6 Ways To Avoid Temptation To Go Out In Med School

By Madison White on May 18, 2016

This article is brought to you by Kaplan, the leader in test prep for over 90 standardized tests, including the GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT.

While going out may seem like your only release from the trials of the daily med school life, such tendencies can take a toll on your own health and success. Much of curving the temptation to go out lies in finding the motivation within your med school career to push forward and make the proper decisions for your future.

As a med student, many things won’t be easy for you, but this doesn’t mean that finding the motivation to work and study hard can’t be found.

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Here are six ways to avoid temptation to go out in med school.

1. Find the connections.

For many medical students in residency, many find trouble motivating themselves because they know what they want to specialize in and they aren’t currently doing much in that particular field. This can lead to a lack of motivation and for the commonly heard phrase “when will we ever need this?” to pop up often.

However, everything you do in the medical field is interconnected. Even if you aren’t doing your specialty, there’s a good chance you’re using similar equipment, knowledge, and judgement that you would in your specialty. Many learned traits can be transferred over after your residency.

2. Funnel your energy into a small hobby.

Because so much of your life becomes involved in medical school, try and channel your downtime into something small, but meaningful. You may be tempted to go out, but let’s be honest, that’s not going to improve your life in any form.

Instead, try adopting something like learning to cook, running, or even just getting into reading a genre of novels. Picking something that makes you feel like you’re furthering yourself will help you find the motivation to keep furthering yourself in med school.

3. Don’t forget how far you’ve come.

Just to get into med school, you’ve gone through numerous tests, classes, and hours of dedicating your life to medicine. You may be edging toward the finish line, but this in no way means your life of immersing yourself in medicine is over.

When you feel like it might be, or that your effort is no longer needed, remember how far you’ve already come. You’re one of the few that set out for med school, worked very hard, and made it. Throwing all those years away for trivial things is nowhere near worth your time and effort.

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4. Help people.

When you choose going out instead of other more productive things, you’re going against the very idea that started it all: helping people. Instead of channeling your extra time into foolish and short-term benefits for yourself, try and channel your energy into other people. It can be in the office or out of it.

Don’t forget the other med students around you that are going through the exact same thing. By sharing your studies, research, and experiences, everyone will learn new things they wouldn’t have come across otherwise. You’re strengthening your knowledge as well as your bonds with the people around you.

5. Sharing with others.

Because med school can be tiring and taxing, both emotionally and physically, you may want to do something to forget all about it in your downtime. While it’s never good to dwell on things that bring you down, freeing those emotions can be done in a much better way. Try sharing your experiences with other people that don’t mind hearing about them like a significant other or your fellow peers.

Perhaps you could even start a blog detailing the facts and facets of daily life as a med student. By venting out all the experiential matter routinely from your brain, you’ll be able to charge forward and accept new challenges.

6. Find that fire.

Likewise, just to be in med school means your motivation can’t be lacking too terribly. At some point over the past few years you’ve had a fire in your belly that has carried you through such tough times. Try and remember what it was that inspired you to get this far. Maybe it’s family or personal experience, maybe it’s just plain old dedication to helping others, but whatever it is, find it again. Once you’ve remembered your purpose, that fire will flare up again and your will to finish med school strongly will return once more.

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Hopefully this list has helped you remember how important each decision you’ve made and will make are to your success in med school. Finding and keeping motivation is never easy, but doesn’t have to be impossible. If your mind and your heart have led you to med school, don’t stop listening to them now.

The push and the drive to avoid reckless temptations has always been inside you and you’ve likely fought it for some time. You may be nearing the end of your schooling, but staying focused and reassured of your goals remains crucial to your future.

Learn more about Kaplan’s test prep options and start building the confidence you need for Test Day.

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