Monday, May 23, 2011

A Word to Graduates From My Uncle Pat

I did not ask permission from my uncle to publish this out to the web but I will ask forgiveness later. My old man and his brothers and sister exemplify the fortitude of their generation. While they might not have had much growing up, they never used it as an excuse or a crutch. All of them have been tremendously successful and at the 125th Anniversary of the School of Pharmacy at the University of Iowa, my uncle Pat Keefe was invited to be the commencement speaker. Here is the speech he gave.


"Dean Letendre, faculty, parents, friends and most importantly graduates that while I no longer live in Iowa I am still at heart, a Hawkeye, and therefore was greatly honored to be asked to be your commencement speaker.  What a privilege to stand in front of these graduates on the 125th anniversary of the College of Pharmacy and at the University of Iowa the states first public institution of higher learning, the first public university in the nation to admit men and women on an equal basis and the university that educates 80% of the teachers, 79% of the dentists, 50% of the physicians and 48% of the states pharmacists.

However after that moment of delight I immediately panicked and asked myself what do I say to graduates that are so much smarter and better educated that I was when I graduated over 40 years ago.

In thinking about that I remembered what my Mother, who never graduated from high school, once said to me.  “he or she may be a 4.0 in school, but a 1.0 in life.”  with that as a reminder I thought I would share with you some of the attributes that I have observed as I moved though my career and life that contributed to others being successful.

*   WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES

Don’t let your mistakes define you.  Learn from them, try to avoid them in the future and don’t let them become a crutch for future failure.  Be honest with yourself, admit you were wrong or made a mistake.  Denial only prevents positive change from happening.  I have observed great companies and individual flounder when they would not admit they were on a path of failure.

*EDUCATION

You have all heard that this is not the end of your education, but only the beginning.  What does that mean?  It took me several years to understand that means more than seminars, staying current with my profession and reading.  It means learning to LISTEN.    So much of my professional success was coming to the realization that I was not the smartest person in the room.  Learning to admit that I did not understand some issue.   Leaning on colleagues and mentors to help educate me and returning the favor as I moved through my career. Recognizing that everyone from the person that takes out the trash, the average employee and the executive all have something to contribute.  Listening and learning how leaders, and we all know them, go about dealing with tough decisions.  It’s easy to lead when everything is going smoothly, but real leaders stand out when faced with crisis.  Finally as your become more successful or move up the corporate ladder learning NOT to listen when people tell you how smart you are or how great your ideas and suggestions.  Get honest input even if it is painful to hear.  Never stop learning, life is a journey that is full of wonderful surprises if you continue to have a thirst for knowledge and new experiences.

*HAVE PASSION

People that have passion for their work are infectious.  They wake up believing they will make a difference that day.  If you get into a career and you don’t have passion then change to another field of pharmacy.  Life is too short to not love what you do, but don’t be so naive to believe that everyday will be a bed of roses or stimulating.  I once had a motivational speaker tell us that great companies do the ordinary things extraordinarily well every day.  All of you will have the opportunity to show passion for your job.  The smile for the patient that always complains.  Answering the phone just as your shift ends.  Giving acknowledgment to a fellow employee for their contribution when everyone is giving you all the credit.  The ability to focus on the 80% that went well vs the 20% that went wrong and work to improve the 20% without losing sight of the 80% that you or your company is doing right.  You will find the 80/20 rule holds for most all aspects of life.  You will meet people in your life that focus only on the 20% and want to bring you down to their level of negativity, don’t let it happen.


*TIME

The greatest gift we possess but the hardest to manage.  Today the majority of you sitting here have no money, debts to pay and glad to have parents or friends here to pay for a good meal this weekend.  But what you do have is friendships and memories that will last a lifetime, because you gave each other the gift of time; to help someone study, helped them celebrate or helped picked them up when they had a bad day.  As you start your career how you use your time will become your greatest challenge and one that will get out of balance constantly.  The old adage that no one died wishing they had spent another day at work is misleading.  Your career is important, work brings dignity, but too often we do not give the time at work our full attention and we short changed our job performance and eventually our careers.  Don’t equate hours worked with job performance.

Make time for yourself, to exercise, recharge, pursue a passion, but don’t make time revolve only around you.

