Never Leave Your Wingman: Trust and believe in those around you.

Trust and believe in those around you...

See the guy on the far left. That's David Plumley. Who would have known that after a short assignment in Hoffman Estates, he'd then be running the "rock". That is Rockford, in case you aren't in the know. A position where legacy's are born and only the strong survive. Not only does he have that ship sailing in the right direction, but he has also proven that yours truly can be replaced. In a land far away and long, long ago...I ran the "rock". I now consider the folks from that team...Matt, MJ, Kirsten, Ariana, Joanna and the rest of the crew part of my extended family. I think I stole their hearts, but David has now done the same. Shall I mention that David is now in FFL as he has his sights on doing more.

Now turn your attention to the far right. That's none other than the man, the myth, the legend...David Pokrywiecki. David is now a top Supervisor in the company, but his career had humble beginnings. At the helm of our "country club" store, he was a leader that didn't realize how great he would become. As a direct report of mine, I gave him all I had. I am not sure he enjoyed it at the time...visits 15 minutes before close filled with constructive feedback and the thankless assignments geared toward leveraging his strengths and opportunities as a leader. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that some of those assignments I placed in his hands, could have very well spelled doom for my career had they not gone well. As you can predict, they all went well. David's one of my Target kids. I am forever all in to help him accomplish whatever he hopes for.

Last but not least, zero in on that tall, sandy haired guy to my left. You guessed it, Mitch Webster. This is one for the books. A great peer of mine, Lisa Marsh, connected us. He was a Drake Pharm.D. student and I was in need of some great recruits. After a few conversations by phone, we met for lunch at my favorite Thai spot in St. Charles, IL. An hour later we had things in common from fraternities to triple jumping. He still had two more years of school, but let's just say we statused quarterly until I hired him on knowing he was a star. After just a year in role as a pharmacy manager, he is now a Supervisor on my team and blazing a trail that only the best will follow.

In R96, we believe in people. Listen to the person to your left and right as they have something important to tell you. Together we can accomplish anything. Do you want to be my wingman? I certainly want to be yours.

Joe