Uncovering Self-Leadership with Marissa Stelmaschuk

June 22, 2023

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In this episode of Pharmacy View Podcast’s Full Scope Pharmacy Leadership stream, host Chantelle Turner, a Pharmacist Leadership and Business Coach at TURN Pharmacy Leadership, is joined by Marissa Stelmaschuk, General Practice Pharmacist, North Shore General Practice. Before their current engagement, Marissa worked as a clinical Pharmacist for over ten years. Throughout the conversation, Chantelle and Marissa uncover the importance of self-leadership and how that helps open doors to new opportunities.

Marissa might not be a stereotypical leader, but they sure have a journey of self-leadership that inspires leadership like no other. Pharmacy has been a part of Marissa’s life for a very long time—from studying Pharmacy to having worked in both Community Pharmacy and Hospital Pharmacy—it was a dream job they worked towards and achieved.

Pharmacy View Podcast · Ep 75 Chantelle Marissa

Having kids changed their perspective, and they thought there was more to them than just what they had set their goal towards, and that is how Marissa came into the role they have today. After working for over a decade in Hospital Pharmacy, Marissa felt they could do more in Pharmacy. They recount how the transition was scary and completely new. But that leap of faith has done wonders for their career, and they share how letting go and taking that leap of faith can mean more opportunities. When asked how their transition from fear to thriving in their role, Marissa says that having confidence in the role and being able to draw from their diverse past experiences helped them.

Marissa highlights the importance of setting goals and working towards them. Having said that, they also warn against solving and creating everything all at once—their advice: break the goals down and prioritize what needs to be done first. Marissa believes the key challenge remains that we often set up barriers and limit ourselves for many reasons. To overcome the challenge, one must first let go of inhibitions, take the leap of faith, and understand that at the end of the day, one is part of a team working towards better patient health.

Marissa then goes on to talk about having awareness of others. People interact and respond differently. Understanding the differences in people, reaching out, and catering to what they need—makes all the difference. Marissa’s golden rule: first observe, then ask.

Marissa puts it succinctly when they say, “Even something that seems like it’s unsuccessful or difficult, there’s always something to be learned from that.” Even a negative experience teaches you what not to do and how not to approach things.

And Marissa’s favorite tool for the leadership toolbox would be resilience. Experiences can be good or bad, and attempts can be either successful or fail—but resilience and grit can make all the difference for you to keep working towards your purpose.

Topics Covered

Marissa’s Pharmacy story
Dreams can evolve
Overcoming the tendency to hold on
Learn how to build confidence
It takes time and patience to succeed
Benefits of mastering self-leadership
Learning to build awareness of others
Resilience as a tool of choice in the leadership toolbox

Key Quotes (Time Stamps)

“I guess Pharmacy has been a big part of my life for a very long time. So, I’d take it back to high school. I was in Pharmacy, working part-time. During my Pharmacy degree, I also worked part-time in Community Pharmacy. So, I kind of had that exposure from a reasonably young age and had decided that Pharmacy seemed like it was for me. Studied and throughout my study, I enjoyed my Community Pharmacy work but had kind of always been working towards a career in Hospital Pharmacy. It seemed like a dream job for me and exactly where I wanted to be. So, I worked towards that and achieved that.” (1:59 – 2:36)

“But on reflection, if we don’t allow ourselves to take those different paths and jump on those new opportunities, I think it’s a wasted opportunity, obviously, and you just never know what’s going to happen if you do jump into a new path or a new direction.” (3:16 – 3:31)

“Hospital Pharmacy did provide me with so many wonderful opportunities: career opportunities, leadership opportunities, and flexibility to explore different areas of Pharmacy. So, I think clinically, it’s a fantastic place to be, and it can be very rewarding, particularly working in a group environment. Lots of pharmacists to work with and learn from. But it did become, perhaps not, what I imagined it would be for me.” (4:01 – 4:33)

“I think letting go of the idea that I had to stay there and because that was my original goal was maybe the biggest hurdle for me in progressing my career. So. realizing that there is more outside of that original point of view or that original goal.” (4:56 – 5:13)

“I could have looked at it as I’m very new to this, which I was and still am. What do I know? I know little compared to someone who’s been in a role such as this for a really long time. However, I think my other Pharmacy and Pharmacist experiences really have helped me in starting this role and also developing it and getting to a point where I feel like I am thriving and moving forward with it.” (7:29 – 7:57)

“Sometimes being patient and just letting things run their course really helps with building that confidence because you have different experiences.” (8:36 – 8:43)

“I guess, sometimes focusing on specifics or specific goals for me. I guess setting goals and tasks and looking back and going, okay, what exactly would I like to achieve, whether it be today or this month or even this year, and not getting too far ahead of yourself and wanting to solve and create everything all at once. Breaking it down a little bit and looking at the what’s my highest priority here and what would I like to do first?” (9:48 – 10:17)

“And I think at the end of the day, we’re all a team. We’re all bringing something to a team, and we’re all working towards, that’s the beauty of it, the health of the patient. So, I think just approaching those discussions, conversations, and interactions and building those relationships with doctors–if we have that view that we’re all just working together and we do have something to bring to the table as Pharmacists, we obviously have a lot to bring.” (12:16 – 12:47)

“I have learned, over time, that people interact differently, people respond differently. People may be available at different times of the day, or they may prefer a face-to-face conversation. They may prefer a quick message or a check in or an email. And you’re only going to learn those things about specific people by reaching out and trying.” (13:29 – 13:53)

“I think it’s important to observe first and foremost–to observe and then ask questions to get a feel for what you think would be the best way to approach a conversation with this particular person. Because I think sometimes you just have to ask. You can observe, and you can think maybe this will work. But I think sometimes it’s best to ask as well.” (15:19 – 15:46)

“Even something that seems like it’s unsuccessful or difficult, there’s always something to be learned from that.” (18:02 – 18:09)

“If you are having a negative experience with someone senior to you or a leader or a mentor, even if the only thing you take from that scenario or that situation is who not to be like or what not to do, you’ve still learned from that. When you practice as a Pharmacist yourself and you are leading someone or a team, lead them the way you want to, and you may be learning along the way how you don’t want to lead and whom you don’t want to be. But that’s still learning, and that’s been an extremely valuable concept that I do live by.” (21:37 – 22:15)

“I would say resilience. So, I think that’s something that I find so important. It comes back to what I said about these different experiences you have, whether they good or bad, whether they’re successes or they are challenges. I think having resilience and just keeping on going–it’s so powerful just to put one foot in front of the other and present your best self each day.” (25:04 – 25:36)