote only makes sense if the path is too long and hard to allow people to try it out, to dabble. There isn't the same kind of downside to going into, say, law. If you don't like it, it's pretty easy to transition out of with less cost or time. Medicine, with it's absurd tuition debt for 4 years of schooling, and with it's long residency periods, is much harder to transition. So you can make a much bigger mistake going into it if it's not for you than with most other fields. So I'd say this quote ONLY applies when you are about to jump into a hole that is very hard to get back out of if it's the wrong hole. And that kind of limits it to things like medicine, the military, etc. Everything else is an easy climb back out.

 

[Cirrus83]

Well, I can imagine myself in other fields just fine, but the real question is how miserable do you imagine yourself being working those other jobs
And having worked/volunteered/self-employed myself for a whole buncha stuff I'm pretty sure this is going to be the right gig for me. The only job that probably comes close in my mind would be being the head of IT somewhere (cushy job and you get all the latest tech toys), but that's mostly because I'm a huge computer geek.

I can imagine myself working for $$$ on wall street since I have way too many friends and family in the field, but they're not really any less miserable The best part was when I realized my cousin actually has to own TWO blackberrys (kind of hilarious to see him dual-fist his blackberrys).

That said, I think people should probably realize this on their own by trying to work other jobs or fields they're interested in first. I honestly think a lot of the kids going to med school straight out of college, then deciding that they hate medicine would probably have appreciated it a lot more if they had just spent the last 2 years staring at Excel on a computer monitor for 60 hours a week including Saturdays-the actual job of one of my closest friends, who already prefers this to her previous job. Won't mention much more since her brother goes to medical school and is on SDN, but I seriously would hate the vast majority of jobs my friends have (including the ones getting six figures).

 

[dnslay]

I agree and I'd like to add that being the the workforce doesn't make you immune to hitting the wall of early to mid-20's realization that most people spend most of their time working. You can either adjust to that in med school or not.

For those of us who did before med school, I think the workload is basically no big deal, more of the same, and a lot more interesting

...And then there are the genius freaks who fell of geek mountain into medschool at the age of 20 and are right at home. I have no idea what that's about but if you're one of those then don't give this thread a second thought.

I think the majority miserable medical students have had absolutely no real experience in the real world. They don't know what it's like to work 80 hours a week in the corporate world, and then get laid off and end up with nothing. They don't know what it's like to be on the bottom of that so-called totem pole every day of their life for the rest of their careers!

 

[Black Surgeon]

It's Hilarious how most pre-meds (and even some Med students) watch an overly cynical and one-sided depiction of the desolating lifestyle consequences that accompany the commitment to Medicine and all they can do is revert back to oblivious, snot-nose, and naive pre-med idealism.

Let's face it, these physicians are living pretty horrid lives. If you ask me, that show did nothing but portray Medicine as a dissipater of youth into old age serfdom and loneliness. As we see Cheryl Dorsey's (the pediatrician) young beautiful and vibrant face turn into wrinkles and the sole proprietor of an apartment in which she resides with only her dog and no significant other, or David Friedman, the divorced ophthalmologist who has all the financial and humanitarian rewards which Medicine can allow but is forced to confront and admit the presence of the pervading loneliness in his life.

Every physician followed on those series faces the true reality of Medicine. The reality that Medicine may very well become your life and dwarf any other sort of social institution you hold dearly to your heart.

 

[ThinkTooMuch]

funny stuff. id wager that 80+ % of those who enter med school do not think too much about it. And i bet most of them never had a real job in their life. Thus in my eyes i can see why its easy for the majority of med students and resident to complain....its their first taste of the real world...a world of little sleep, doing things you hate, and little pay to start. med school and residency in my eyes are the equivalent of "cimbing the coroporate ladder" Anyone who wants to make it business has to work long, hard hours. In the corporate world people spend years and years climing to ladder to finally make 100K+ salaries. The office director where I work oversees 2 managers and 7 supervisors (one of them myself). We've talked and he tells me after he got promoted to director from manager his pay went up to 130K, he is 48 years old.

