Commitment

During my postbacc, I had a friend named Charlie. He inspired me for many reasons, and most of all for his motto: Self-Discipline, Integrity, Courage, Kindness. (I of course noted that the acronym was "SICK." Clever that doctors should aspire to be "sick.") For the past three years, I have been working on the self-discipline part.

In a series of random twists of internet fate (where you read about a site you're unfamiliar with and then you see five references to it the next day, kind of like when you learned a new vocabulary word in high school, i.e. awareness breeds familiarity), I discovered Zen Habits. It's a website started by a blogger in Guam, who successfully turned his life around in ways few of us ever can. Most days he posts inspirational messages on self-improvement, like "12 reasons to exercise today," or "37 ways to wake up early." One theme he continuously returns to is, if you want to change yourself, commit in writing and in public. My state of mind as I head into the Boards is not anxious or stressed, simply worried. I worry about my ability to concentrate long enough to learn the material.

So here goes, I'm committing in writing and in public:

* I resolve to wake up as close to 7 AM as possible.
* I resolve to study to the maximum amount I am able that day. Sometimes that will be 4 hours, and sometimes that will be nine. But I will limit distraction by studying outside of my apartment.
* I will take my asthma meds twice a day.
* I will walk at the gym for thirty minutes several times a week.

Zen Habits also warns against resolving to do too many things. So I'll stop there. Wish me luck.