Finally find time to help others.  The saying it is better to give then receive is all too true.

I can remember asking my mother what she wanted for her 70th birthday.  She told me nothing she had everything she needed, but she would love for me to occasionally sit at her kitchen table have a cup of coffee and talk

I have dealt with some of the most successful people on Wall Street and in healthcare.  The ones that made their career their mistress always talk about what they missed.  The ones that found a way to balance their career, family and others seem to have a more joy filled and well rounded life.

If you find yourself unhappy at work, at home or in your life then take stock of how you are spending your time.  


*  Finally MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Pharmacy, as we all know, is an altruistic profession.  The dictionary defines altruism as the “unselfish devotion to the interest and welfare of others.  I have observed that people that don’t forget this makes a difference.  However too often we define making a difference as reaching a certain monetary goal.  Some of us have achieved monetary success but I believe its not because we made that our goal but because we made a difference.

If monetary success alone does not define making a difference then what does:

I have a friend in Cincinnati that has spent his career as a staff pharmacist in retail pharmacy.  But he has volunteered his whole life at a free pharmacies serving the poor that cannot afford their medications.  He has served as the pharmacist on numerous medical mission to Africa.  He makes a difference.

Your teachers that somehow instilled in you the love of learning.  The professors at the University of Iowa and the College of Pharmacy that supported you, cajoled you and helped get you here today and have given you the tools to make a difference.

Your fellow graduates of the College of Pharmacy that have gone on to be involved with local, state and national pharmacy and political organizations that help define what pharmacy is today and will be in the future.

Then all of you that have worked so hard to become Doctors of Pharmacy.  But with this honor comes much responsibility.  Do you know that there a 5x more pediatricians then gerontologists?  Yet we have 2x more seniors than children.  The management of drug therapy for all the baby boomers, as they age, will be extremely important.  You will see major changes in how drugs are distributed in your lifetime, but the clinical skills you have learned and will acquire will be the most important tools to make a difference.  Disease management, patient specific therapeutic outcomes, polypharmacy, the appropriate addition of a drug to a patient’s therapy and collaborative practice with other healthcare professionals, these are some of the areas where you, the future leaders of pharmacy, need to ensure that pharmacy takes a leadership role.  Never forget that you are first and foremost patient advocates.

Some day all of you will be closer to the end of your career than the beginning like I am today.  You will be asking yourself have I made a difference.  What have I done with the great opportunity that pharmacy presented to me.  If you can answer yes that you made a difference then you will have honored the great profession you have chosen, you will have honored this great University and the College of Pharmacy, but more importantly you will have honored yourself.

I would like to end with a quote from Sandra Carey, an author. 

  “Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.”


Congratulations!!  May God grant you wisdom as you move through your career and your life. 

Thank you, 

Pat Keefe"

Much love to my Uncle Pat.



Tuesday, May 17, 2011

The Season Finale for the Yellow Bugs

Perfection. A dynasty. Break us up. All thoughts coming to my mind after our resounding 8-0 final game victory. It was a good day for the Yellow Bugs. Other than the arctic blasts whipping the field in the middle of May, it was a lovely Saturday morning. My old man got to see Ruby play and score three or four goals, my little German continued to own the league depositing four goals herself, and my little Amazon had her first goal of the year.

I barely even coached. It was like I just put the needle on the record and pushed play. It was pretty awesome and at the same time kind of sad. I only have one more year with these girls and they will either go to a club team or stay in recreational. Hopefully, I will have it in me to form my own club but I'm not sure if that is in their best interests and not mine.

The only real coaching of note was my attempt to keep my ace striker in the back and not score.  I put her nearly in our own goal and told her not to go forward but each time it was too much and she would run out, steal the ball, and score. In actuality, the parents from the other team respected the fact I was trying to hold them back. Showing some restraint is appreciated some times.

After it was over, joined hands, gave our final cheer and I thanked the parents for all their help. I'm coaching on Wednesday nights starting on June 1st up by my house. If you read this and have a 5-6 year old bring them up. Just send me an email.

Thanks for reading.