We all know how much most doctors make after they finish climbing the "medicine ladder" in their late 20's to early 30's.

no on was born with a gene that tells them they must go to med school. the only thing that guides us are our interests and likes. medicine might be one among many other professions that will lead one particular person to career satisfaction. Some people, based on their likes and interests, will have more options. It an invdividual choice. There a million reasons to go into medicine, but a handfull are more than enough for any one single person.

 

[Bartelby]

However much you may like medicine, if you really can't imagine being happy doing anything else I think you lack imagination.

 

[abcxyz0123]

However much you may like medicine, if you really can't imagine being happy doing anything else I think you lack imagination.

I would say the opposite. If you have tons of imagination, you would be able to confidently know whether you can't imagine being happy doing anything else. I have a great deal of imagination, and have always been able to picture how my life would turn out had i gone the business or law route. The end was not appealing at all.

 

[URHere]

Before I came to medical school, half of my heart belonged to science, and the other half belonged to theatre - it was really just chance that I ended up choosing medicine over a lifetime of theatre work (I decided that if I didn't get in during my first cycle, that I would move forward with theatre and never look back).

That being said, I have truly enjoyed my first year of medical school. I love being in clinic (even overnight) and while lecture can be irritating, I think it is more of a good experience than a bad one. I'm only a first year, so I know my naive optimism will probably wear off eventually, but my point is that I could 100% see myself in another field (a field where I am confident I would have been happy), and I can still enjoy my introduction to the medical profession.

I don't think it's a matter of defaulting to medicine because all other careers make you unhappy, I think that many people have several equally good options in front of them, and just happen to choose medicine as the best match for them.

 

[G'ville Nole]

Can we get some attending viewpoints? Especially the ones who are 50-60 years old. Really respect the old school type of docs.

My 2c: Ron Paul is a good example of a doc who is able to do more than just be a doc. You can have more than 1 career if you want to.

OK, I'm not 50 or 60, but as a graduating resident getting ready to start into attending-hood, here's my view:

Every field will have a distribution of people who love their job and people who hate their job, and everything in between. I like what Law2Doc said about the maxim applying specifically to careers that aren't prone to "dabbling"; I think there's a lot of truth to that.

I had a prior career (musician) that spanned the decade of the 90's, and now a medical education that has essentially spanned the decade of the 00's. It has been my good fortune to love each of these jobs for various reasons, and to end up in a specialty that I imagine I will be happy in until I am an old man. But it definitely hasn't come about without the requisite "pound of flesh".

Why do people burn out or end up hating medicine? There are a lot of reasons, some more cynical that others. Some may not have been honest enough with themselves about their own motivation to enter medicine. The thought that one's motivation may be more financial than service-centered isn't a comfortable one to entertain, but I can guarantee you that, in a private moment, virtually everone in the field has asked themselves that question. Other people may have a preconception of what medical practice is that doesn't line up with the reality they experience. Part of that may be the selection of a specialty for which they are ill-suited. I can't stress to medical students enough how important this decision is, and how critical it is to take a brutally honest inventory of what you value in your own life and what you enjoy about medicine.

Ultimately, that statement is made as a pat way to alert applicants (and med students searching for a specialty) to the commitment that medicine entails. I wouldn't say you have to love or be singularly devoted to medicine. I'm not. I'm singularly devoted to my family, and lucky enough to love medical practice. What you DO have to do is this: know what motivates you to enter the medical field (whatever it is), and keep that motivation front and center during your training. Keeping that center will help when you're at hour 35 of a 36 hour shift, or (as I will be soon) dealing with the minefields of billing, insurance etc.

My $0.02

 

[DH78]

I would agree with G and UR, and I thank them for their insight. I think a cliche like this thread serves only as a skin-deep assessment, and should only be taken as such. I could see myself in other careers, like a beer taster at a microbrew, or a professional Halo player.

I think the issue is not to tangle your entire identity in your career, and doctors have a hard time not doing this. Maybe it's because of the long work hours, or the relentless studying, or the intensity and stress of the job, or the way that others perceive you. It feels silly to say that I hope I am a good man first and a good doctor second, but I wonder if there isn't some truth in it. But medicine seems to draw a certain personality type to it; those who would argue that they wish to be a GREAT man and a GREAT doctor. This isn't a bad thing, but approaching anything with that much intensity veers toward absolutism. Point is, it's a career, and I don't think it's good to approach anything with absolutes.

