Be grateful.
Anytime you dare share how you’re really feeling, chances are that someone will tell you to just be grateful.
Don’t you know how many people would kill to be where you are…?
A variation of the “starving kids in Africa” argument that some parents use to guilt their kids into eating their supper.
But the problem is that when they tell you to “be grateful”, what they’re saying is “stop complaining”…and also “how you feel doesn’t really matter”.
How you feel does matter. And ignoring how you feel is an extremely dangerous thing.
However, the first step on your journey to a life of freedom and fulfilment…is to be grateful.
As in, to exercise your gratitude muscle.
Remember, this is in the context of dropping out of medical school and doing something about how miserable life feels right now.
But realise that as suicidal as you may feel…you’re still alive and able to do something about your situation.
You’re breathing. Your heart is pumping 5 litres of blood around your body every single minute. You have access to an Internet connection. You can read. You were born into the Connection economy. You have a device in your pocket that gives you access to over 2 billion people around the planet. You can watch Randy Pausch’s last lecture, What does the Fox say, or Uptown Funk anytime you want.
Now none of this is about diminishing the negative emotions you’re feeling right now.
But this is about hitting the reset button to place all the negative things you’re experiencing in the right perspective of all the positive things that you’re not acknowledging.
Gratitude isn’t a sedative to numb the pain and get you to stop complaining.
Instead, Gratitude is the rocket fuel that you’ll need for pursuing your dreams and desires.
So before we go any further, take a breath…and say thank you out loud for something you’re grateful for.
And if nothing else, be grateful that you’re on the verge of successfully dropping out of medical school to live the life you’ve always imagined.
This is a taster from Escape Velocity: a personalised email course that guides medics step-by-step in how to successfully make the transition from being stuck in medical school…to living a life of happiness, freedom and fulfilment. Admission is by invitation-only. Click here to apply for your FREE invite.