Friday's Digest - The Newsletter for Doctors & Scientists

Friday's Digest #30

Internal Motivation and Failure

At 14, I was devastated because I wasn't accepted into my first high school choice.

All I cared about was what others would think of me. Nowadays, I publish my failure stories on six online platforms.

What has changed?

March 17th, 2023

Friday's Digest - The Newsletter for Doctors & Scientists

For two decades, I've been developing tools that have improved my practice in medicine, dentistry, and scientific research.

Join me every Friday to discover a new tool you can integrate into your workflow as a doctor, a scientist, or both.

I believe in sharing knowledge, embracing automation, boosting productivity, and finding joy in the process.

Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash

Special announcement:

You can now listen to my newsletter!

It took me 20 hours to introduce this feature, and with the new baby and the fellowship, I had to do it instead of sleeping. As a starting point, I'm happy with the result.

Many of you requested an audio version to listen to while driving and in the gym. Feel free to send me feedback so I can continue to improve this feature.

As always, I will share the process I underwent while upgrading the newsletter to include an audio version. I've used AI (artificial intelligence) voices and learned a lot along the way.

However, it's 3:00 am the night before Friday, and I hardly slept on Thursday as well.

I'm so tired, so I hope I didn't write something stupid in today's newsletter. If I did, please forgive this tired writer.

Anyway, to listen, all you have to do is to click this link 👇

Listen to Fridays Digest #30.mp3

You can listen to it directly on this link, or download it to your phone or computer. In case it doesn't open, I recommend installing VLC by clicking here .

Happy listening!!

Now, to the newsletter:

Preface
Main Article
OMFS World
Stuff (App, Gear)

“If you can dream it, you can do it.”
— Walt Disney

Preface

Tax season is here!

It's fun as it sounds.

Even less.

🇮🇱 Back home, I've been filing a yearly tax report only after establishing my private practice. Until then, taxes were taken off my paycheck, and I didn't have to worry about it.

🇺🇸 But in the US, everyone must submit a yearly tax report. There's a federal tax and a state tax, each requires a separate tax report.

So I sat down, and after about 5 hours, I was done.

Or at least I thought I was done.

Then I found out that I need to submit a separate form for each family member (including my kids). 👨‍👩‍👦‍👦

And then, I had to file another report because I'm a visitor to the US.

So 8 hours later, I was done.

I submitted the federal tax report online, but all the others had to be mailed 📫. Yup. The old-fashioned envelope-and-stamp ✉️.

Although I did everything by the book, there's something dreadful about mailing a bunch of papers 😳. Fingers crossed. 🤞

Today we will discuss internal motivation and how to use it to deal with failures. When I was younger, I always looked for validation from my environment (external motivation). Over the years, my focus point changed, and today I'm driven solely by internal motivation. What does that mean, and how can it help you when you fail?

Look no further!

Issue #30 has got you covered

Main Article

Storytime!

👦 At 14, I applied to 3 high schools.

My first choice was the high school that both of my sisters graduated from. The second and third schools on my list were also considered excellent, but only because that's what other people said. I hadn't checked them out and didn't know what they were like.

🏃‍♂️ I went to my first interview.

🤕 I got rejected.

❓ It probably had something to do with my answer to the question, “how much time do you devote to your homework daily?”

My answer was 45 minutes. In reality, it was actually closer to 20 minutes, but I thought 45 minutes sounded better.

🍼 So naive.

They obviously didn't like me.

I remember coming home, and my sister breaking the news for me.

I was devastated.

So far, it sounds like any other rejection story, right?

Well, it is.

🤔 But the reason I'm telling this story is for what went through my mind:

I wasn't devastated because I lost an opportunity to attend a great school. I didn't even know what this school was really like. I was devastated because, in the eyes of others, I was the one who wasn't accepted. A failure.

🫵 In short, my motivation was entirely driven by what others will think.

It's called EXTERNAL motivation.

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
—Thomas A. Edison

Fast forward.

📝At 40, I decided to take the United States Medical License Exam (USMLE step 1).

I set myself up for failure. Medical students have two years to study for it, and I tried to do it in 2 months.

