12 Ways to Make you and your Pharmacy Staff Happier this Holiday Season

Co-authored by RMS Senior Support Technician, Greg Howard

Happy Monday! You have officially made it through Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Small Business Saturday.  Rather than wake up and come into work this morning, it seems like it might have been nicer to reward the weekends success with a nice massage or curl up by the fire with a book and a nice glass of wine. But there’s no rest for the weary, and the sprint of this past weekend is just the beginning of one very long marathon.   

There is plenty of time left for your independent pharmacy to make the most of the holiday season.  But if there isn’t any gas left in your tank, you wont’ be met with much success. With that in mind, I wanted to share something a little different this week. Here’s post from one of our support technicians, Greg Howard, in the hopes of bringing a little more zen to your life and a little more joy to your holiday season.

12 Habits of Very Happy People

1) Each day, write down something you are grateful for. Find a NEW thing everyday, no repeats. This conditions your mind to always be looking for something to be grateful for and it gets easier the more often you do it.

2) Take 2 minutes a day and write about one positive experience you’ve had over the past 24 hours. Write it down with as much detail as possible, which helps your mind to re-live the joy. I call this DOUBLE IMPACT.

3) Meditate daily. No fancy shmancy crap, just take 10 minutes and focus on your breathing. Do it lying down, sitting up, you can even do it walking.

4)Preform a random act of kindness over the course of the day. You can get as elaborate as you want with this, like buying the person behind you their coffee or lunch. Stick a $5 bill in a magazine at the grocery counter. My favorite is to simply compliment people for something they did or said. It only takes a moment, and it just might make someone’s day.

5) Exercise for 15 minutes every day. Just a measly 15 minutes. Yoga, walking, dancing to your favorite music… Just do it. Those few minutes will make a positive impact you’ll learn to love. And don’t worry, I do my dancing in private. That way I don’t have to listen to any derisive laughter!

6) Spend more time with friends. No, not those so-called ‘friends’ you might have that are constantly negative, I’m talking about the friends you have that are fun and happy. If you don’t have any friends like that, it’s time to start making them. Make room for new friends in your life that lift you up.

7) Practice savoring the moment. I call this active gratitude. When you notice something that feels good, sounds good, tastes good or whatever, allow your focus to really dig into the experience. Don’t let those moments slip by, enjoy them as intensely as you can.

8) Practice having a positive perspective. Train yourself to see the bright side. Look for the small things in any situation that give you reason for hope, especially in moments of stress and frustration. Sure it’s hard, but it’s also worthwhile.

9) Put more focus into cultivating your relationships. Be engaged when you are with your loved ones. Give the people you love your attention, even when you are busy. Stop what you’re doing and look loved ones in the eye; hear them when they speak. This is one of the most powerful ways to cultivate your relationships that you’ll ever learn.

10) Practice forgiveness. I don’t mean you have to forgive everyone who ever hurt you right now, just start practicing this. The power your past has over you today is defined by the emotions you apply to it right now. Learn to let it go so you can be free.

11) Do more stuff you LOVE. The things you love have meaning to you, so start doing them more often. This means you might have to say no to others once in a while, however it also means you will be saying YES to yourself more often. Take time to do meaningful things for yourself and you’ll be a happier person.

12) Read at least 10 pages of a good book every day. It’s more important that you practice the Zen of reading than what type of book it is, and if you have children it’s a perfect chance to read to them. Even teenagers enjoy listening to a good story.

For those of you that are thinking OMG, that’s a lot of things to add to my day, take a look at where you are at. Look at this list and realize there are a few things you’re already doing. You just need to practice noticing them. And there are probably a few things that you do in the opposite way, so all you need to do is develop the habit of shifting your focus.

As author Spider Robinson pointed out, for human beings, shared pain is lessened, while shared joy is multiplied.

The happier we get, the more joy we can share with others. Let’s all get better at that.  Whether you use these tips in your business life, your personal life, or both, I hope they help you to have a brighter holiday season.

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