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Congratulations!

You just landed your first job out of residency!  Your first step to a new beginning!

So, where do we go from here? Last year, when I was finishing up my pharmacy residency,  I had the privilege of speaking with a great pharmacy leader and asked what advice she would give to pharmacy residents who were starting their first career job. “Working on one’s emotional intelligence”, she responded.  I was a bit surprised, since, although I knew it was important, didn’t really find it crushingly crucial. However, she went on to elaborate, “An ill-tempered response, a quick burst of anger, can easily destroy your current and future credibility”.  

What is emotional intelligence? You may have heard discussions regarding a person’s “personality” or “character”- those are just a few of the names that fall under the category of emotional intelligence. It’s comprised of both social and personal competence. I wanted to share a high level overview of each of these areas. Hopefully, this will help you as you take your first steps out the door.

Personal competence can be divided into three categories.

1. Self-Awareness
   1. Be aware of your internal state, preferences and intuitions. It’s important to recognize that your emotions can affect your performance.  Ever had rough negative criticism? Instead of being emotionally driven, it is important to be value driven. This will allow you to pause, accurately reflect on your strengths and limits, and have a better vision of areas you can improve.
2. Self- control
   1. If you don’t realize it, you can quickly make poor decisions as your emotions take the steering wheel and hit the gas pedal. On the other hand though, this doesn’t mean you stifle your feelings (e.g., sadness, anger, etc.). Merely how you express your feelings. Displaying integrity, being flexible and innovating during challenges are just a few ways to help you stay in control.
3. Motivation
   1. If you kept a journal of the tasks you did, and how you felt when you do them,  you may notice, that you felt better when you did work you like doing. In fact, some would argue that this “flow” is actually what motivates us to complete work, not necessarily bonuses or more vacation.  Outstanding performers are usually motivated by striving to achieve excellence, sharing in the organization’s vision and seeing challenges rather as opportunities. 

Social competence can be divided into two categories

1. Empathy
   1. You probably have heard this all throughout pharmacy school, but empathy allows us to recognize how others are feeling, without them having to verbally express their emotions. By utilizing empathy, you take time to understand the others’ feelings. You can then recognize their issues and help meet their need.
2. Influence
   1. I want you to think about two preceptors, your best and your worst. How did you perform on their rotations? How did they motivate you? Was communication clear between you and the preceptor? How did they guide you? When they had disagreements with an attending or another preceptor, how were they resolved?
   2. In a few months, you’ll most likely be a preceptor for a student or even resident, so you have the opportunity to influence an individual. Or if you’re the new ICU pharmacist, you can potentially influence your ICU nurses, residents and attending….for better…or for worse. Emotional elements play a crucial role here. The most effective people can sense how others are reacting and push their interaction in the best direction. This can be done by clear communication. When disagreements arise, emotionally intelligent people use their skills to negotiate and resolving disagreements. Ultimately, these people provide a guiding hand in leading change. 

The rules of work and in particular, healthcare are constantly changing. As you find yourself dealing with different people, disciplines, and practices – you’ll find that the traits that will help showcase yourself as a star performer aren’t necessarily hidden in the latest updated guidelines.  Emotional intelligence works in conjunction with your didactic skill set, and top performers have both. On the other hand, a lack of emotional control can easily make an intelligent person look senseless. That all being said, which path would you choose?