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 still available. 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. If you liked the video, make sure you press
that thumbs up button, and if you’re not a fan, let me know with a thumbs down. New videos every week, so make sure you’re
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