The camel cannot see its own hump.
If something is keeping you up at night or it’s been bothering you for way longer than you think it should, talk it out. Don’t keep to yourself.
They may very well be able to pull a solution out of their back pocket. Boom. Just like that.
It takes bravery to ask questions.
When someone asks a question, they’re risking exposure of their ignorance.
When they care enough to risk their reputation, start your answer with the statements, “That’s a good question” or “You have a good point.”
You’re rewarding them for their bravery.
No matter how often you say these phrases in a single conversation, it won’t get old.
Ichigo-ichie is a striking Japanese phrase which means “one life, one-time encounter.”
The moment will not happen again when I was staying up to fight for patients who are eagerly waiting for a life-saving drug.
The moment will not happen again when I was face-to-face with a client who is also an IRONMAN.
The moment will not happen again when I was spending 1:1 time with a master strategist.
The moment will not happen again when I was responding to a project manager’s text.
Similar moments may occur, but never quite the same.
Too often we dismiss these gifts because we’re too busy demanding our rights.
Drip by drip, I get opportunities to create something GRAND.
When building a strategy from the ground-up, what are the questions you should be asking yourself?
Wouldn’t it be nice if someone whispered those questions into your ear?
Hope these questions are just as helpful to you as they are to me.
There are many reasons to stay apart.
Different languages.
Different skin colors.
Different education levels.
Different levels of seniority.
Different opinions.
Different organizations.
The list goes on.
If we’re ever able to unite despite all of these differences, it’s truly a miracle.
But there’s good reason to seek out unity. United we stand, divided we fall.
According to the United States Census Bureau, health care is the largest US employer. Yet, SO many patients expose how embarrassingly messy and inefficient our system is. What gives?
In conflicts, people rarely put up a fight to prove that a point of view is correct.
Even if they’re proven wrong, they will walk away in peace if they FEEL that they were heard, and people are leaving with the perception that THEY were correct (not whether their idea was correct–but that they were correct).
It was never about the idea—it was about them all along.
So, find a way to resolve the conflict in peace. Your team will be much better off.
Time is not limitless.
Yet there is always a way to make time for priorities. Always.
Decluttering and organization create time.
Same thing goes with space. Space is not limitless.
Yet there is always a way to make space for priorities. Always.
Decluttering and organization create space.
Great stories are trusted.
What can you do to build trust with your customers?
Do you have strong evidence? Is the evidence consistent in the real-world setting? Have you shown commitment to improving care in the therapeutic area? Did you care to seek out what they want—or are you simply tooting your own horn? Does your language signal that you care about your own profit or service to them?
Trust is earned.
Inconsistencies break trust. Just like that.
Sometimes payers have no choice but to cover the one and only drug in the therapeutic area. But when competitors enter the market, they have choices.
If they trust you enough, they will go out of their way to MAKE SURE your product is granted favorable access.
No one works in a vacuum in Market Access. We all rely on everyone else.
Be mindful of the weakest person on the team. Giving attention to them is well worth it.
How can you help them level-up? Do they need to additional skills? Do they crave nourishment?
It’s not that laggards will hold you back; but rather, they can actually bring the entire team down with them.
(After all, because of those of us who CHOSE to remain unvaccinated, EVERYONE has to brace themselves again for an uncertain future).
Before they bring everyone else down with them, what can you do to pull them up?
We are one. We are in this together. I need you.
Organizations have a competitive advantage when they have a culture where team members look out for each other.
An evolution in career goal is a healthy signal of evolution of the person himself.
Most people enter the workforce as a small fry that’s eager to catch up to everyone else.
5 years into their career, some may settle on a niche and decide to charge forward in that direction.
10 years into their career, they’re eager to help patients in more meaningful ways. They’re looking for bigger problems to solve. It’s time to play the ‘Ages 10+’ games. It feels more gratifying to think beyond themselves and wonder about their purpose in this world.
By this time, a big part of their professional goal is to serve those around them—which was hardly a concern in the beginning.
This has been my journey, at least. As I reflect on my birthday about how my wisdom and perspective have evolved since I graduated from pharmacy school.
