I love this time of year.
The flowers are blooming. The birds have returned and wake me each morning. The days are getting longer and the feeling of being out of winter's grip is rejuvenating.
Another thing I really love about this time of year is we get a fresh start to our lives and our businesses. And, it just so happens that one of the most idea oriented and forward looking pharmacy owner’s conferences happens to kick off the start of spring. Unfortunately, there can be so many ideas generated from this conference and excitement can be so high, when we return to our businesses we get caught up in the usual grind and end up not getting near as much accomplished as we want.
Why is it that we return so excited and full of new, rejuvenating ideas, only to fall into the same old grind? The answer is simple: we overload the system by trying to get too many things completed at one time. This results in frustration and a whole list of projects/ideas (we will explain the difference below) poorly started and only halfy-way completed.
Step #1: An idea is not a project
The first step to getting more things completed is to understand the difference between an idea and a project. An idea is something that could be implemented but hasn't gone through the rigors of market testing and the other things required to bring it to the market. A project is something that can easily be brought to the market because it has gone through the rigors of testing and the other things. It is easy to implement into your current workflow and you have the team in place to make it happen. Essentially the main difference between the two is identifying and putting in place the required resources to bring it to the market.
Step #2: The profit/experience acid test
Now that you understand the difference between an idea and a project, the second step is to prioritize your projects based on two primary criteria. The first is profitability to the pharmacy. The second is improving patient experience. Ideally, projects would fit both of these criteria, but don't worry if any project only fits one of them. These are both essential for your pharmacy to survive and grow. Once you have prioritized projects, pick the top three to implement this year. If you get them done, you can move on to as many as 7. For most independent pharmacy owners, the maximum number of projects in a year is 7… and that’s because you are only human and human beings cannot work effectively on more than 7 things at one time.
Step #3: Create a project time budget
The third step is to earmark a specific time during which you focus only on implementing your projects. We recommend you schedule project work for first thing in the morning because our experience has shown you will not complete this type of work in the evening when you’ve run out of time and exhausted from meeting the daily demands of owning and operating an independent community pharmacy. Use this time to meet with the people in charge of executing your projects. If you have a private office, hang a do not disturb sign on your door so people know that you are focused on something critical for long term success.
Step #4: Simply delegate simply
The fourth step is to delegate a few but important action items to select, capable team members each week. Weekly delegation helps keep things simple by lowering the risk of overloading them to where they shut down and nothing gets accomplished. Simplicity is the key because you are going to be asking them to take on more than just their typical job responsibilities. The rule of thumb here is the KISS principle (Keep It Simple Silly).
Step #5: Be accessible
The fifth step is to have your team members report back to you at least once a week and to leyt them know that if something is unclear or unexpected and they are unsure of how to proceed, that you are always available to help them figure it out. There is little utility in having someone get stuck one day after you delegated something to them and waiting a week (or more) to find out. (I recently saw Kevin O'Leary from the Shark Tank speak and he said that one thing that separates him from everyone else out there is the accessibility to him by his employees. You would think that a billionaire would limit the interaction with his employees, but he said they have a phone number they can call when it’s important.)
Step #6: Celebrate and enjoy progress
The sixth and final step is to acknowledge and enjoy the progress made while getting your projects implemented. Remember that life is short and acknowledging and celebrating the successes in life are vital to your physical and mental health. This also applies to the physical and mental health of your employees so be generous with your acknowledgement and celebrations.
These six steps can help you manage all the areas of your life; personal, financial and pharmacy ownership. These things working harmoniously are what we refer to as the Tricky Triangle of Success. Please download our planner below.
