Ask Marilyn: How Can I Be More Aggressive Intellectually?

Daniel Aichinger of Vienna, Austria, writes:

Marilyn: I did a bachelors in physics and am in medical school right now. I would like to be more aggressive intellectually, the way you once mentioned in an interview, in order to be a more independent and critical thinker without—and this is really important for me—alienating others and having social problems.

Furthermore, I sometimes have the feeling that questioning the stuff I'm learning in anatomy and other "learning-intensive" subjects slows me down and reduces my recall of facts. So then I think, well, I'll just try to remember and recall without questioning like most of the other students.

Can you give me some advice on what I should do or what I should practice in order to be aggressive intellectually?

Marilyn responds:

It seems clear to me that you're already aggressive intellectually, and you don't need to do anything more. I suggest that in order to handle medical school with less frazzle to your topnotch brain, you should cool it with the questions and don't try to understand everything. To a great extent, that will happen with time, at least for you. I'll bet you'll be a great diagnostician.