Hello Aspiring Physicians!
Happy New Year!
I hope you have enjoyed the content of the other posts. But most importantly I hope that it is helped you on your journey. I wanted to take a step back and help you find a mentor. Not only any mentor but a mentor or mentors that you can depend on to provide you with guidance, advice, support, encouragement, networking and ultimately success. And nobody said that you need to have just one mentor – that’s absurd. I have had at least 8-10 mentors in my life for different stages of my life.
I have been lucky to have had great mentors in my life. I have always wanted to become a doctor since I was a little but there was a time when doubt set in. I was a couple of years out of college and the route to becoming a doctor seemed so long and daunting given the extra work that I had to put in just to get into medical school. I had convinced myself to go a different route still within the medical field because it was going to take shorter time and I just thought I was too old to go through 10-15 years training at the age of 25. Thankfully I had a mentor who “knew” me. He knew that in the end I would be unhappy and not fulfilled. He knew my dreams to become a doctor and he sat me down and he gave me his honest opinion and thought that I would not see my potential if I took the other direction. And to this day I am so grateful that he steered me to going to medical school. And that’s what a mentor should do for you. He/She should be honest and understand what your dreams are and help you get there.
As I stated above, I have had great mentors in my life but I also have had individuals you have doubted me, belittled me, lied to me, scolded me for whatever reason. It’s hard to forget those moments because they also shape you but it is important to forgive those individuals. And you too will have doubters, haters, etc. This is where I say you must have “tunnel” vision. Meaning you need to keep your eyes on the prize – your dreams.
But how do you find the right mentor for you. Sometimes they just walk through the door and other times you need to seek them out. My suggestions if you have to seek a mentor out is find someone who maybe has a similar personality or drive that you have. The hard part is everyone is busy nowadays. But there are physicians who want to help and willing to take time away from their careers and families to help you succeed. So if I were to give you a list of characteristics for a mentor they would be: honesty, humility, kindness and a good communicator. They should support you, guide you, encourage you but still challenge you to be your best. That’s a lot but those mentors are out there.
In the meantime, if you can’t find a mentor near you then I am happy to help.
Here’s to a great 2021! As always study hard and keep grinding.
Sincerely,
Your Med Mentor
