Interview Assessment #3

Hrushikesh Abdas

Name of Professional Interviewed: Dr. Moiz Shafiq

Profession: Cardiologist

Location: 7979 N MacArthur Blvd #100, Irving, TX 75063, Starbucks

Date of Interview: November 9, 2019

Time: 1:15 pm

Towards the end of my first interview with Dr. Shafiq, we continued talking, and
automatically the subject of having a second interview came up. Therefore, because it flowed
with the conversation, and I liked the idea of Dr. Shafiq served as my mentor, I decided to ask
him for a second interview. He gladly accepted, and again, we organized another meeting.
During this meeting I was set on asking him to serve as my mentor, as he was very enthusiastic
about the idea of having mentors to serve as role models for students. He also offered me
opportunities to shadow him whenever I please, which would give me more experience and
exposure into the field of Cardiology. Therefore, after developing some deeper level questions, I
became familiar with them so that I would be able to bring them up without disrupting the flow of
the conversation. With more practice, I headed to Starbucks, again.
Entering the conversation, I started it off with more of a casual conversation, rather than
directly asking questions. Soon enough, our discussion started to lead to the point where I
would start asking my questions. We discussed a variety of aspects of his job, and what led him
to his current success. We discussed many things, such as organization, social aspects of being
a Cardiologist, family time, and finally, mentors. Organizational skills, especially in such a hectic
profession is very important according to Dr. Shafiq. He mentioned that the certain ways that
people may organize their day may vary, depending on how they would like to organize their
job. Personally, my method to organize and prioritize my work is using a simple white board.
Although it may seem generic, it is something that works for me, which the message that Dr.
Shafiq was trying to deliver. Moreover, he also mentioned that it was very important to be
outgoing and seem approachable. That builds trust with your patients, he mentioned. From the
way he would speak with the cashier while ordering drinks, to making conversation with
strangers around him, I noticed that Dr. Shafiq saw the ability to be social was crucial to having
such an important job, such as Cardiology. Moving on, he mentioned something that I would
never hear speaking with doctors. Spending time with your family, he said, should be your
number one priority. Over everything else, creating a bond with your family is crucial. He went
on to explain how everything he does is in order to support his family. Finally, getting towards
the end of our interview, which lasted around 1 and a half hours, I had to ask the question of
whether Dr. Shafiq would want to serve as my mentor. After speaking with Mr. Pirtle, he was
able to guide me on how to approach and eventually ask Dr. Shafiq this question. After asking
Dr. Shafiq about his own experience with a mentor, he told me how important it was for young
aspiring professionals to have mentors. Without a mentor, it is difficult for students to gain
experience and become successful along their path. After hearing about his experience with a
mentor, the time came for me to him, “would you like to be my mentor?”. Unsurprisingly, he
accepted, and he made me feel confident that with him serving as my mentor, I can achieve
similar things to him.
Everything that I discussed with Dr. Shafiq in this interview, proved to be tremendously
important in my life. Organizational skills are needed to succeed anywhere, whether you are a
professional, or a high school student. Being the latter, I am able to prioritize my work by, as I
mentioned before, using a white board. Color coding and listing work according to importance is
what I do in order to keep track of my progress. Studying for tests, and projects are assignments
that demand more time and importance compared to a sheet of math problems or reading
questions. This method is something that currently works for me, and hopefully will be able to be
transferred into the real world. Being social is also critical not only in being a Cardiologist, but in
high school, as well. For instance, if you are a student in ISM, it is critical to be social, as you
will be in many social interactions with professionals, as this helps you to be prepared for the
future. During business symposium, I learned how important this trait was. Also, spending time
with family is also very important. Like Dr. Shafiq said, there is no point in doing your job if it
does not help your family. Lastly, being able to gain his trust and his acceptance for mentorship
was the most critical thing I was able to earn from this conversation, of the many things we
discussed.
Not only was I able to learn about the various aspects of Dr. Shafiq’s job, but this
conversation has also motivated me to incorporate these traits into my own life. Things such as
organization and personality seemed a lot more important than they were before I conducted
this interview. I realized that once you become a professional, organizational skills become a
part of your daily life. From organizing professional business to personal life, organization is an
important skill to have to be successful. Moreover, spending time with one’s family allows them
to develop as a person, and be outgoing, which contributes to the social aspect of being a
Cardiologist. These traits all influence major decisions throughout your life, and taking these
traits into consideration, I hope to develop them in order to achieve my goal of becoming a
Cardiologist.