 

[clinicallabguy]

...who cannot imagine doing anything else." - http://www.studentdoctor.net/2009/04/novas-doctors-diaries/

I would be interested in others thoughts regarding the reliability/accuracy/veracity of this quote. Thoughts?

777

I think it's true in a way. But, I've wondered when I've heard this (over and over and over), what about the to-be doctors who couldn't imagine doing anything else but medicine, and then medicine didn't turn out to be what they imagined it was? The only career that they imagined ever being happy in didn't actually exist, but was something different entirely. I've wondered if this situation doesn't account for many of the currently unhappy doctors. Of couse, I don't know. What do you all think? I think that you need to be quite flexible to be happy doing anything, medicine included and probably more so.

I think that I could be content (though not ecstatic) doing lots of things, and could imagine myself doing them as a job. But, I just don't see anything being nearly as rewarding to me personally as medicine.

But, definitely don't go into medicine if you like anything else better. You'll set yourself up for regret later on.

 

[spicedmanna]

Yes, I agree w/ the quote. I don't think anybody should go the route of becoming a physician unless that is absolutely the perfect fit for them. It's a really tough road and I wouldn't wish this hell on anybody unless they were relatively sure. Most of my physician friends tried to dissuade me from going this route, but I didn't listen to them. So far, it's been a lot of suffering. It has taken years off of my life, I think. Thank God it's really what I want to do, although I have doubted myself numerous times...and the hardest parts have yet to come.

 

[oldbearprofessor]

Can we get some attending viewpoints? Especially the ones who are 50-60 years old. Really respect the old school type of docs.

You rang?

I think the quote is overstated. I started college interested in engineering, switched interests to research and ultimately became a clinically practicing academic physician. I could see myself doing engineering, research or patient care quite readily, because, well, I do all three of these and have for over 20 years (my research uses engineering tools).

I try not to get too involved in these endless threads because everyone has to make their own decision and even the insights of us old folks are of very limited use to premeds on this issue. I love my job from patient care to teaching to research and I still do 30+ hour shifts with all-night patient care. Sorry, I never found it that onerous and still don't. YMMV. I love babies and caring for them and working with their families. It doesn't get old and the frustrations inherent in this type of work don't seem worse to me than those of any other professional career.

One certainly has to want to be a physician and enjoy the things that physicians do in order for it to be "right" to do it. But, folks with these skills could probably do well in multiple fields, it's just that the BEST field for them is medicine, not the only field.

And I love my wife (married > 20 yrs), but I don't imagine that had I not met her, I would have been miserably single forever or married to someone I wouldn't have loved.

 

[cpants]

Some of the best advice I got when I was going this route was to work for a couple years before applying to medical school. You get a little cash in your pocket, and you get to see just how un-fun most jobs are. Medical school is difficult, no doubt about it, but it beats the pants off of any real job I've had. I think I would have struggled a lot more transitioning directly from the sheltered world of college where class is just a few hours break from the party, even for pre-meds. Many, if not most people dislike their jobs. You have the opportunity to do something you love, make good money, and help others at the same time. It's something to keep in mind when you are in the library late-night or those pesky professors are mandating your attendance at an early morning biochem lecture. Another thing to keep in mind is the huge number of people who would have killed for your spot. You owe it to them, and more importantly to your patients, to make the best of your training.

 

[Law2Doc]

... Many, if not most people dislike their jobs. ...

This quote above is a good one only if you have no choice. You can say -- hey, "most people dislike their jobs" -- and feel better about your lot. But as a career changer, it really irks me. Folks who get into med school have a lot of choices in life. They are some of the best and brightest. So there is simply no excuse to not find something you actually like, other than lack of research in making your decision. There are absolutely people who love their jobs, in nearly every field. There are people who will enjoy medicine and some who will hate it. If you are the type who is not going to enjoy it, it's pretty indefensible to say "good money, helping people" so that's enough -- because disliking your job is a norm. It simply isn't. The dude pumping gas because he's qualified for nothing else can take that position and simply live for the weekend. And that's fine -- he had no options, so he picked the best of his opportunities. But someone with the intelligence and ambition and skillset to go the medicine route isn't similarly situated and should never end up in this situation. A doctor is someone who chose that over many many many other options, whether they looked into them or not. And as such, can never fall back on the "all work sux" position IMHO. You are driving this car, not the other way round.

