By Brandon Hess, CVPM, CCFP
One of my first mentors said something that has always stuck with me. I can remember I was sitting at the front desk, on an overnight shift, having a snack and waiting on the next emergency to come in. “Brandon, many people get into veterinary medicine thinking it’s an animal business. I have never seen a dog or cat walk in with a credit card and pay their bill. This is a people business, not an animal business.”. He was right. So many people get into this industry for the allure of cuddling puppies and kitties all day, only to be smacked in the face with the reality of what’s at the other end of that leash.
Perspective and realistic expectations are vital to navigating a happy, and successful career in veterinary medicine. Our (everyone on the team) goal is to make as many clients as possible happy with the services we provide. From the phone call, to checkout, to the experience on our social media pages, veterinary medicine is a customer service industry. However, can we make 100% of clients happy? No. That’s where realistic expectations come into play. There will always be upset clients. Some people, no matter what we do, will be unhappy. The goal should be to learn from that situation, and grow; not let it define your satisfaction within the industry, or happiness the rest of that day/week. If you see 100 people, and 1 of them is unhappy, that’s a 99% satisfaction rate.
Think about the most stressful things that come to mind when dealing with clients. Is it discussing finances? Navigating the, at times, high emotions? Trying to get them to understand the things that are going on with their pet? Now, how many of those things can you avoid? This is also an important part of realistic expectations and perspective.
“Spend your energy on things you can control, not things you cannot”
This is one of my favorite mantras, and something that puts things in perspective for me when I am in difficult situations. If I spend energy on things I cannot control, I will not have energy to navigate the things I can. So, when you are dealing with an upset client, or difficult situation, take a step back and ask yourself “what can I control in this situation?”. Is it the way you respond? Taking a step back, taking a deep breath, and changing your knee-jerk reaction? Practicing empathy? What ever the situation is, the way you respond matters. The way you process the situation matters. Your perspective, matters.