Watch: How Omar Juggled Construction Work And Medical School Without Burning Out
A young construction worker who recently graduated as a doctor revealed how he managed to keep up with two extremely demanding commitments.
“After a day’s work in construction, I would go home shattered but I couldn’t technically rest because I had to study for my course,” Omar Kassab told Lovin Malta.
“The way I worked around it was setting my priorities.”
Omar found five life priorities – his job, studying for his medical course, spending time with his family, training, and meeting his close friends. Everything else had to be pushed to the side.
“For example, if someone who wasn’t a close friend asked to meet up, I would have to apologise and decline the offer because I didn’t have enough time.”
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He also realised he was losing valuable time stuck in traffic, so he got a motorbike licence to make his days more efficient.
Although Omar experienced intense stress at times, especially during exam periods, he stayed focused on his end goal to graduate as a doctor, which kept him motivated to keep going.
“I would remember what my goal is and realise that the only way to achieve it is to work hard. Nothing comes for free in life. You have to work for it, and that motivated me to push on.”
Omar had a passion for both medicine and construction from a young age.
“I was always fascinated by how, when I got sick, a doctor could examine me and figure out exactly what was wrong,” he said.
“When I lost my grandmother due to shortcomings in her medical treatment, I promised myself to become a doctor to ensure that what happened to us doesn’t happen to other people.”
His journey in construction started when he would help his father work on an unconverted house his parents had bought.
Although his father discouraged him from this line of work out of fear that his son could end up dropping out of school to enter the construction industry, Omar educated himself on site and through YouTube videos.
He kept learning until he was able to oversee the demolition of a maisonette and the construction of a block of flats.
And Omar believes his time in the construction industry provided him with some crucial life skills that will help him in his new line of work as a doctor.
“I learned communication and leadership skills in construction, as well as how to empathise with people. When people let you into their homes, they tend to open up to you about their negative experiences and this helps you understand them. These are skills that will undoubtedly help me in my medical career.”
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