Ben

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Soccer Games and Pizza Parties

One can not plan their schedule in the Spring when your plans are dependent on good weather. Needless to say, the Yellow Bugs were supposed to wrap up their season this past Saturday but mother nature rained us out about a month ago, meaning this coming Saturday is our last game.  Why any of this is relevant surrounds the fact that all sporting seasons must be ended with a pizza party of some kind.  My wife started hounding me (and by hounding I mean whispering sweet nothings repeatedly in my ear while sending me countless emails) after the first game to arrange a time for an end of season party.  I must confess, I would much rather focus on coaching but the extracurriculars are as much a part of coaching as the X's and O's.

The plan was set for Pizza Shoppe after our last game for a little post game fun and hopefully a little bonding by the girls. None of them are in the same classes at the same school, but my grandiose visions, has them playing together for years so why not facilitate friendship now. To digress, we did play the best game of the season last Saturday. The other team was very well coached, another Dad not a college kid, and his team seemed to get it. At one point the ball went from our end to there end, follow by a shot by us, which was deflected and taken all the way back to our end. Then, our team actually put a couple of passes together and it went to their end.  Continuous, end to end action which was pretty impressive. You could actually hear parents on both teams talking about how impressive it was.  Our string of domination did continue with Ruby and my German striker scoring about six goals. After the game, I handed out medals to a couple girls who were unable to join us for the pizza party and their certificates.

Certificates? That's right, certificates. Thanks to Microsoft word and awards templates, I was able to make a certificate for each kid.  These were not your, you did a good job, here is a piece of paper awards.  I tried to personalize each one with a funny message.  For instance, Ruby got the "Best Choice of Outfits and Accessories" Award for her ability to go with different headbands and earring choices for each game. After the kids had ate pizza and cake (again my wife told me to get a cake and have them put "Go Yellow Bugs" on it) I presented the medals to the kids and their awards. While I think the kids appreciated them and thought they were cool, it's the parents who appreciate the extra effort.  In a nutshell that is what I think the difference between being a good coach and being a great one, extra effort. Luckily for me, I have a wife who is in turn with all things kid related (she's a first grade teacher) and I love sports. A winning combination.



Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Back in Business with the Yellow Bugs Soccer Team

The future's so bright I have to wear shades. That is how I feel right now and that is what I see when I watch these seven girls kick the ball around and put beat down after beat down on helpless five year olds. After a three week hiatus, I got back on the field with my girls and we picked up where we left off. 

We had one game rained out the day of my marathon but that was cool because I hate missing games.  Last week, we were in Fort Collins for Easter so I did have to miss that one but another Dad willingly stepped into the drivers seat to steer this machine to victory.  On Saturday, as Ruby and I got out of the car, the smell of freshly cut grass permeated the air, while the sun warmed us up into the proper playing temperature. 

After about thirty minutes of drills I asked the other coach if she was ready to go.  "I guess," was her reply. Not very convincing and a little bit snippy.  Let's hit the highlights quickly on this one.  Ruby and Susie combined for six goals and they didn't score one on us.  The other team did not get frustrated but their coach sure did.  I have one little girl who is practically spinning and dancing while she plays, she has embraced my Capoeira still of soccer, and after we scored our six goal she runs back to our side of the field and says while running, "six to zero Coach."

"Well that's rude," snipes the other coach.

Hold on a minute. First, my player was keeping score herself and in her excitement for our ass kicking we were laying down, happened to say the score out loud.  Now, I understand this is just for fun, and there is no winner or loser, but you better be damn sure that I tell them the score at the end of the game and congratulate them on winning.  If we lost I would tell them that as well.  Let's be real here. I'm not raising some softies and based on the continued participation of my team, their parents like how I coach.

Now back to the other coach for a minute. Here is my main problem with the Premier Coaches they employ in our league (and for full disclosure I sit on the board that oversees this league so I know these people), they are almost all college soccer players and this is their first experience coaching little kids.  Most of these coaches are all very skilled and wouldn't be playing college soccer if they weren't. Just because they are good doesn't mean then can coach.  This particular coach was having them drill step-overs and line drills. Get real! They are five, you should be teaching concepts such as offense, defense, the rules. Foot skills are great to teach, individually but come on this is supposed to be at their level. Secondly, she was yelling at them during the game and you could see the frustration in her face and hear it in her voice during the game. 

Anyway, after the game we enjoyed our post-game cheer and savory snacks.  The Yellow Bugs will crawl all up in your business! Boom!