Everything a person has comes from the contribution of others and the gifts God gave us. As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, it is humbling to think there is only one gift we can give back that is completely ours to give.

As an owner of an independent community pharmacy, the gift of success is made possible by every customer who walks through the door, the employees who show up through thick and thin, the communities that embrace your business, and the advisors, friends and family who have your back no matter what. It is also made possible by your God-given talent, energy, intelligence and commitment.

What is the one thing we can give back to show our gratitude that hasn't been given us already? There is only one thing. Our thanks. Our thanks is the only gift we can give that we haven’t been given in the first place.

The saying, "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care," comes to mind.

Being thankful and outwardly expressing your thankfulness is the best way to show people how much you care.

Like Oprah says, “Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough.”

Giving thanks based on heart-felt gratitude can be transformational. It can turn ordinary days into thanksgivings, ho-hum jobs into joy, and ordinary opportunities into blessings.

On most days, we take the simplest of things for granted. On Thanksgiving Day we make a point of being grateful for the big things like health, comfort, and family.

Taking time to be thankful for all your blessings everyday is not only transformational for you and all those around you, it is good for business.

When is the last time you thanked your patients and employees? If you make “thank you” the most important phrase in your vocabulary, and teach your employees the power of saying thank you, your patients will know they are never taken for granted

One way to imbed “thank you” into your business is to send or give hand-written thank you cards to your patients once or twice a year. (Ask your staff to help, they can write a few each week in order to touch all of your patients.)

You can also be a leader and help other people learn to be thankful for their blessings. For example, if a patient makes progress towards a goal, you can help them understand how important their progress is and help them be thankful that he or she was able to make that progress.

Letting people know you are thankful and helping them do the same is a great way to build lasting relationships with your patients. I recently attended a seminar on the lifetime value of a customer and customer loyalty where a distinction was made between a regular customer and a customer who is also a friend of your business.

The biggest take away was that friends go out of their way to promote your business because they care about the success of your business and ultimately, your success.

With all this in mind, we wish each of you all the very best for Thanksgiving. And, while you’re sitting down to feast, remember what Erma Bombeck once said, “Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence.” (Go Tigers!)

GET STARTED

One way to get started with some intentional gratitude is to evaluate your employees to determine who is most valuable to your success. We've developed a free tool for you to use to get started.

Why do we do what we do?

Our mission is to help independent community pharmacy owners achieve all their goals and dreams, inside, outside and after their life in pharmacy. In doing so, we are helping independent community pharmacies remain independent and thrive for many years to come.