All of us must eventually decide. At least that’s the opinion of the late Randy
Pausch.
Randy was a professor of computer science and human-computer interaction at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In September 2006, at the age of 46, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and less than a year later, he was given a terminal diagnosis. He was told by his medical team that he had “3 to 6 months of good health left.”
On September 18, 2007 Randy did something that many professors have done. He gave a lecture imagining that it was the last lecture he would ever give. Traditionally during these lectures, professors are asked to think about their demise and to ruminate about what they have learned and what matters most to them. It is usually the intent of these lectures and the professors to impart whatever insight and wisdom they can if after the lecture, that’s it, they’d be gone.
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The only difference here was that, given his diagnosis, Randy didn’t have to do much imagining. In a few short months he knew he would be dead. In fact, less than a year later, on July 25, 2008, Randy passed away. But during his lecture he did what he had done most of his life – focus on the positive. He shared all of his tips and insights on how to stay focused on the bright side. Here’s the thing: No matter how bad a day you’re having…no matter how challenging your last patient was…the perfect antidote for it all is simply reading Randy’s book:
The Last Lecture.
I won’t give it all away, only to say that Randy doesn’t use the glass half full or half empty metaphor. Instead, he defers to A.A. Milne, the creator of Winnie the Pooh and the Hundred Acre Wood. Pausch says we all need to decide which Pooh character we’re going to be. He poignantly asks the question: Are you an Eeyore or a Tigger? As eye care professionals (ECPs) that is a fundamental decision we all have to make. In case you forget it from your childhood, Eeyore is an old, grey donkey who lives in the southeast corner of the Hundred Acre Wood, in “Eeyore’s Gloomy Place, rather boggy and sad.”
He has a poor opinion of all the other animals, describing them as having no brain at all. His favorite food is thistles. He seems constantly depressed and has an uncanny ability to see the grey cloud within any silver lining. Tigger on the other hand, is a tiger-like character who is always smiling. With his distinctive black and orange stripes, he bounces from one adventure to the other, bringing out the best in those around him. There is no grey cloud big enough or dark enough that Tigger can’t wrap in a silver lining. He sees the best in every opportunity.
In more than thirty years in the optical profession, I have never met a truly and wholly successful person who is rotten and miserable – never. That says a lot.
So imagine the following scenario – one that plays out hundreds of times in optical dispensaries day in and day out – all across our country: A patient walks into your dispensary, complaining that her lenses have become so scratched that she cannot see out of them at all. As you examine the glasses, you quickly determine that in fact it is the AR coating. The moment that client walked through your door, it could be said that she initiated an EVENT (E). Although most of us usually don’t think in these terms, we all experience dozens, perhaps hundreds, of Events every single day.
From this point on, let’s consider how this optician handles this particular Event. For the sake of reflection (no pun intended) let’s assume that this client had purchased her glasses out-of-state, and that any warranty on the lenses has long since expired. One possible response from the ECP is this: “Well…you know…it’s really not your lenses that are scratched. What you have are lenses that have been treated with what’s called an Anti-Reflective, or AR coating. That’s what’s really scratched. You have to be really careful with what you clean them with. They’ll scratch if you look at them the wrong way. Really all you can do is purchase new lenses.”
Once the ECP informs her that new lenses would cost $275, the client recoils. “I can’t afford nearly $300. My insurance doesn’t kick in for another three months. I’ll have to struggle with them until then.” To which the ECP (and in this case the E in ECP might just stand for Eeyore) replies, “Sorry I couldn’t help you…have a nice day.” What you have just read is this particular eye care professional’s RESPONSE to the Event.
What if the ECP had been more of a Tigger and instead had responded like this: “Wow! You’re really lucky. You have what are called AR lenses – that stands for anti-reflective. You probably remember when you first got them how crystal clear everything was, especially at night. It’s probably what was used to clean them that scratched them. Anyway, like I said you’re lucky. First of all, they’re usually warranted for a year or two. If the warranty has expired, I can strip the AR layer off and then the lenses should be good as new. Now of course, lights at night will bother you a bit, but you should be able to function a lot better without all the scratches. And remember, whether you get your next pair from me or somebody else, make sure you always insist on AR or anti-reflective lenses. They’re the only lenses that we can remove scratches from…they’re just the best! Come on back in 20 minutes and I’ll have all those scratches stripped off for you.”
I think we can all agree that each of these two separate Responses would result in dramatically different OUTCOMES. The Outcome of the first scenario is a frustrated, disillusioned client who will never – and I mean never – want to have anything to do with AR lenses. On the other hand, after the second Response, that client will benefit in that she will be able to see clearly until her “insurance kicks in,” making herself and all the people around her safer. Additionally, even if it means shelling out more money, you can bet that she will always insist on AR lenses. What a radically different result! The thing that most affected the outcome of each scenario was what? Of course…the Response of the ECP to the Event!
With all that in mind, I (and I think Randy Pausch) would encourage you to always keep the following algebraic-looking formula in mind – consciously in mind: E + R = O. That’s right, always remember that Event + Response = Outcome. And of all those three things, the only one that you are completely, 100% in control of is your Response to each and every Event that occurs each and every day. Choose wisely.
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