 

[ThinkTooMuch]

Before I came to medical school, half of my heart belonged to science, and the other half belonged to theatre - it was really just chance that I ended up choosing medicine over a lifetime of theatre work (I decided that if I didn't get in during my first cycle, that I would move forward with theatre and never look back).

That being said, I have truly enjoyed my first year of medical school. I love being in clinic (even overnight) and while lecture can be irritating, I think it is more of a good experience than a bad one. I'm only a first year, so I know my naive optimism will probably wear off eventually, but my point is that I could 100% see myself in another field (a field where I am confident I would have been happy), and I can still enjoy my introduction to the medical profession.

I don't think it's a matter of defaulting to medicine because all other careers make you unhappy, I think that many people have several equally good options in front of them, and just happen to choose medicine as the best match for them.

oh man, im in a similar position. except part of my heart belongs to film. glad im not the only one.

 

[cpants]

This quote above is a good one only if you have no choice. You can say -- hey, "most people dislike their jobs" -- and feel better about your lot. But as a career changer, it really irks me. Folks who get into med school have a lot of choices in life. They are some of the best and brightest. So there is simply no excuse to not find something you actually like, other than lack of research in making your decision. There are absolutely people who love their jobs, in nearly every field. There are people who will enjoy medicine and some who will hate it. If you are the type who is not going to enjoy it, it's pretty indefensible to say "good money, helping people" so that's enough -- because disliking your job is a norm. It simply isn't. The dude pumping gas because he's qualified for nothing else can take that position and simply live for the weekend. And that's fine -- he had no options, so he picked the best of his opportunities. But someone with the intelligence and ambition and skillset to go the medicine route isn't similarly situated and should never end up in this situation. A doctor is someone who chose that over many many many other options, whether they looked into them or not. And as such, can never fall back on the "all work sux" position IMHO. You are driving this car, not the other way round.

I agree with you, and that's not really what I was getting at with the rest of my post which you cropped out.

 

[Law2Doc]

I agree with you, and that's not really what I was getting at with the rest of my post which you cropped out.

I know but that one sentence was troubling (and IMHO not helpful to the rest of your post), and commonly pops up in this kind of thread.

But glad you agree.

 

[Guyton Killah]

True. I couldn't think of anything else beside medicine.
My points were so high that, I literally qualified for any course.
But since I was born to be a Dr (it was all planned by HIM) I didn't

 

[TMP-SMX]

At least we'll have a job when we graduate. Minimum wage, but a job nonetheless. Now isn't a time I'd want to go into business even if there were jobs out there.

Hell I've never had a real career job because I went right to medical school but I love studying medicine. But now that I'm at the end of second year I'm sick of streaming lectures but that's fine because I have none left.

I think the biggest point is to not look at medicine as your only reason for being and to have the things that are actually important like family, friends, and living a real life. Many primary care physicians are not happy with their lives because of the unending paperwork and all the inefficient hours they have to go through to process meaningless paperwork just to get their patient on the correct drug. They have to game the system because they want to put their patients needs above their own time because insurance companies are a pain. Some surgeons are not happy because of the hours and lack of free time while others are completely happy because they prefer to work all the time or are just content with what they do.

 

[Hurricane95]

Not necessarily.
Sure some argue that you are blowing away your 20's in school to learn medicine....but I think back to how many of my friends at my same age STILL haven't finished school either (due to laziness, switching majors 10x, etc) and these people are in the same stage in life as me basically. In another year I will have MD behind my name and some of these people will be just getting their batchelor's degree in you-name-it. Some people love to be in school til later because it sort of puts off the responsibilities of adulthood. I'm not condoning it, but heck, im sure everyone here knows at least one person like that.

You do a 3 year residency in something like family medicine which is not too difficult to survive at all making $40k something a year, a similar salary to many college grads in other fields. After that you can work in gen med making at least around $120k per year, which is not too shabby.

I do agree that the saying in question applies perfectly to a surgical career within medicine though. Don't do general surgery unless you find happiness in nothing else...

