From Fighter to Pharmacist

CorConsult Rx
Sep 9, 2018 · 7 min read
Front page of the local newspaper back in March 2012

This is an article that I wrote for Dr. Adam Martin’s Fit Pharmacist blog back in 2017. My career has e-volved significantly since I wrote this, but the overall thesis remains. Enjoy…..

What is the recipe for success as a pharmacist? Start with having perfect attendance in school, add good grades, mix-in memberships to a few professional organizations, and sprinkle a residency on top. Then, all this hard work will hopefully culminate in landing an excellent job. Many universities and professors regularly pontificate on this foolproof path to success. However, there are always students that do not fit the generic mold or simply enjoy going against the flow. Are these students destined for less successful careers or even career failure? I think it completely depends on the individual. I personally believe that pharmacists (and anyone else with a heartbeat) have infinite opportunities to be successful if they are motivated, work hard, and stay focused on the “long-term”.

Background

My time spent in pharmacy school would be considered by most as abnormal. From a young age, I stayed in shape by training at mixed martial arts (MMA) gyms. I always wanted to compete in an actual sanctioned MMA fight, but it was not until the summer before pharmacy school that I had my first amateur fight. I was hooked. I ended up fighting and winning 3 events within four weeks. When school started, I was focused almost entirely on my MMA training. My grades obviously suffered as a result. I have always hated sitting in a class room and found it really hard to learn in a structured environment. During the second semester of my first year, I got an offer to compete in my first professional fight. I fought professionally until my third year. During that time, I was training around 30 hours a week, working at a local pharmacy, got engaged to my now wife, and was trying to stay afloat in school. I was not involved with any pharmacy organizations or anything else at school that didn’t directly affect my grades. My lack of involvement and poor grades made some people write me off as someone who would not succeed as a pharmacist.

I married my wife the summer before my 3rdyear. She was also in pharmacy school and was about to start her 4thyear rotations. I decided that I was going to start focusing on my pharmacy career and put the MMA to rest (one of the hardest decisions I ever made). We had very little money at the time. My wife was on rotations during the week and working at her regular pharmacy on the weekends. I started working almost full time at the pharmacy and only went to class when I had a test. I would watch the recorded lectures at home, but my behavior still gave the appearance of “slackery” to people who didn’t know me on a personal level.

The Turning Point

My fourth year during rotation was when everything really started to change. I did not have to sit in a class room anymore and could finally learn on the job kinetically. Working with practicing pharmacists in the hospitals, community, and other settings really got me motivated to put the same effort into being a pharmacist that I used to exert during my MMA training. I started looking at rotations as competitions. It was my performance on rotation against every other student that that preceptor had in the past. One preceptor told me that he did not give A’s on his rotation and that the people who got B’s had worked incredibly hard. I asked him what time the B students usually got to rotation and he told me 6:30 a.m. In my mind I thought, “cool, I’ll be here at 5:30 a.m.”. I was absolutely determined to outwork anyone else around me (Just a quick humble brag…I ended up getting an A on that rotation). My fourth year of pharmacy school really laid the foundation for my career.

After I became a licensed pharmacist, I accepted a job in a retail community pharmacy. I had several people around me saying that I would forget my clinical knowledge and would lose any opportunity to challenge myself. I ignored the naysayers and promised myself that I would continue to grow as a pharmacist.

Find the Time to Learn

The medical world is constantly changing and growing. I knew I would have to work really hard to stay current especially since I was not in a clinical setting. I started setting aside an hour every day that I could spend reading and learning. I have kept up with this routine for the last couple years and have greatly expanded my knowledge. When people ask me about ways to keep up with medical information, I always recommend this “learning for an hour a day” strategy. As soon as the recommendation leaves my lips, my excuses start flying. People use their spouse, kids, stress from work, their other responsibilities, their Wednesday night softball team, and any other excuse that they can to justify why they do not have time to learn every day. If you want to keep growing in your career, you have to stay current with the information. You need to really examine your schedule and find the time. Throw out your excuses, cancel the Netflix account if you have to, and FIND THE TIME! Even if you can only spare 10 minutes a day, that is better than nothing.

Push the Boundaries of Your Job

I became a pharmacy manager within 4 months of graduation. This was very unusual because the area I live is quite saturated with pharmacists. I definitely attribute my promotion to the pharmacists who mentored me as well as my strong performance as an intern (remember I liked working much more than going to class). When I took over the pharmacy, I started conducting medication therapy management (MTM) services. I even spent time on my days off trying to grow the program at my store. The area that I work did not have a set MTM program and almost no one was filing MTM claims. Because I wasn’t getting personally compensated or seeing any direct benefit from these services, some of my peers said I was wasting my time. After a few months, my district supervisor asked me if I was interested in working with MTM patients (for the entire district) one day a week while another pharmacist covers my shift in the pharmacy. I have gotten sufficiently more patient counseling experience than I ever could have imagined and have now earned enough hours to sit for the certified diabetes education exam. I want to challenge you to look for new possibilities in your current job. If you actively try to expand your job description and responsibilities, it may lead you to a point that was not even on your radar.

Pretend Your Career is a Chess Game

I look at my career as a long game of chess. I look for any and all opportunities to collaborate with other healthcare professionals, speak to students, teach at a continuing education event, attend a conference, and anything else I can find that has potential to be beneficial one day. Even the smallest event can be another pawn being moved that sets up a big play later in life. If you spend the time looking, these opportunities are everywhere. I had no idea that spending my free time setting up a community rotation for students would result in me earning the preceptor of the year award. I did not know that spending the money to travel to an infectious disease conference would result in me meeting a drug rep that has now introduced me to several prominent physicians and scientists. You don’t know where a single action can lead you. Do not let any opportunity pass because you do not see its short-term value. Always think long-term and ask, “what if”!

Find Your Why

For me to stay motivated, I need to pursue different challenges and find new parts of the pharmacy world to explore. I’m at a point in my life personally and financially where I could relax and not think about pharmacy after I get off work. However, I refuse to do that. I will continue to push myself to new limits and set new goals. I want to set an example for students like me that do/did not follow the traditional path. I want students to follow their passion and work as hard as they can to find success in the area of their choosing. That is the “why” behind my motivation. Your “why” may be to provide a good life for your family, retire at a young age and travel, or simply to not become stagnant in your current position. Everyone has something different that motivates them. Find your “why” and go after it with everything you have. Reaching even a small goal will boost your motivation even higher and from there it is a snowball effect.

Final Thoughts

If you are a student in pharmacy school, explore as many career paths as possible. Know that whatever direction you go, you can be successful if you are willing to put in the work. If you are about to start a residency, you need to decide right now that no other residents will work harder than you. If you are working as a pharmacist in a retail pharmacy, you need own your continuing education. No one has time for your excuses. The reputation of retail pharmacists not being as “clinical” as other pharmacists can start with you. Find out what motivates you and surround yourself with it. Get up every day and compete with yourself to be better than the day before. Go and earn your success.

CorConsult Rx

Evidence-based medicine and drug reviews for health care professionals and students on the go. http://www.facebook.com/corconsultrx

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade