The last blog for the decade
Boy oh boy! Was that a year or what?
It’s a little hard to know where to start and what to say about this year. It is amazing when we look back at all the things that happened this year at Peak. No wonder we are starting to feel a little fragile as we head towards Christmas. I think we are all due for a little break! However, House Peak remains strong (I was told I had to have a Game of Thrones reference in this blog. This was the best I could do).
For me personally the year started out with the heaviest of blows. My Mum passed away early January after many a year of cancer battles. She was a tough lady, the toughest of them all. She was inspiring, she was my source of stubbornness, my source of gardening advice. She was full of love, she made me laugh, taught me a lot about life. I miss her every day.
I cannot write about 2019 without mentioning the Peak family. I am blessed to be able work with the best team ever. They are superb, talented, they are passionate, they definitely love their food, love life and they are the best damn team in the world.
I need to give a special shout out to each member of the Peak crew:
Sarah - My amazing Marketing and Communications Manager. She has overcome many adversities this year and I am so damn proud of her. She has grown immensely, and a lot of Peak’s success is due to her.
Vic – Peak is not Peak without Vic; she is my friend. She makes us laugh and gives the Peak family energy and vibrancy. So caring, so thoughtful and saved my bum more than enough times. She always goes above and beyond for our clients. Vic is everything that Peak is.
Priya – At the start of this year, I would not have thought I would be lucky enough to have someone of Priya’s experience and talents at Peak. It’s like she has been part of House Peak for ever. The first year of many with this wonderful lady.
Patricia – Otherwise known as Patty Cakes internally she has grown enormously this year. She is the guru of everything and comes with non stop laughter and smiling. An absolute delight.
Marcus – Balancing out the testosterone at Peak Strategies, Marcus has also grown enormously this year. He has been a great support and worked hard to grow himself and his knowledge. A great bloke with the kindest of hearts.
Carolyn – The newest arrival at House Peak. A quiet soul (and boy don’t we need more like her) but comes with a wealth of talent and we are all looking forward to embedding her more into our clients bookkeeping work.
So, what else happened this year;
The Speaking Pharmacy podcast continues. It’s a little weird to think this shy introvert is doing podcasts, but they are a lot of fun and I have had the great opportunity to talk to some amazing people. We are so proud to hit over 1000 downloads earlier this month.
I had the wonderful opportunity to speak at APP earlier this year which was a massive honour. Also, I get to do it again at APP2020.
The blog continues and we have had some great feedback from people this year. Again, its amazing to think this bloke who struggled at basic English at high school would be doing this. But its fun and we love seeing Vic being published in AJP for every article she writes.
To the Pharmacy Guild of WA and the Future Pharmacy Program, particularly Matt, Anthony, Lucinda and Lyndsey. You are all amazing and thank you for your support. To be able to give back to the WA pharmacy community and the Pharmacy Guild is a huge honour for us. Both Sarah and I enjoyed presenting at their workshops. We are looking forward to 2020 and growing this program even further.
To all our amazing clients and new clients that joined House Peak this year. The number one value of Peak is relationships. We do what we do because of the wonderful relationships we have with our clients. It gives us the greatest joy to be able to laugh with you all and join you in your business journey’s. We will continue to work hard for you all, to give you everything we must help you grow and achieve your business goals.
Lastly, to the pharmacy community, may you grow and prosper. Let us together face up to the dragons that threaten community pharmacy. Let’s innovate, grow, evolve and together we can become something amazing.
As you know at Peak we don’t sit still for very long. We keep progressing and evolving, keep trying and finding better ways of doing things. The Peak family is growing and will continue to grow, with a new accountant currently being searched for and later next year more administration and operational support. At APP2020 we are sponsoring the My Community Pharmacy Action Plan day on the Wednesday the 18th March, we are really looking forward to it. We also have other events planned for next year so watch this space.
In summary:
We worked hard, sometimes too hard. We won, lost, succeeded and we failed but we keep trying and trying. We didn’t sit still, we kept changing, trying, innovating and dreaming. Above all we keep find ways to help Community Pharmacy grow and prosper.
Lastly to my amazing family. Lisa, Stephen and Ciara. Thanks for helping me always with the Peak journey, I couldn’t do this without you.
Speak to you all in 2020 and wishing you a Merry Peakmas!