 

[Slack3r]

All the people in here comparing "real jobs" to the job of a doctor are really comparing apples and oranges. You're comparing entry-level, straight-outta-college "jobs" to a highly trained professional "career". There's a world of difference.

Entry-level jobs all suck. They're entry-level. And what kind of "jobs" are these? Professional career paths or dead-end jobs? I'd still venture there's a world of difference between these low level jobs and a physician's job and you're doing yourself a disservice comparing the two to help ease your doubts about a medical career path.

 

[45408]

However much you may like medicine, if you really can't imagine being happy doing anything else I think you lack imagination.

I would say the opposite. If you have tons of imagination, you would be able to confidently know whether you can't imagine being happy doing anything else. I have a great deal of imagination, and have always been able to picture how my life would turn out had i gone the business or law route. The end was not appealing at all.

I think Bartelby meant to get truly imaginative As a legitimate career, I think medicine is pretty awesome. In terms of things I probably couldn't actually attain, I wouldn't mind racing Ferraris, professional heli-skiing, cave diving, being the lead guitarist in a rock band, etc. I would hate myself if I were in business or law, but the alternatives I suggested sound pretty appealing

 

[tdittyx2x3]

I think Bartelby meant to get truly imaginative As a legitimate career, I think medicine is pretty awesome. In terms of things I probably couldn't actually attain, I wouldn't mind racing Ferraris, professional heli-skiing, cave diving, being the lead guitarist in a rock band, etc. I would hate myself if I were in business or law, but the alternatives I suggested sound pretty appealing

Your post might have been just a joke, but that's actually the predicament I find myself in. See I truly cannot imagine being in another career EXCEPT music. That's the passion, the love. And its just so unattainable. If I ever got a real shot, I would throw my acceptances away no questions asked.

But I figure that the passion for music doesn't have to translate into a profession. After all it hasn't ever been my profession in the past. I know I can't be a doctor and a rock star, but can't I be a doctor and a musician?

 

[Law2Doc]

Your post might have been just a joke, but that's actually the predicament I find myself in. See I truly cannot imagine being in another career EXCEPT music. That's the passion, the love. And its just so unattainable. If I ever got a real shot, I would throw my acceptances away no questions asked.

But I figure that the passion for music doesn't have to translate into a profession. After all it hasn't ever been my profession in the past. I know I can't be a doctor and a rock star, but can't I be a doctor and a musician?

I suspect every med student sees a flurry of emails about gigs some of their classmates are playing each month, so yes some people do squeeze in music with medicine.

However I would suggest that if you worked at a career in music with the same zeal that most people throw themselves into trying to become a doctor, you actually probably could earn a living. I've known numerous folks from high school and college who became full time musicians. They will likely never book up a stadium, but most are earning quite passable livings playing in bars and parties, and selling CDs and T-shirts at their gigs (not to mention being able to hold down a day job to bolster the income when not touring). Probably won't come close to doctor money, but they are doing what they enjoy doing, and are able to pay all their bills and support their families doing it. Not too shabby.

 

[Mr hawkings]

Your post might have been just a joke, but that's actually the predicament I find myself in. See I truly cannot imagine being in another career EXCEPT music. That's the passion, the love. And its just so unattainable. If I ever got a real shot, I would throw my acceptances away no questions asked.
But I figure that the passion for music doesn't have to translate into a profession. After all it hasn't ever been my profession in the past. I know I can't be a doctor and a rock star, but can't I be a doctor and a musician?

If there is something else you would give up your med schol acceptance for, thats pretty deep passion. if thats the case, then why not put more effort into pursuing that (if you havent already) like the above poster said.

The way i read your post is: my real passion is music so whatever proffession i end up in will just be a job i do to make money while i pursue my real passion on the side. If thats the case then out of all your possible options, you've probably picked the one that would least give you the free time to play music. Of course as a physician you will have time to play music but there are other professions that would have given you more time without incurring all the debt you are about to incur.

 

[Knicks]

Not necessarily.
Sure some argue that you are blowing away your 20's in school to learn medicine....but I think back to how many of my friends at my same age STILL haven't finished school either (due to laziness, switching majors 10x, etc) and these people are in the same stage in life as me basically. In another year I will have MD behind my name and some of these people will be just getting their batchelor's degree in you-name-it. Some people love to be in school til later because it sort of puts off the responsibilities of adulthood. I'm not condoning it, but heck, im sure everyone here knows at least one person like that.

