I met a lot of cutthroat competitive people along the way as a pre-med, and I have a generally friendly, chill disposition. It didn't always fit in well amongst those types. (I'm some kind of NF. Maybe INFJ. Maybe ENFP. It's unclear.) You guys are right, though. I'm glad I'm aware of it but it shouldn't stop me.
yeah this attitude, can be found among
some people who start with med school and want to excel immediately, but this can actually backfire.
it is a marathon, not a sprint, energies should be spent wisely, and a step by step approach is the more benevolent option for any starter, i mean the mass of material is overwhelming at the beginning and it should be priority #1 to get a good basic knowledge to work on from that.
i remember a girl during our first oral test, she volunteered to be tested first, gotting asked if she wanted the difficult or the easy version,
she wanted the difficult, she didn't pass that test, and i never understood when given the choice between the version that would increase her chance to pass that test, she took the option that would decrease her chance, i think whatever reason motivated her in doing so it was not a very logic one
i think this attitude will actually wash out with time, because you have to realize that it's just not working this way, i mean who do you want to impress anyway?
I've met quite a few people who've intimidated me as well. Some people I know are attending school full-time in the summer and somehow manage to hold down jobs and get volunteer hours. These people are insane, chronic over-achievers and whenever I talk to them, I just feel like I'll never make it anywhere. I just finished my freshman year and I don't even have any sort of volunteer experience yet.
i can understand when people need to take a job if their parents don't have enough money to support them, and they don't receive any financial support from state, but if i got it right these people you are talking about are doing it as some kind of extra, thinking it will give them some advantage, well i'm sceptical of this, we'll see where it leads them
for me any free time, which is more the exception than the rule, would be wisely invested in regaining energy by taking some time of from studies and doing some activities that don't have anything to do with learning or medicine (sport, art, anything you like)
to balance things out i cannot stress this enough