Eric Tian

Over this year, I’ve realised that most medical students don’t read books.

When I ask why, the most common answer is I don’t have time. Instead, their time is spent doing other things like working, watching lectures or exercising.

What’s the common denominator between these other activities? They are productive. Let me explain.

Productivity, in its most basic form, is more output per given input. If factory A produces five boxes per hour and factory B produces fifty per hour, factory B is more productive than A. There is more output (=boxes) per hour of input (=work).

Working, watching lectures and exercising are productive exercises. They all have a product, such as money, good grades, or better health, and this improves with time. The more you work, the more you’ll eventually get paid. The more you study, the better grades you’ll get. The more you exercise, the better health you’ll achieve.

Importantly, these parameters are measurable. Systems are in place to track how these parameters change with time.

Reading, or art generally speaking, is the complete opposite.

What happens when you read a book?

Nothing.

You have nothing measurable to show that you have improved as a person. If a spy watched you through secret cameras, they couldn’t see anything tangible happen to you at all. They would see you pick up a book, flip some pages, then put it down when you’re finished.

Art is not productive. There are no outcomes that can be measured; no way to track productivity. You look the same, your social standing is the same and your net worth hasn’t changed. And since we live in a hyper-efficient society,, art is largely forgotten.

But art, dear reader, is still seriously important. It teaches us to feel, think and imagine. It reveals grand, spectacular worlds to us – ones better than our own. It teaches us that we are not alone. It paints our world with colour.

Just because it is not productive, does not mean it is useless. Art is a most priceless gift.

My favourite phrase in a conversation is, “but at the same time…”.

It shows that the speaker is able to hold multiple views simultaneously, which is something terribly difficult to do. We love to ensure our beliefs are as strong and correct as possible. Holding an opposing view can disrupt this goal.

But holding conflicting opinions is so important.

Holding one opinion is easy. The internet and world feeds opinions to us every day. You need to buy this. These books are great. Believe our political views. A parrot can absorb these ideas and regurgitate them.

To hold multiple views at the same time shows critical thought, openness and creativity. It also makes for a much more interesting conversation, as debates get longer and deeper, more windy and complex. The insight of having your belief shaken is difficult, but liberating.

“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” – Scott F. Fitzgerald

I finished my exams today. It felt great, having studied consistently for half a year now, but afterwards a part of me asked what now?

When you focus so much energy on something, it does some interesting things. It might bring stress and anxiety, sure, but it also gives provides guidance and a mission. The worst parts of a journey beat not having it at all.

When it’s over, it’s easy to feel lost. Empty.

From The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows:

etterath

the feeling of emptiness after a long and arduous pro- cess is finally complete—having finished school, recovered from surgery, or gone home at the end of your wedding— which leaves you relieved that it’s over but missing the stress that organized your life into a mission.

The teacher’s primary goal is not to teach. That is done far better by libraries and the internet.

Instead, the teacher’s primary goal is to:

1. Instil a deep curiosity for learning in the student’s mind.

2. Convince the student of their limitless potential.

3. Reassure the student of #2. even when – especially when – things seem the contrary.

The best teachers I’ve had were rarely the most knowledgeable. Instead, they were patient, enthusiastic and possessed a belief in my ability that far surpassed my own.

And now, as a tutor, the most important part of my lessons is never explaining a concept. It’s to let the student know that they are far more intelligent and capable than they imagine.

It is a precious gift to give.

Name a book. What’s the first one that comes to mind?

If you’re into classics, it might be War and Peace, The Little Prince, or The Catcher in the Rye.

If you’re into non-fiction, it might be Atomic Habits, Sapiens, or How to Win Friends and Influence People.

If you’re into fantasy, it might be Harry Potter, The Hobbit, or The Hunger Games.

You probably didn’t think of a memoir. They’re just not that popular. And for a long time, I didn’t read any simply because nobody talked about them.

But recently, I’ve discovered the potential of memoirs. And now I’m addicted.

The short reason is this: reading another’s life helps shape our own. When we read childhood trauma, we inherit part of that trauma. When we read the struggles of alcoholism, we inherit those struggles as well. When we follow someone’s life, their story gradually moulds into ours.

This statement might be too much, one might argue. One’s lived experience outweighs a second hand recount. But I disagree.

