When the going gets tough in your pharmacy, being resilient can help you overcome difficult situations.
Resiliency is the ability to successfully overcome challenges, deal with setbacks and cope with stress. Being resilient will allow you to tackle any problem with strength and positivity.
The more resilient you are, the stronger your business will be. Here are some tips.
1. Take care of yourself
If you aren’t maintaining your physical health, then your mental health can suffer, too. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep, eating the right foods and staying physically active. Work on creating more pharmacy-life balance, and don’t be afraid to take a break. When you get back to your pharmacy, you’ll feel mentally refreshed, and you’ll be ready to handle stress.
2. Focus on learning
When something goes wrong in your pharmacy—maybe a patient is angry because her prescription isn’t ready on time, or a new promotion failed—don’t get upset. Instead, focus on learning from the situation and how to improve going forward. If you approach mistakes as opportunities to learn—rather than failures—you’ll be able to move past them faster and more effectively.
You can also learn from your past successes. When something goes right or you handle a stressful situation particularly well, take note of what happened, what you did, and what you learned about yourself. Being aware of how you handled difficulties in the past can help you handle stressful situations in the present.
3. Be conscious of emotional triggers
If you know that certain events will bring out certain emotions, or that stressful thoughts can hinder your ability to work efficiently, then being aware of these triggers can help you combat them.
You can’t eliminate all negative thoughts, but you can reframe them. Learn to accept your negative thoughts and to understand them as a natural response to challenges. Be compassionate and positive with yourself when these thoughts arise, and don’t let them scare you away from a situation.
4. Celebrate your victories
When something goes right, no matter how small, reward yourself for a job well done. Even the smallest victories can give you great strength going forward. The next time you’re dealing with an upset patient, for example, you can think of another patient whose adherence is steadily improving because of your counseling. Believe in yourself and the good work you’re doing.
Resiliency will help you become a better leader, better pharmacist and better business owner.