My practice tests demonstrated the gruesome reality. 37% became my most common grade. 🤦‍♂️

😫 imagine my self-esteem and confidence when I saw that number over and over again on the screen. I studied and failed. Failed and studied. Over and over again, day in and day out.

At first, I was devastated.

Not because of what others will think of me. I couldn't care less about that.

I was devastated because I didn't meet my own expectations. I was disappointed in myself.

🏋️‍♀️But then, something started to change. These failures started to harden me. I began to see 37% as an opportunity to learn 63% new things. That was my internal motivation.

Then I took the actual test. AND FAILED.

🚣Nonetheless, it was my greatest hour. My most significant intellectual challenge, and I stuck through it. I ended up repeating the test a few months later and passed it. I can hardly remember the joy after passing my second try, nor do I relate to it as a meaningful experience. But I vividly remember my walk to the car after failing it, with my head held high, proud.

“When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.”
— Franklin D. Roosevelt

Let's summarize:

At 14, I was devastated because I wasn't accepted into my first high school choice. All I cared about was what others would think of me. I hoped I could hide it and that no one would ever find out.

At 40, I was devastated because I didn't meet my own expectations. I had no problem telling others I failed. On the contrary, I published it on six different online platforms (just Google “shay sharon fail” and see how popular my failure is 😄).

⚖️The difference between 14-year-old Shay and 40-year-old Shay is the nature of the motivation.

At 14, I was driven by external motivation.

At 40, I was driven by internal motivation.

So Internal motivation is the driving force that comes from within oneself, rather than external rewards or pressure.

Now that we understand internal motivation, let's discuss why it matters and how you can implement it into your daily life.

Why internal motivation matters:

You will more likely persist in the face of obstacles.
You will enjoy the journey to your destination.
You will be less worried about what others think.
You will get used to embracing failure and growth.

So how can you implement internal motivation into your day-to-day life?

🔵 Set personal goals.

Your goal may be easily achieved or “impossible”. You may fail repeatedly, and you may never achieve it. Whatever your goal may be, it should come from within YOURSELF, align with YOUR values, and serve YOUR fulfillment.

But without goals, there's no journey.

🔵 When you fail, get back on the horse IMMEDIATELY.

If you wait, your failure becomes a huge monster 👹, an external entity to fear 😨. However, treating your failure as a temporary setback will become a stepping stone in your journey, driven by internal motivation.

🔵 When you fail, tell your story.

Sharing your failure with others allows you to learn and draw conclusions. However, If you hide your failures, other people's opinions will cloud your mind. This is why I prefer internal motivation, driven by the desire to learn from past failures and grow from them.

OMFS World

🥼For the OMFS resident - every OMFS resident should know the basics of an ECG (" EKG”). Here are some of the most important ones:

QRS Complex

This complex represents the electrical activity that causes the ventricles of the heart to contract. The QRS complex duration should be less than 0.12 seconds.

P Wave

This represents the electrical activity that causes the atria of the heart to contract. The P wave should be upright and smooth, lasting less than 0.12 seconds. A P wave should precede every QRS. The p wave will be missing in atrial fibrillation. The interval between the P-eave and the R-wave should be 0.12-0.2 seconds.

ST Segment

The ST segment is the portion of the EKG that represents the time between the end of the QRS complex and the beginning of the T wave. The ST segment should be flat and at the same level as the baseline (generally, no more than 1 mm). An elevated or depressed ST segment may indicate a heart attack or ischemia.

T Waves

The T wave represents the electrical activity that occurs when the ventricles of the heart recover from the contraction caused by the QRS complex. The T wave should be upright and smooth. An inverted T wave may indicate a heart attack or ischemia.

Stuff

📱Application I use - ConvertKit for my newsletter and online courses. I started my newsletter on Revue, but then they were shut down by Twitter, and I had to migrate. ConvertKit is a very powerful tool, and I recently started to use it for my email courses. You can use it to charge money for your services if you're interested.

I like to keep my newsletter and online courses free, so I don't use this feature.

💡Gear I use - Doona Infant Car Seat. Special thanks to Super Grandma (my mother-in-law), who introduced us to this wonderful tool. Moving a newborn around can be highly challenging. This stroller-car seat makes it much more manageable.

Epilogue

That’s it for this issue.

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Have a great weekend!

Shay

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