Motivation for pursuing a career in medicine

1. The challenge and opportunities for growth (as in research, invention, new ideas techniques, its an ever advancing field
2. Intellectual challenge/ intellectual curiosity
3. Versatility
4. There are many reasons one pursues a medical degree including challenge of the field, desire to practice a specific craft (surgeon), degree of independence, intellectual rigor, aspirations for becoming a medical writer or artist.
5. Doc Holiday caught my reason pretty well. Of course I want to help others...but that's not really what doctors do directly. They provide a service for a patient and that's that -- though they may develop a relationship over the course of treatment and provide treatment in a warm and friendly manner. If my life was based around helping people, I would have become a social worker. My personal life philosophy is actually based around overall progression. I love pushing myself to physical and mental limits. That's why being an extreme martial artist in my youth was a goal, and why being a medical doctor(and marathon runner) is the goal that will overshadow my life once I cannot push myself to acrobatic physical limits. I want to have worked through all the hell medical school students go through, I want to be exposed to the wealth of knowledge they are exposed to, and I wish to disseminate that knowledge as best I can. Medical school and a subsequent career in medicine are certainly goals in our society that you can count on to do just that. Challenge. So yes, it may be a bit selfish but those are my true reasons. Of course, I'll do my best to help people('cause being nice to people is just downright satisfying, especially when you have the power/status to do so quite easily as a doctor might) by providing treatment in the most kind way I can. Poop.
6. Blend of intellectual stimulation and having a tangible impact.
7. I think one of the factors that led me to medicine as a career interest was that I believed it was one thing I would be truly good at and was most interested in. The money, job security, and altruistic reasons definitely played in and narrowed my choice from everything in biology down to medicine.
8. Oh, and I'm really interested in the human body.
9. Interesting work, great job security, solid salary, make a diff, versatile degree (MD).
10. See: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/archive/index.php/t-243956.html