STOP and THINK!

After attending an inspiring talk today, it got me sit down and ponder: WHO  and WHAT I want to be. And there are these two unsolved questions:


Question 1: How to be outstanding?

Every year, there are hundreds of student applying for and graduating from medical schools, causing an over-flooding of house-officers/doctors in Malaysia, and consequently, only 10% of those who completed compulsory service will be selected for post-graduate training.

10%. What makes me the top 10%?

"Start building your CV while you are a medical student."

HOW?



Question 2: Family or Career?

Getting a balance between family and career is always tough for a doctor, especially for a woman. I can't be sure of which specialty I will get into in the future, but I am not the person who just sits in the clinic from 9am to 5pm everyday, seeing patients with fever and cough. I want something more challenging, I want something which can give me greater satisfaction.

"You don't call yourself a specialist if you have worked for less than 10 years."

Numbers pop in again, and I start calculating: 22+3.5+2+3+ x = ? 

So, When to start a family?

Even if I am already a specialist, I still wake up in the middle of night and rush to the hospital, and have on-call (depends on which specialty I am in of course).

Nothing is impossible, and many female specialists/consultants have proved that it is achievable. But I think it's all about OPPORTUNITY. Do I have this opportunity?



Just to share a few words from the speakers:

"You don't need to go to Africa to do volunteering work; many people in Malaysia need you. Go to Sabah and Sarawak."


"I do complain, but I love my job very much. You have to love what you do, and enjoy what you do. If one day you find out that medical career is not suitable for you, don't be afraid to QUIT. You can do many other things with your medical degree/knowledge."


"Remember '3C's': Character, Competence, Communication."