Tick Tock!
Dr Ninada KC
MO, Namma Clinic
DHFW, Karnataka
*If you’re here for the motivational talks and tips, this article is NOT that!*
What is time if not a trove of memories and apprehensions, what is time if not a voyage from dissection to the Hippocrates oath!
I want to say that it feels like yesterday when I received my allotment and rushed to buy my first apron, but I also remember the painstaking wait between a disastrous viva session and THE four lettered, green colored word on my result portal.
Medical education has become a hustle between college, coaching institutes and sessional exams. In this rat race between one entrance exam to the next, we lose sight of the beauties that lay in plain sight. It’s not in our capacity to manipulate time, the best we can do is manage it. There! I’ve touched upon the mystery duo. “Time Management”! I believe that time is a very relative thing- Indirectly proportional to how happy you are with the task at hand.
As medical students, one thing we are always short of is time! Months ahead of my entrance exam, when I’m absolutely at a loss for time, I look back, a soft regret “these are things that I should have consolidated in my foundation years”. This regret, I’m pretty sure, is something we all carry. The “what could have been”s of life.
As vital as productivity and utility is, so is it to goof around, to share those silly giggles, to slack off a bit. But we need to know when to let the Adrenaline take over and run the last mile with fuelled stamina.
It does often feel like you’re running out of time. But hey, it’s one step at a time! I believe that planning is the key! Make extensive plans, long term, short term, immediate ones. It’s okay when they don’t work, it’s totally okay when they absolutely fail. But planning is the first step towards your goal! When you have plans, you have a framework to refer to. When you have a plan, you also have the motivation.
Aim for the moon if you miss, you may hit a star! However, make sure your moon is something you can at least visualize, for an unrealistic plan is a recipe for frustration and non-compliance (been there, done that)!
Keep slots for all your pleasures and guilty pleasures, for trust me, there is enough time! Your mind will find a way to accommodate all that you enjoy. I say this with awe and admiration, that things will eventually fall in place, in ways you didn’t quite expect!
Until then,
Tick tock goes the clock
Fasten your hull onto the dock,
Blink and you’ll miss your chance
But when the lights flood and bells chime
‘Tis to the song of time
That we all clap and dance!
Image source: Google
