Sometimes I wish that my childhood was filled with more academic failures. I’m not trying to sound arrogant or anything. Medical school, I have found, is one of the most humbling experiences one can go through. At this point, I don’t think I’m a genius at all. But, I suppose one could say that life is one long, humbling experience as well.
Occasionally I’ve been asked, “Are you smart?” The question doesn’t really make any sense to me, and I don’t know why people ask it. It’s probably a question better suited to sort out the arrogant from the humble. But what has become my customary reply to this question is, “I used to believe I was smart. And then I started Kindergarten.”
It is no secret that the majority of medical students performed very well during elementary and/or high school. (For traditional students, college is pretty much a given because college performance plays a large role in medical school acceptance.) And this is a very good thing. But because of past performance, there is an added pressure to continue to do well.
The bright students in elementary school are expected to do well in high school. Brilliant high schoolers are expected to make it into good colleges/universities where they will choose from among the toughest fields of study so that they can accomplish great things.
What kind of great things? How about significantly contributing to society? Or changing the world?
Talk about pressure…
And so, sometimes I wish…
