Are there ever mornings you wake up and feel like not showing up for your first class?  Are there ever things like labs, review sessions or extra technique hours that you just blow off because you think it’s no big deal?  Obviously for the classes you take, attendance is counted by almost all of the teachers.  In some way, this attendance tends to be tied to your overall grade in the class.  So missing will usually end up hurting you in some way in the end.

Another way to think about showing up faithfully to class and your other committments for school involves developing your mindset for your professional life.  Now, I realize that many of you have developed your study habits and attitudes toward school in the days of middle school, high school and college.  Some of those habits are good ones; some of them may be not so good.  It is never too late to change or modify a habit to make it better.

When you are out in practice, rarely will you be able to wake up one morning and decide that you either don’t want to go in or you want to go in late. Generally, pateints do no appreciate if you arrive late at your office while they have been waiting for awhile for you to arrive.  

I am trying to motivate you to stay motivated about school and your classes.  I know full well how difficult and tedious classes and labs get after awhile.  Sometimes, it is hard to stay excited when you are bogged down in studying.  It will get better, but having a great attitude about school and going the extra mile in what you do will help prepare you for practice.

Do you know someone who is chronically late where ever they go? We all know someone like this; it might be you.  There is nothing wrong with this in the grand scheme of things, but you need to figure out how you will eventually solve this problem.  Will you wake up earlier? Schedule patients later to give you ample time to make it in in the morning or back from lunch? When patients see that you are consistently late, they feel that you don’t value their time.  A patient’s time is just as valuable as yours. Work on making sure you are showing up on time for school related events.  Remember, it’s a mindset.

 One last thing, being present and on time also makes impressions not only on the patients who you will have, but the surrounding community and those who would be referral sources for you.  Being on time when you go to networking, referral group meetings or events in your community then give people the opportunity to talk to you.  When you show up, you allow people to get to know you on a personal level and people love to refer patients to the people they know.

 So the next time you wake up and wonder how important it is to get to class on time or if you should really go to that review or study session, do it!  Show up and be successful!