How to Conquer Fear in Your Pharmacy Career

How do you conquer fear in your pharmacy career?

A big fear in business is bankruptcy, but pharmacy is a bit different.

In pharmacy, one mistake can mean life or death, yet pharmacists manage to work through their fear to do their job. If we were so afraid of making a mistake on a patient’s medication, then we wouldn't be able to do our jobs.

So, how do pharmacists overcome their fear of failure every day, minute, and second of the workday?

Pharmacists are trained to not make mistakes, trust the system, and do the best job they can possibly do. By that training, shouldn’t pharmacists be some of the most fearless people on the planet?

But it takes a lot of courage to do what we do. We fill hundreds or even thousands of prescriptions/orders every week without becoming paralyzed by fear.

Still, sometimes, I am gripped by fear. On these occasions, I use a technique that helps me regain courage and reach for my dreams, just as I was trained to overcome the fear of imperfection.

The technique is to imagine what would happen if I didn’t attempt to achieve my dream.

Here are the things I imagine would happen:

• I would lose confidence in my ability to take chances.
• I would settle for a career that leaves me uninspired.
• I could not inspire my daughter to achieve her dreams.
• I would let down everyone who is looking to me for guidance and inspiration.
• My life would not make as big an impact as it could.

One of my clients sent me an e-mail last night that left me in tears.

This client is a pharmacist in Nigeria whose dream is to provide pediatric immunizations, antimalarial education, and blood glucose and cholesterol screenings in his community. If that isn’t a big enough impact to encourage me to keep helping others achieve their dreams, then I don’t know what is.

If I don’t make any attempts to find the courage to move past my self-limiting beliefs, then that is on me. I am choosing to move forward and share my story and mission with the world.

My training as a pharmacist gives me the courage to move forward without becoming paralyzed by fear and to make as big of an impact as possible.

How do you overcome fear?