Generalizations

I don't like generalizations, but some of us were talking at lunch today about common features on medical students here. We arrived at some conclusions that are fascinating to me although I realize not universal.  Eating tends to fuel such discussions. So what did the lunch brain trust decide?

We seek affirmation in our work and others around us. We are go getters, and have very high standards for ourselves and others around us. We sometimes fail to meet our own expectations, and then often beat ourselves up for that. We are assumed to be confident by those around us, until we break. Mostly people think us self-confident and sometimes even cocky. We know that our self esteem is not as strong as they think though.

We tend to bite off more than we can chew in life. We have a general inability to hold steady overall satisfaction as the quest for external approval and accomplishment continues.  Our feelings often tank when things go poorly or soar when success is in our grasp.  At some point though, acceptance is the clear goal and we are proven eventually to be good enough...there is nothing to prove, except that we have the tenacity and heart to do this work with morality, care, and the attention it deserves.