business

What’s Your New Year’s Resolve??
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What’s Your New Year’s Resolve??

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Ah New Year’s day! The day the gyms are packed with high aspirations, the day that we “turn over a new leaf”, start dieting, develop new relationships, try to find love, etc. We have been at this juncture last year and every January 1st before; many times we were met with the same outcome – disappointment. Not that our “resolutions” weren’t admirable, but we were never quite able to carry them out for a week, month, or let alone a whole year.

I hope this is not the normal New Year’s Day post. As we embark on a new year, we do have a clean slate and can start fresh. While we can restart on any day of the year, January 1st has become the day to reset. I hope everyone can do things differently and better in 2016. This can range from improvement to our health, personal relationships, business relationships, and more. Let’s make our New Year’s resolution one in which we follow out our new found goals! While a common definition of a New Year’s resolution is “a tradition in which a person makes a promise to do an act of self-improvement or something nice”. Wouldn’t it be better if we took a different approach and made goals for the new year and use our “resolve” to accomplish the goal.

A recent definition of the word resolve is “firm determination to do something”. Wow that is powerful, it almost sounds like we WILL accomplish that goal if we show resolve! When making goals we not only need to define what it is we want to achieve, but we need to define the “why we want to achieve it” and the “how we are going to achieve our goal”. The why and the how will fuel and power our resolve. If we never define these important components of our goals, they become mere resolutions and dreams – they are admirable and lofty, but there is no power behind them!

When choosing goals for the new year (or at any part of the year), remember to chose goals that are reachable, defined, and are dependent on you and your actions. I also want world peace, but I also realize there are many factors that go into that dream. Another thought is to WRITE down your goal(s)! Unfortunately, this is a lost art – writing in a journal or notebook. This can be one of the most inexpensive tools, yet one of the most effective tools we can employ. The ability to see our goals in writing can make an immense impact on us and be a constant reminder. Lastly, share your goals with someone you trust and someone that can provide encouragement. Accountability is an essential tool that can power your resolve. For some this may be a spouse, significant other, employer, colleague, parent, etc., whomever this is for you, this can make or break success. You may be thinking that this is a lot of work and you would be correct, reaching goals requires dedication and discipline.

Throughout this new year, let’s continue to make new goals and power them with resolve to follow them out to completion. Remember as we enter a new year, we can put last year behind us, with all the doubts, concerns, and failures – DON’T dwell on the past! Make goals that will better your life and the lives of those around you, both on a personal level and in your business life!

Remember these 4 points:

  1. Write down your goal
  2. Define your why
  3. Define your how
  4. Tell someone

Happy New Year and attack this year with RESOLVE!!!

  • Kevin Benjamino DVM, DACVS
    • Copyright January 1, 2016
Generosity in the Workplace
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Generosity in the Workplace

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Jelly of the Month

Christmas Vacation – Jelly of the Month Club

Do you ever feel like Clark Griswold or do you sometimes feel like Clark’s boss Frank Shirley?

While we may not be in the same situation as Clark and Frank, generosity in the workplace can go a long way. In Christmas Vacation, Clark was dependent on his boss’ generosity and Frank had no idea how his generosity affected others – until he was abducted by Eddie and stood in Clark’s shoes.

Generosity can take many different forms. It is not just about doling out financial rewards at the “end of the year” office party, generosity can be manifested all year round. Merriam-Webster defines generosity as “the quality of being kind, understanding, and not selfish”. The word “quality” means that this is something that becomes part of who we are, not who we are during the holiday season.

Also, they use three words to describe this quality: kindness, understanding, and unselfish. This means that it is not just about giving tangible items, while this may be one part. It can be giving of one’s time and knowledge to both staff members and clients/patients. Taking the extra time to train staff members to excel in their field. Providing a means (CE lectures, etc) to improve your staff’s knowledge base. Generosity can also be extended beyond your staff and current clients and infiltrate into the community. Does your business sponsor events in the community?

While one of the key principles of generosity is not expecting a return, no one can deny the way generosity permeates into the culture of an organization as the leadership team acts from this spirit of generosity. Expect others in your team to emulate this quality and it may even become infectious within your organization.

As the current year ends and a new year begins, think of different ways you can display generosity to both your staff and clients. I would propose that generosity should be more like the “jelly of the month club”, as spoken by Eddie: “Clark, that’s the gift that keeps giving the whole year”.

