Excellence-For-Others
The
other day, my nephew proudly showed me a stamp that his teacher placed on the
dorsum of his hand. It was blue and it said in flashy bold letters – “Job Well
Done!” From his ear to ear smile, I could tell he was really satisfied with his
badge of honor.
Years
after we finish preschool, we all still long for affirmation. Though it may not
come anymore in the form of stamps, we all still crave to be recognized for our
hard work and our achievements—our excellence. Sometimes, even, we do things
simply because we want others to acknowledge our brilliance. Yet, the problem
here is that when we rely on other people to dictate whether or not we are
excellent, we fail to recognize the excellence already brewing inside of us.
Yes, it is true that there are people around us who gain the praise of most
everyone around them for their merits. However, it is important to remember
that the approval and admiration of others is not a prerequisite for being excellent.
How society defines excellence is not the be-all and end-all of excellence.
Excellence
is definitely not one-dimensional. There are many facets to being an excellent
individual. It is not just about garnering the top score in a test,
spearheading a school project, or being the most loved individual on campus. As
such, no one definition of excellence will ever suffice. To overcome this, we
must all come up with our own definitions of what excellence is all about. In
so doing, it is important to take into account one’s own philosophies, strengths,
and limitations. How we define our excellence would also be how we will live
out excellence in our own lives. Thus, it is imperative that our definitions of
excellence must be a product of meticulous and conscientious thinking.
My
definition of excellence is always choosing that which would better lead me
closer to God. The corollary of this is that I always have to seek out the
option that would allow me to be a better son, brother, friend, student, and
future doctor. Innate in this definition is an understanding that being
excellent is not tied to any outcome or effect. It is an excellence driven by
love and passion and rooted in always making the best out of every situation.
It is the kind of excellence that takes tremendous discipline—allowing for the
formation of the habit of choosing the right thing even when it is inconvenient
or difficult.
Hence,
I can say that I live a life of excellence every time I am able to live my life
according to my own personal definition of it. A resounding “Yes!” to the call
of being a better person is something that I need to be able to do constantly
in order for me to be truly excellent. At this point, it is important to
emphasize that being excellent does not mean being free from mistakes.
Perfection is not excellence. This means that if sometimes I succumb to
laziness or hit a road bump in my attempt to be a better student, I am not
disqualified from being excellent. Excellence also entails making mistakes and
using these mistakes to improve one’s self.
I
believe that I am excellent when I turn down a few bottles of beer with my high
school barkada so that I can finish a
few chapters of Harrison’s. Choosing
to study for an exam instead of just having a damn good time and more than a
few good laughs with lifelong friends entails much sacrifice and discipline on
my part. In this case, excellence is imbibed because I choose the option that
would lead me to be a better person. From this example, it might be
misconstrued that always choosing studies over bonding time with friends is a
rule set in stone. On the contrary, there are actually times wherein picking friends
over a few pages of trans is the excellent thing to do. See, excellence is not
a set of do’s and dont’s. Neither is it an excellence of extreme measures.
Rather, excellence entails being able to balance the different aspects of one’s
life and growing holistically in the process. Excellence is situational and the
skill of identifying the excellence, the magis,
out of every situation is something that is honed over time.
Like
I said earlier, excellence is not tied to any one outcome or result. Therefore,
when I studied my butt off for our cardiology exam, but failed, it doesn’t mean
that I was not excellent. Instead, excellence was embodied in my hard work,
determination, and perseverance to learn as much as I could to prepare me for
the final exams. Often times, things don’t always go the way that we want it
to. All year long, a basketball team might train the hardest, run the farthest,
and sweat the most. However, it is no guarantee of a championship. Instead,
what it guarantees is a clear conscience—the knowledge that they did everything
they possibly could to put them in the best position to win the crown for their
school. It guarantees excellence. Excellence is not about high grades or
accolades. It’s about pushing the limits, going beyond ones capabilities, and
transcending one’s self.
I
am also excellent when I don’t just think of myself and the implications of my
actions to my own life. Choosing to spend my weekend helping out my mom in our
farm and foregoing a weekend that could have been dedicated to brushing up on
my clinical skills is a show of excellence. When we act, not just with our own
best interest in mind, but also taking into account the other people in our
lives, we are excellent. Recognizing the moments where we could be of aid to
others, identifying situations where we can actually make differences in the
lives of others, and then actually doing something about it, is genuine
excellence.
In
ASMPH, we are educated to be doctors-for-others. Also, we are taught to always
strive for excellence in all our endeavors. Let us all strive to live our lives
with much excellence—an excellence-for-others.
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