In 2009, I was drowning in $300K+ med school debt…

How was I supposed to dig myself out of this hole?

Do I go for money or passion when choosing a specialty?

This is a question I get every once in a while from stressed out med students…

I can’t make this decision for you, but I can share my own experiences in how I came to make this decision for myself.

Back in 2009… I was in the hole for around $300,000USD

This level of debt was a constant stressor for me…

I knew from speaking with a few attending docs that I’d most likely be paying this off well into my 50’s…

Before social media was a career path and before AI was available to leverage your time, there was no reasonable ‘out’ in my mind!

My only option was to apply to & get into a super-competitive specialty so I could make $500K+ per year and clear myself of the debt ASAP!

So that’s what I did…

I applied to the highest-paying (and most competitive) specialties out there…

Crickets!

No interviews for ENT… No interviews for Dermatology…

No surprise… I hadn’t prepared for any of these specialties… I wouldn’t have interviewed me either.

My fallback option was to follow my passion and go into Psych.

The following year, after re-evaluating my life decisions, I applied to Psych.

In that year’s break, I had to make money to start paying off my debts.

I wrote a couple eBook study guides… Made a little bit of cash…

Started tutoring for Step 1 via Skype… Made quite a bit more…

Packaged my services and sold them on autopilot… Made way more…

Then, I made the decision to forego residency altogether…

I’d figured out how to earn money without the need for a stressful, 80+hr per week job…

Next, I started a live prep course with some partners…

Within just a few years of stress-induced panic attacks and never-ending stomach ulcers… My overwhelming debts were gone.

I’m not sharing this to impress you… I’m sharing this to inspire you.

I’m sharing this to inspire you to recognize that with the power of the internet…

Between social media and the fast-growing field of AI, you don’t have to choose between money and passion.

You can have both!

Had I known what was coming… I’d have done my Psych residency… I regret that I didn’t when the opportunity was in front of me.

I’d have leveraged my expertise into writing books, doing seminars, and building an empire around my passion for mental health.

Here’s the takeaway….

If you’re willing to go the extra mile, you can leverage your medical expertise into a 7 or 8-figure per year career.

If you’ve got the need or desire to make a lot of money but don’t see a path through your passion… Think again.

Thanks to technology, your earning potential is now limited only by your drive and ambition.

Your passion is now leverageable thanks to technology…

It’s up to you if you take advantage of it.