WIC Career Tips: Follow Your Passion; Find Your Voice; Learn to Say No

October 14, 2021   |  Toral Patel, MD, FACC

Career Development

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Toral Patel, MD
  1. Follow your passion. Stay curious during your training while you identify a subpopulation or procedure that you truly enjoy, whether it's ambulatory management, critical cardiac care, interventional, imaging, or another subspecialty. Once identified, continue to look for a network of local and national mentors whose careers, lives and achievements inspire you and can provide more insight and opportunities to further your professional growth.
  2. Find your voice. Get involved with your local ACC Chapter, network at the Annual Scientific Session, and/or volunteer within a Member Section. For some, that may be contributing to social media or writing articles. For others, it may be advocacy work or a seat at the table writing for task forces. Regardless of the venue or stage of your career, empower yourself and know that your voice matters too.
  3. Learn to say no. Your time and energy are valuable. There are and will be competing priorities in our lives and careers that we need to constantly rearrange. Don't be apologetic for what is a priority for you. Work-life balance is a work in progress as we continue to meet our family and career goals.
  4. Identify your challenges and how you can grow. For example, imposter syndrome. Believe in yourself, work on your self-confidence and continue to hold steady with your passion.
  5. Invest in self-care. Spend some personal time set aside every day to do what makes you happy and helps you live a more fulfilling life. This will look different for everyone and is a great way to reset mentally, emotionally and physically.
Toral Patel, MD

This article was authored by Toral Patel, MD.





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