The purpose of a memoir is to give others the gift of a story. It’s to offer them your childhood, your struggles, your hopes, your desires, with the goal that others may inherit some of these for themselves. What a beautiful achievement – sharing a part of oneself with others.

Nowadays, most of the audiobooks I listen to are memoirs. It’s amazing how another person’s crazy story immediately improves yours as well.

In September last year, I was on a Zoom call with a student. I had been coaching him on the GAMSAT (the medical school entrance exam) and it was our last session before his sitting.

“Before we finish,” I added, aware we had run overtime, “I just wanted to say that you should believe in yourself. You know more than you think and are more capable than you imagine. You can do this.” I smiled, trying to look as genuine as possible. He smiled back, said thanks and the call ended.

After his exam, I didn’t hear from him for over a year. I had no idea how he went, or where he was now. I assumed he didn’t do as well as he hoped and was reluctant to let me know.

To my surprise, he reached out to me last month.

Firstly, he did well in the GAMSAT and was due to sit medical school interviews very soon. I was glad to hear of his success and the small role I had to play in it.

But more importantly, he revealed his struggles outside of tutoring. How for most of his life, he felt worthless at school, was belittled by his parents and often struggled with depression. He was dealing with all this during our Zoom calls together.

I was blown away. I remembered him as a clever, studious student with a witty sense of humour. He always presented himself neatly and never arrived late. A part of me doubted this was the same person.

Then he told me that the last thing I said to him was the first time he had ever been affirmed. That the idea that somebody believed in him meant a lot – more than any amount of tutoring could’ve ever achieved. His self esteem was now at an all time high, and wanted to thank me for my encouragement.

I had never thought much about my final message – it was something I told all my students before their exam. It was a small act of kindness and effortless to say. But it helped change my friend’s life around.

The fun thing about words is we never know how they will be received. Abundant praise may do nothing for a person, yet a tiny piece of encouragement may turn another’s life around (this is also true for destructive language). What we hope one understands is rarely what one interprets.

Many people wonder how they can do good in the world. Here’s one suggestion. Default to small acts of kindness whenever and wherever you can. It doesn’t matter how small you perceive them to be. You never know what good might turn out.

From Several Short Sentences about Writing:

“One purpose of writing – its central purpose – is to offer your testimony
About the character of existence at this moment.
It will be part of your job to say how things are,
To attest to life as it is.
This will feel strange at first.
You’ll wonder whether you’re allowed to say things that sound
Not merely observant but true,
And not only true in carefully framed, limited circumstances,
But true for all of us and, perhaps, for all time.”

I have a theory that all books are testimonial. Memoirs and biographies do this in obvious ways. But even in fiction, a story reveals the author’s own universe – with its assumptions and secrets – to us.

The power we hold as readers is whether to experience this testimony for ourselves.

The week before an exam is the most productive I am all semester.

I tap into energy reserves, discipline and learn faster than I thought I ever could. I muster the ability to watch ten lectures a day, when I previously struggled with six a week.

Just as runners set personal bests at big races, the pressure to achieve something great pushes us to new limits.

Perhaps the key to consistent improvement is to always be under some artificial pressure; to have a deadline looming over you, urging you to action. Without these tests, one would always be performing less than they could.

But at what cost?

The familiarity heuristic is when the familiar is favoured over novel places, people or things. This happens everywhere.

We buy brands we have experience with. We hang around people we know. We visit websites that are familiar. The familiar is safe, and safe is good. But not always.

Occasionally, it’s good to venture out into the unknown and dive into the rabbit hole. There, we find things that stretch our worldview – that make us wiser.

Books do this. 1984 is a warning of totalitarianism and was considered barbaric at its time of writing. To Kill a Mockingbird examines racism and injustice in America and is frequently banned. The Little Prince reminds us to be children in a world dominated by adults.

These texts make our world bigger. They grab the edges of our world and stretch them ever so slightly, until we can see further than before.

Do not underestimate the power of stories to change lives.

Most of my best memories caught me completely off-guard.

Life-changing books began with zero recommendations.

Rewarding relationships began with chance encounters.

Memorable meals began on wild gambles.

The fact that these events took place when I wasn’t looking for them made it all the more special.

The fewer expectations you have, the more surprises can take your breath away.