-Kevin Benjamino DVM, DACVS

Copyright 2015

The Importance of Direct Communication
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The Importance of Direct Communication

Jacksonville Beach

Now before I get started, I will say that this is a topic that I personally struggle with on a daily basis (ask my wife). The more technology advances the more difficult it becomes to have direct, meaningful communication. Maybe it isn’t more difficult, but the alternative of indirect communication becomes easier and easier. I was walking on the beach recently (where the photo above came from) and saw a couple enjoying the sunrise and the waves. On a closer look (no I am not acting as the creepier version of Rob Lowe on the DirectTV ads) both were fully absorbed in their online life on their cell phones. Maybe they were “liking” that video of a singing and dancing cat, who wouldn’t?! It baffled me to think of coming to the beach for a breathtaking sunrise, only to be checking out Facebook; to each their own.

The real question is how often do we find ourselves, like the beach goers, exchanging quality time that could be spent building a relationship with a loved one, co-worker, or client with increasing our online presence? I am not saying that our online presence is to be ignored, it is a great tool that can help build relationships and improve our marketplace visibility. What I am saying is to be careful that we are not exchanging real relationship building opportunities for our mobile devices. Think of this way, Jon Acuff writes in “Do Over” about being present and gives the following scenario (albeit paraphrased): Each of us have been on the receiving or the giving end of the following scenario, you are in the middle of a conversation and either you or the other party pulls out their phone and scrolls through the contents. Who knows what they are doing, probably checking the weather or “liking” a post from a friend, but whatever it is, they have effectively put you on “pause”. Without speaking a word they have said “hang on a minute, because this is more important than what we are currently discussing”. This scenario happens on a daily basis and I am just as guilty of it as the next person.

The applications can be made to ones personal life, however I will let you formulate your own “real life” examples – I never pretend to be a psychologist. What are the professional correlations? Think of your business relationships (staff and clients) as you would your personal relationships for a minute, both demand time and nurturing or at some point when you look up from your computer or mobile device, they may be gone as well as an opportunity. Remember, the art of personal communication cannot not be captured in a text, email, or hitting “like” on social media; it requires time, attentiveness, and work for both parties involved. So much can be gained by a person’s facial expression and body language that gets missed with the indirect communication described above. In your professional life, try devoting more time to one-on-one direct communication, it WILL payoff!

Kevin Benjamino DVM, DACVS
Copyright @ 2015

Events + Response = Outcome
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Events + Response = Outcome

Sunrise in Florida

EVENTS + RESPONSE = OUTCOME  (E + R = O)

Whether you are a football fan or not, this simple formula can change your life. If you are a hermit (or just don’t like sports) you may not have heard a little bit of Ohio State’s football team’s tumultuous journey this past year, just in case read the link below. If nothing else, it will at least give you some inspiration. Some may say that sports are over-rated and hold no real life application, but to those nay-sayers it at least gives us tremendous insight into the word “Teamwork” which is invaluable to any business and life in general, which is a topic for future discussion. No one wants to be that lone vessel floating away in the current of life, everyone needs a “team”.

Unfortunately, many times we cannot dictate the EVENTS in our life, both the good events and the bad. Everyone has a mix of good and bad events (even the people that seem to have all the luck).  In some respects, this part of the equation is uncontrollable (not totally). The totally controllable variable is the way we RESPOND and we determine that part!  We all know the people that seem happy throughout all types of life events, as well as the people who drag you down and are out-right depressing through both the good and the bad life events (these individuals can suck the life right out of you). In the end the outcome or result of the event will be molded by our response. In bad events, it can be particularly hard to see something positive and it requires an act of our will. In good events, this response is easier, but we must also make a conscious effort to acknowledge and give credit where it is due.

Business Application:

We have all been there, where one of our patients may not have had the desired outcome, such as developing a catastrophic complication or worse may arrested or past away during a procedure. This type of event (for veterinarians and physicians alike) will happen and is something that not only deals a firm blow to the owner and family, but also affects us as well. Once this event has occurred, often the next step is communication with owner/family. It is extremely important that this be handled appropriately and with compassion. If not, the emotion with these types of events can spiral in a whirlwind of misplaced accusations and resentment of and for both parties.

Another less intense example:

We have all had those days where we wonder “why did I get up this morning”? When everything seems to go wrong from the minute you step out of bed. Maybe you stepped on a vomited hairball in bare feet (kidding, I’ve done that) or maybe the toilet overflowed right before you were going to leave, or you pulled a muscle during your morning workout.  Whatever the cause, your mood is less than stellar when you come into work on Monday morning. As you walk into work, there are five charts of client callbacks and it isn’t even 8:15am yet! Oh yeah, you have three emergency transfers from the emergency room and an 8:30am recheck appointment (that showed up early) and standard new patient appointments starting at 9:00am. It is at that point that you need to stop yourself and think -“I can’t control WHAT I need to do, but how can I respond positively to these events?” My gut response may be to turn around and walk back to my car, however that would be a less-than desirable response. Remember your team (whether you are a boss, associate, or employee) is dependent on you and your positive response will not only help you get through the day, but inspire the team to rally around you and help you through these events. You may also notice that a positive response may start to determine the events that occur in your life. The events in our life are not left to fate, if so both Warren Buffett and Bill Gates were extremely lucky.  Instead their decisions and responses helped mold the events in their lives.