You do a 3 year residency in something like family medicine which is not too difficult to survive at all making $40k something a year, a similar salary to many college grads in other fields. After that you can work in gen med making at least around $120k per year, which is not too shabby.

I do agree that the saying in question applies perfectly to a surgical career within medicine though. Don't do general surgery unless you find happiness in nothing else...

 

[Black Surgeon]

Everyone's afraid of their own life. If we could be anything we wanted, we'd still be disappointed.

 

[DocPsychosis]

I'm sure I could be perfectly happy doing any of a dozen different professions. There's no "One" profession for me any more than there is "One" potential love interest out there. It's about figuring out something you like and learning to be happy with your situation; otherwise you'll just idealize everything to death.

 

[thanecyan]

Everyone's afraid of their own life. If we could be anything we wanted, we'd still be disappointed.

 

[Law2Doc]

I'm sure I could be perfectly happy doing any of a dozen different professions. There's no "One" profession for me any more than there is "One" potential love interest out there. It's about figuring out something you like and learning to be happy with your situation; otherwise you'll just idealize everything to death.

While you may be happy in a number of career paths, there will always be one that's the "best" fit for you. Saying they are all equally adequate is kind of a cop out and allows you to justify being lazy in your decision making. Take it from someone who is making a change from something they weren't "unhappy" in to something that fits better -- it makes a difference. Maybe not day to day, and maybe not to the point that you are miserable, but over time it matters. And it's not about idealizing everything to death. It's about finding something that maximizes your enjoyment for the next 40 years or so. Which is a really long time. So saying a lot of options are fine is no better than saying all jobs blow. If you are smart enough to go down this path you have or had, multiple choices. You don't get to fall back on inertia, you have the ability to change things if they aren't sitting flush. Just my two cents.

 

[DocPsychosis]

While you may be happy in a number of career paths, there will always be one that's the "best" fit for you. Saying they are all equally adequate is kind of a cop out and allows you to justify being lazy in your decision making. Take it from someone who is making a change from something they weren't "unhappy" in to something that fits better -- it makes a difference. Maybe not day to day, and maybe not to the point that you are miserable, but over time it matters. And it's not about idealizing everything to death. It's about finding something that maximizes your enjoyment for the next 40 years or so. Which is a really long time. So saying a lot of options are fine is no better than saying all jobs blow. If you are smart enough to go down this path you have or had, multiple choices. You don't get to fall back on inertia, you have the ability to change things if they aren't sitting flush. Just my two cents.

I have no way of knowing how much I'll like living as such-and-such a professional until I've lived it for at least, say, five years. Since I'd like to pick a final destination before age 70, I've narrowed it down to one I think will be the most enjoyable and satisfying overall, i.e. medicine. But to say that if I want to be a good doctor I shouldn't be able to imagine doing anything else, or that the time and effort requirements in training mean I need to have tunnel vision about my choices, is unrealistic. I'm not suggesting that all my career options are equal, but rather that I have picked the one that I hope is the best; and even though another would likely theoretically be just as good or better due to sheer mass of options, it's useless to worry about finding the "perfect fit".

 

[Trismegistus4]

Thanks for admitting that. I think the majority miserable medical students have had absolutely no real experience in the real world. They don't know what it's like to work 80 hours a week in the corporate world, and then get laid off and end up with nothing. They don't know what it's like to be on the bottom of that so-called totem pole every day of their life for the rest of their careers!

I know n=1 and all, but I'm a 32 year old who left a previous career, and I agree with the quote in the OP. Yes, my corporate job sucked and I hated it, but that doesn't mean I had to go into medidcine. I do have other dreams and aspirations, and could have, if nothing else, just taken an easier day job while trying to break into something more enjoyable.

The only job that probably comes close in my mind would be being the head of IT somewhere (cushy job and you get all the latest tech toys), but that's mostly because I'm a huge computer geek.

I worked in IT before. It's not very cushy. You're held to tight deadlines, and have to do a lot of project planning, meeting with users, writing requirements documents, and lots of other "businessy" work, and don't get to do much of the fun, hands-on techy stuff yourself (that gets outsourced to India.)