“The skill of resourcefulness is the key to success”…… Author Unknown
Here are five very simple resourceful ideas that every cancer registry professional should examine:
Develop a strong network of your industry peers
Connect with other cancer registrars that you admire and trust. Create a network from your state associations and NCRA. Join social media sites such as Facebook groups and LinkedIn. Social media platforms are a great way to connect with other registrars. Many registrars are the only person in the registry and benefit from having a group to bounce questions and ideas off. Cancer registrars are always willing to share their knowledge and experiences.
Arm yourself with knowledge
Resourceful individuals seek out opportunities and education. Increased knowledge enables you to provide value to others and will increase your demand within your facility or health system. Take advantage of the many educational offerings available, from AJCC, SEER, NAACCR, NCRA, your state, software vendors, outsourcing companies and others. Most of these educational sessions are free and many are recorded so you are able to watch in your free time.
Know your strengths and weaknesses
Everyone has a different skill set and most people are stronger in one area than another. Learn to recognize your strengths and weaknesses. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and don’t be afraid to offer your expertise to others. Be honest with your managers about your strengths and weaknesses and where your skill set can benefit the registry and cancer program the most.
Optimize your resources
Optimize and organize! Let’s face it, as a cancer registry professional, you have hundreds of resources, manuals, standards, coding rules that you rely on every day to do your job. Optimize all the valuable resources available and organize them where they are easily accessible to you. Utilize online tools. If you are a paper person, there are ways to organize those resources to optimize their value. Review your current methods and refer to how others organize. Your method may be holding you back. Good organization will increase your productivity.
Be realistic
Set goals and prioritize. If you are not already a resourceful person, it doesn’t happen in a day. Break your goals down to small tasks versus tackling everything at once. Ask for help from co-workers and communicate clearly about what you would like to achieve and how they can help.
Remember that a resourceful person is a successful person and finding ways to enhance and leverage the resources at your fingertips will benefit you both personally and professionally!
Here are some additional articles about workplace resourcefulness: