I recently saw a post on social media that asked the members of the optometry community to share encouraging words to students and to show young optometrists and students why they love their career.
Sometimes hearing about high student loan payments, difficulty finding good jobs as new doctors, poor insurance reimbursements, and disruptive technology can get you feeling down about the profession.
So I wanted to share some of my favorite responses to the post to show you that MOST optometrists actually LOVE what they do every. single. day.
"There are few greater feats for a physician of any kind than to make a genuine life long difference for a patient, especially a child. You get to do this every day of your career! Fixing someone’s vision can change a life in an instant!" -Frank Won "There is no better profession in my opinion, and I would pick it over and over again. We provide hope and good outcomes for almost all patients we encounter. We build meaningful relationships in our community as well as with our OD colleagues. The hours are good with flexible schedules that are conducive to family life. We get paid well and can honestly make this career look however we want depending on our own interests and ambitions. I am honored and privileged to be able to call myself an optometrist and wouldn't trade it for anything." -Jenny Drake "You will have bad days. You would in any job. But the good ones.... they are SO good. I still remember fitting a pre-teen in a keratoconus lens after I diagnosed her (when I was an extern) and her saying "it's like someone colored in the world!" Never take lightly what we can do for people." -Amber Fritsch "You'll help people in ways that you never thought possible, and in ways that they didn't teach you in school. It's been 35 years of reward for me. Also, if you dig in and study what you do, you'll never run out of interest." -Bill Potter "You will create relationships with patients and families that will enrich both your life and theirs. You will help them to succeed in their home and business lives with careful attention to their visual needs and requirements. On occasion, you may save them from a vision threatening or life threatening catastrophe, maybe not often but you must always be vigilant. You will sleep at night knowing you will again tomorrow help another soul. You will make a difference." -Tom Tomasik "I tell patients every day that I don't "work" a day in my life. I love every patient encounter. Even the challenging ones. If you learn to embrace the knowledge you learned for 4 long years and selflessly share that knowledge with your patients for nothing but the sheer love of optometry then you will succeed. Success isn't measured in money but in the moments where you realize that you were meant to do what you do every day of your life." -Rebecca Kabat "Last week had two grown men start crying with joy in their new scleral lenses. We had to pause the exam for one of them to regain his composure. Cannot put a price on this. Never gets old." -Tom Arnold "My decision to become an optometrist 32 years ago was an excellent choice. I can’t imagine doing anything else and I have a pretty good imagination." -Sarah Ito