It’s been quite a year. In spite of a world-wide pandemic, natural disasters, social unrest, economic challenges and a political system that seems to have gone haywire, we’ve much for which to be thankful. If you’re listening to this message, if you’re breathing, you’re ahead of the game.

Remember Blockbuster? That chain of video rental stores that started with one location in 1985, had over 9,000 locations at its peak by 2004, only to vanish from the planet by 2014. That’s right, from seed to dust in less than 20 years! In that short period, Blockbuster moved an entire industry from a purchase and own business model to a rental model. Their inventory intensive business was then usurped by the streaming subscription model of Netflix; a business driven by technology that wasn’t even possible a decade earlier.

A couple of weeks ago, I shared with you some interesting data about your performance during the 2nd quarter of this year compared with 2019. Overall, on a per patient basis, our clients fared well during the darkest days of the Covid19 period. While, on average, you saw 25% fewer patients, your per patient revenue increased by 13%, mitigating fully 50% of the potential downturn. That’s outstanding!

It’s early November and next year is right around the corner. By now, you’re likely well on your way to finishing your 2021 plans and budget. You and your team have thought through what you’d like your practice to accomplish; your goals; your personal development objectives. Your managers have turned in their individual budgets and you now know what you expect to gross; and net. You’ve got a good idea of what you’ll invest in team development and a clear understanding of what positions you’ll have to fill.

Clearly, the second quarter of this year seemed like Optometry’s Armageddon. 2020 was supposed to be Optometry’s year. But with most of you closed down for at least ½ the quarter, and our industry’s events wiped clean off the calendar, stress flowed like a mountain stream. Our data shows that, on average, you saw 25% fewer patients in the 2nd quarter of this year vs. 2019! For most businesses, that would be the kiss of death. But you and your teams stepped up to the plate and made lemonade out of the proverbial lemon.

“That which doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.” Well, certainly, we wouldn’t wish the worst case on anyone. Our hearts go out to those families who have lost loved ones from this Pandemic and the myriad of other reasons that people leave our world.

But Nietzsche’s words from 150 years ago make sense. What he’s really speaking about is adaptability. Life continuously delivers challenges. Survival is not about the fittest, but the adaptable.