Episode #170 – The Napoleon Hill Success Formula for Animal Health and Veterinary Professionals, Part 1
Julea: Welcome to “The Animal Health and Veterinary Employment Insider,” brought to you by The VET Recruiter. In this podcast, Animal Health Executive Recruiter and Veterinary Recruiter, Stacy Pursell, founder and CEO of The VET Recruiter, provides insight and practical advice for both employers and job seekers in the Animal Health industry and Veterinary profession. The VET Recruiter’s mission is to help Animal Health and Veterinary employers find and hire top talent, while helping animal health and veterinary professionals attain career-enhancing opportunities that increase their quality of life.
In today’s podcast episode, we’ll be talking about the Napoleon Hill success formula for Animal Health and Veterinary professionals. Hello, Stacy, and thank you for joining us today.
Stacy: Hello, Julea. As always, I am glad to be here with you.
Julea: Stacy, this is an interesting topic. In fact, the title of today’s episode seems to indicate that this is going to be a series in our podcast. What inspired you to talk about this?
Stacy: I admire the teachings of Napoleon Hill, and I think what he had to say, and his advice is timeless.
Julea: He did a lot of work in the early 20th century, didn’t he?
Stacy: Yes. He was born in 1883 and he died in 1970. He was an American self-help author, and he’s best known for his book Think and Grow Rich, which is among the 10 best-selling self-help books of all time. A lot of Napoleon Hill’s teaching are considered to be fundamentals of success, things that will work no matter what century you’re living in or the circumstances under which you’re living. And I think right now, in the year 2020, Animal Health and Veterinary professionals—and all professionals, really—could benefit from revisiting the wisdom of Napoleon Hill.
And I have a couple of examples that I think proves this.
Julea: What examples are those Stacy?
Stacy: Both of these examples involve situations that happened recently with job candidates and they both involve candidates who had decided they were not going to accept an offer of employment. In one instance, the candidate texted the hiring authority to tell them they were not accepting the offer.
Julea: They texted the hiring manager to decline the job offer? Really? Who does that Stacy?
Stacy: Yes, this candidate texted the hiring manager to decline the job. As you might imagine, the hiring authority was not pleased. After all, he had spent a lot of time, energy, and even money interviewing and recruiting the candidate. At the very least, he expected the candidate to call him on the phone to tell him personally that he was not accepting the offer and the reasons he was not. However, that did not happen.
Julea: What about the other situation?
Stacy: In the other situation, the candidate sent an email to the hiring authority. At the very least, the candidate did not send a text. However, the candidate did not explain why they he was not accepting the offer, and he didn’t copy me, the recruiter, on the email, so I did not even know he had turned the offer down. I learned it from my client who was puzzled that the candidate declined the job offer over email with no explanation. Once again, this displays a lack of professionalism. It’s a poor example of personal branding, as well. Both candidates branded themselves in a negative fashion. The Veterinary profession is a small profession and it is a small world.
Julea: This happened even though this is not exactly as much of a candidates’ job market right now as it was due to Covid-19?
Stacy: Yes, and you’re right. This is not as much of a candidates’ market right now as it was just a month ago. So, it is even more puzzling to me that people would think this behavior is appropriate or that this will not follow them in their career. Behavior like this does not lend itself to long-term success, and that is one of the reasons why I wanted to revisit the wisdom of Napoleon Hill and discuss his philosophies for enjoying personal and professional success.
Julea: That makes sense. I like the teachings of Napoleon Hill too. Where would you like to start Stacy?
Stacy: I want to begin with two of the most important foundations for success, which are character and hard work. Napoleon Hill had a lot to say about both of these things, and with good reason. I have been an Animal Health Executive Recruiter and Veterinary Recruiter for about 23 years, and I can say without a doubt that a person’s character and their work ethic largely determine how successful they are in life.
And with that being said, I have a quote from Napoleon Hill that I would like to cite:
“People of character do what they say they will do, when they say they will do it, and according to agreed-upon conditions. They are the leaders, the individuals to whom others turn for guidance, because they have demonstrated that they care and that they can be trusted. If you respect yourself enough to keep commitments even when it’s inconvenient to do so, others will come to respect you, too.”
And I want to read that last sentence again, because it’s so important: “If you respect yourself enough to keep commitments even when it’s inconvenient to do so, others will come to respect you, too.”
Julea: So going back to those two job candidates who just texted and emailed that they weren’t going to take the job, they didn’t exactly do that, did they?
Stacy: No, they did not. But believe it or not, there have been some job candidates in recent years who didn’t even text or email when they decided they weren’t going to accept an offer. They just disappeared and no one, not myself or my client, could reach them.
Julea: That is called “ghosting,” Stacy and I know we have talked about that on other podcast episodes.
Stacy: Yes, that’s right, and it’s the ultimate transgression when it comes to a lack of professionalism. You see, according to Napoleon Hill, dependability is the first foundation stone of good character, and I agree with him. We’ve discussed this before on our podcast, but when you brand yourself as dependable, what you’re really branding yourself as is trustworthy. And branding yourself as trustworthy is one of the best ways that you can brand yourself. That’s because if people don’t trust you, they’re not going to want to hire you or even work with you.
Julea: So what you’re saying is that to be considered trustworthy, a person should do what they say they’re going to do, be dependable, and be reliable?