While these events may sound extreme, I think we have all been through our own version of them. We all know that the days can be very, very long when we respond poorly. Inspire yourself and the team around you with a positive response – I promise, you WILL see results!

The Power of Ohio State’s Positive Thinking

 

Kevin Benjamino DVM, DACVS

Copyright @2015

Seeing the Forest Through the Trees
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Seeing the Forest Through the Trees

Bainbridge Island

One of my main reasons for starting this blog was to reach people who may be in need, in distress due to the current condition of their pet, or just plain curious about different disease mechanisms. I tried to address multiple surgical conditions in the dog and cat, because I am a surgeon and try to approach things in a calculated, methodical nature. My overall goal is to help people and pets.

I never in a million years thought I would be writing articles and/or blogs (some may wish I didn’t). I do want to thank the following that I do have to this website. Writing and grammar, not arguably I’m sure, have never been my strong suit. If you wondered if I was a little off, you probably could have guessed – I am LEFT handed. Yes folks, I follow in the footsteps of some famous people: Michelangelo, Ty Cobb, and the list goes on. You would have thought that being left handed would have made me right brained and lean towards, the arts, writing, etc, however I don’t and I am sure my high school English/grammar teacher would have a visceral, gut wrenching response to my writings (I am trying extra hard to paint a picture, just for her).

While I will continue writing posts about disease processes and various cases that are seen through the hospitals at Affiliated Veterinary Specialists, I would like to change focus from time to time, addressing topics that may surpass the practice of veterinary medicine and deviate into the emotional, communication, and management world. How many times have we found ourselves immersed in situations where we have been overwhelmed either with the medical condition of our pet or the declining medical condition of a loved one and thought “if only my doctor would listen to me, to my questions, and concerns”? At times we may feel like the tree falling in the middle of a dense forest – never heard or noticed. At times, we may be the doctor who is trying their best to communicate the gravity of a medical condition to a client or patient and don’t know how to chose our words properly or are rushed by the overbooked schedule we allow. It is not that there is fault to be given, but is there a better way, can we teach ourselves to be a more articulate, caring professional? Can we manage our time better to be a more caring and compassionate professional; for that matter can we maximize our time both at work and at home? How many times do we feel drained emotionally when we come home and don’t have enough compassion for the ones who are supposed to matter most to us? What is the bigger picture, can we “make out the forest through the trees”?

Obviously, there are a lot of topics to discuss and with time and diligence we will cover the big topics. I will try to pull from my own life lessons and the life lessons of others, both professionally and personally (and I will try to make them short and light if possible). As a professional, there are times I do my job well and there are certainly times that I could have communicated differently or acted differently for a more desired outcome. I do expect that some of my future topics will leave me open and vulnerable. I am always open to constructive criticism. For me this altered direction is about self improvement as well – ask my wife how well I separate work and home life, on second thought don’t.

I will leave with this one thought (OK it will be a long thought, I am long-winded). I remember vividly January 1, 2000 sitting in the packed waiting room of a hospital emergency room, while my grandfather was being admitted for congestive heart failure. Being twenty-one years old and that it was New Year’s Day, this wasn’t exactly what I had in mind to say the least. I would have rather been home watching bowl games and celebrating the new year with my friends and family, however I learned a very important lesson that I have taken with me since that lonely day. It was just me in the waiting room filled with people waiting their turn, some in more serious condition than others (many nursing their New Year’s Eve hangover). I can remember the scene like it was yesterday: an elderly man in a wheelchair came up to me and we exchanged the normal small talk and discussing the football games that were being played that day. He asked me where I went to school and what my plans were after school. My answer was well rehearsed, since I knew that I wanted to be a veterinarian from a very early age. I told him my current status of having applied to various veterinary schools when he abruptly stopped me and gave me this word of advice: “No matter what you do, if you are able to help people and animals ALWAYS treat that opportunity as a blessing and a privilege”. It was obvious that he had his run in with the medical profession and I am sure he had both positive and negative experiences. He was right, I was blessed, I had my veterinary school interview at Ohio State University (where I would eventually attend) the day before my grandfather passed away – it was his dream that I go to veterinary school. That man, whom I do not know his name and can barely remember his face, touched a young man that day and it is my goal to impact others in a similar way.

Kevin Benjamino, DVM, DACVS

Copyright 2015