The Word “But” – Communicating to Be Heard Corner
Ever hear a compliment, only to be let down when you hear the word “but”? “You’ve been doing a great job with counseling patients lately, BUT let us move more patients through the pharmacy faster.”
Before you hear anything else after “BUT”, you already anticipate to be let down by something negative. It’s what my friend & Communications Expert Kay White calls “The Great Eraser” in her #1 best-selling book “The A to Z of Being Understood: Make Your Voice Heard and Your Conversations Count”.
What if you could change the tone of what you’re about to say by making a simple switch?
Here are two simple tips I learned from Kay to overcome “The Great Eraser:”
Tip #1: Changing “but” to “and”. A useful way to avoid the “but” trap is to replace it with ”and.” The word “and” works as a bridge, instead of breaking the sentence up and highlighting the negative.
Example: “You’ve been doing a great job with counseling patients lately, and why don’t we move more patients through the pharmacy faster also.”
Tip #2: Flip It – Say the negative part first, and the positive part last. That way the comment is left on a positive note.
Example: We really need to move more patients through the pharmacy faster, but you’ve been doing a great job with counseling patients lately.
Doing this will make a difference between being heard and having both points received vs. ending a conversation on a negative note. Start watching for The Great Eraser as you counsel patients, talk to co-workers or your pharmacy manager, or even think to yourself—I’ll bet you catch yourself doing it more often than you think.
It might take a while to get used to pausing before talking to avoid using the word “but,” BUT it is worth it because it will make a huge difference in your communication skills and help you to really be heard in the work place and in your personal life. Comment below on what you think of these tips, or how it’s going for you trying them out.
Motivating Your Pharmacy Staff Who Aren’t Performing to Their Potential
Are you tired of figuring out a way to motivate your pharmacy staff who are underperforming, or who are visibly demotivated?
What if you didn’t have to pull your hair out anymore, and could easily inspire your staff to exceed their potential?
You can improve productivity and increase your pharmacy staff’s motivation by taking a proactive approach to the situation. Create a more dynamic team with this two-tiered plan. First, set the tone for positive change and to decrease obstacles. Second, bring a plan to motivate your staff to the next level.
Here are some ideas you can implement now to achieve this:
Step 1: Share your vision for the pharmacy openly and frequently. Share your 1-mo, quaterly, annual, or 5-yr vision at staff meetings. Ask your staff what role they’d have an interest in playing with helping you reach your vision. In sharing your vision, share your specific goals as well. Instead of general goals such as “improve patient care” or “decrease wait time” give specific goals that are measurable, such as “decrease wait time by 20 min”.
Step 2: Provide clear channels of communication. Include regular time when your staff gets 1-on-1 time with you aside from performance reviews or team meetings. This time is best used to proactively encourage their growth as a pharmacist/tech, discuss challenges, and listen to the solutions they have to offer.
Clear communication when policy changes are made. When policy change are made, include your whole staff on those changes. This includes contract pharmacists who may not always attend your staff meetings. Provide them with an agenda that includes outcomes of those staff meetings and ask them to sign the agenda to acknowledge reading it.
Step 3: Set the stage for a more defined work flow by choosing structure over “wherever you’re needed”. Rather than letting your staff pharmacists & technicians choose where among the workflow to help out, have a structured workflow that lays out who is to do what when. Delegate responsibility that includes checklists (this can apply well to technicians). Some pharmacies allow pharmacists to float between screening & verifying/counseling without a set schedule.
The drawback to this is that some pharmacists may have a preference for one type of responsibility over another and engage primarily in that responsibility. This can create resentment among your staff, because those who may not be as assertive may end up feeling “stuck” doing responsibilities that the other staff doesn’t like to do.
Of course, instill the culture in your staff to help each other out when they’re backed up, but give your staff clear expectations of their roles.
Next month, we’ll introduce a plan for inspiring your pharmacists to want to perform at the next level.