Stacy: Yes, that’s correct. I know that sounds like it should be easy to do, but you would be surprised by how difficult it is for some people. It is important to be dependable and reliable all of the time and not just some of the time. It is especially important in such a small world like in the Animal Health Industry or Veterinary profession.
Julea: Can you explain what you mean by that?
Stacy: Certainly. One disturbing trend that I’ve noticed in the marketplace during the past several years involves professionals doing whatever benefits them in the moment. Or whatever they think will benefit them in the moment. This means being dependable and reliable when they believe it will benefit them and then maybe not being dependable when they think it won’t benefit them, or at the very least, when they think it won’t hurt them.
Julea: You mean if a person thinks they can do something that would be considered unreliable and they also think they can get away with it, then they’ll still do it?
Stacy: Yes, that’s what I mean. Character and integrity are not determined by circumstances. You can’t do the right thing only when doing the right thing benefits you. That kind of defeats the purpose of it. If doing the right thing always had positive results, then everyone would do the right thing all of the time. It just doesn’t work that way.
Julea: That reminds me of the quote by C.S. Lewis. I believe he said, “Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is watching.”
Stacy: That’s exactly right! Yes, that’s what I mean. There’s some of what I would call “fair weather integrity” in the marketplace, and that is absolutely not a recipe for long-term success. A person will certainly not reach their full potential by engaging in that kind of activity or behavior.
And they also will not reach their full potential without putting in the maximum amount of effort.
Julea: Is that tied to the hard work that you mentioned earlier?
Stacy: Yes, that’s the second thing I’d like to discuss today and that Napoleon Hill talked about a lot in this books and lectures. In fact, I have two quotes by him that I’d like to present.
The first one goes like this:
“The person who works harder when the boss isn’t around is headed straight for a better job. It is a foregone conclusion that you will never reach great heights of success if you perform at high levels only when others are watching you. The most exacting standards of performance should be those you set for yourself, not those set by others for you. When your expectations for yourself are higher than your boss’s expectations for you, you will never have to worry about job security.”
In other words, if you work harder than your boss expects you to work and your standards for yourself are higher than even your boss’s standards, then you’re going to succeed. You’re going to have job security, you’re going to get promoted, and you’re going to become attractive to other employers. And it all comes down to effort and the willingness to put forth the effort that’s required to be successful.
Julea: And Stacy, just like character and integrity, it’s not a situation where you work hard when you think it will benefit you and you don’t work hard when you think you can get away with it, is that right?
Stacy: Yes, that’s right! Making the decision to work hard and put forth effort is a decision that you should make every day and with everything that you do. And in terms of personal branding, branding yourself as someone who works hard is just as good as branding yourself as someone who is trustworthy and dependable. In fact, what organizations really want are employees who they can trust to work hard. Those are the people who get raises and promotions, and Napoleon Hill had something to say about that, too. What he said goes like this:
“Going the extra mile can give you insight and a good reputation, both of which attract opportunity. Many obvious opportunities are found in places no one else has bothered to venture. If you put in the extra effort to make a good project an even better one, or you get to know your equipment better than anyone else on your shift, you will see things others overlook and be in a position to make use of them. Leaders who need a job done think first of people they know will do it well. If other people respect you for the quantity and the quality of your work, you will find yourself advancing past others who regard their jobs as drudgery.”
I know that’s a long quote and a lot to say, but the bottom line is that going the extra mile and working hard can benefit you in multiple ways, not just in one way. Not only do you get the tangible benefits of completing projects and tasks by doing good work, but you also get the benefits of being recognized and also rewarded for the work that you do.
Julea: Stacy, we’re just about out of time. Is there anything else that you’d like to add before we wrap up today’s podcast episode?
Stacy: Yes, as I mentioned earlier, Napoleon Hill died in 1970. However, his wisdom is timeless. It also does not matter that Napoleon did not work in the Animal Health industry or Veterinary profession. He knew what needed to be done in order to achieve success, regardless of a person’s profession or the nature of their pursuits. His formula for success is built upon timeless pearls of wisdom that are just as relevant today as they were during his time.
When you reach the point where you think you have nothing to learn from other people, that’s the point where you stop growing in your career and in your life. You are either growing or you are dying. You have something to learn from Napoleon Hill. And you have something to learn from countless other people who are already part of your network.
Julea: Stacy, thank you so much for all of this great information and wisdom from Napoleon Hill.
Stacy: You’re very welcome, Julea, and thank you. It’s been my pleasure, and I look forward to our next episode of the Animal Health and Veterinary Employment Insider!
Julea: That’s all for today’s show. For Stacy Pursell and everyone at The VET Recruiter, thank for your listening and we invite you to join us next time when we address more employment issues in the Animal Health industry and Veterinary profession. We hope that you will join us then!
In the meanwhile if your organization needs to hire an Animal Health Executive Recruiter or Veterinary Recruiter to help you identify and hire top talent then reach out to Stacy at www.thevetrecruiter.com
If you have experience in the Animal Health Industry or Veterinary Profession and are interested in exploring other job opportunities, there are hot job opportunities listed on The VET Recruiter website with more jobs being posted on a regular basis.
Again, we look forward to seeing you next time for the Animal Health and Veterinary Employment Insider. Stay well everyone.