Scott Zack

Scott Zack has been in the medical profession for the past 19 years and has plenty of experience with treating patients. Scott Zack has been very successful when it comes to bringing new ideas to life, with his most recent project involving his toxicology lab. While being in the medical field for quite some time, Scott Zack was introduced to countless people suffering from the side effects of using and abusing pain medication. Scott Zack believes that in the current day and age, there’s always a need for developing new methods and expanding our horizons.

Where did the idea for your career come from?

Being in the medical field my whole life and treating patients, I noticed a lot of people in pain and using/abusing pain medications, mainly Opioids. I started to research the opioid problem and how it has become a crisis in the United States. It led me down a path of wanting to do more in the opioid epidemic and for patients, which led me to start looking into toxicology, urine drug testing, and different lab processes. That spurred my interest in wanting to open up a lab, and so that’s what I did.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

Well, no day is definitely the same, every day is different. My typical day is dealing with our patients, employees, accounts and making sure everything is up to speed. There are always issues, problems, and different things that need to be handled, and I constantly deal with them. On top of that, trying to get new business, talking to new accounts, talking to different people that get referred to us. That’s a typical day, always something different, that’s for sure.

How do you bring ideas to life?

When you have an idea, the first thing you have to do is do the research, look at it, look at all the different aspects, ask yourself, “Is it a good idea?”, “Can I make it work?” “How can I make this happen?”, “What do I need to do to make it work?”. Do the proper research, make sure you talk to different people, and make sure you’re up to par on all the different issues. Make sure you’re ready to take the next step. I am a firm believer in always having a good team around you, making sure you always have the best available people to work with you or to work for you who are experts in the field or experts in what you want to do. It’s about putting your head down and just getting it done. Nothing comes easy. I work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. If something needs to get done, I just have to do it. If it’s taking a call at 6 in the morning or 11 at night, being in the office, or zoom calls, you just have to do what you need to do to get it done. There’s no easy shortcut.

What’s one trend that excites you?

I love the lab space, and I definitely think there’s always a need for testing in today’s day and age. What really excites me is how the world will change and how everyone will adapt to it. Today, everybody is remote, on telehealth, and different health issues are being handled differently. I always loved technology and being on the cutting edge, doing stuff, very IT-driven. It’s going to be exciting to see how this world transforms from this pandemic and see how patients will be treated and how we can adapt, move, and make sure we are at the forefront. I think there will be a shift in the model of how patients are treated, and it’s going to be a lot more IT-driven because of this pandemic.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

Multitasking. I can handle a lot of different things at the same time. The best habit I would say is that I am always working. I never take the easy way out. I’m not afraid to work, and I’m always working.

What advice would you give your younger self?

You can’t do everything by yourself, have a good team around you, and let people help you rather than trying to do it alone.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

Everything happens for a reason. Good, Bad indifferent, I believe that everything has a meaning.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Be nice to everybody. You never know who you’re going to work with, who can help you, or who will be on your team later on in life. You can tell a lot by how people treat other people. Always be nice, always shake hands, always say thank you, always be a good person. Everything always comes full circle.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

Doing a lot of research, I’ve never opened up a business and hoped it would be successful. If it was in the medical field or real estate or any other investments, I’ve always done my research, not just assumed, “Oh, let’s open this up and I think it’s going to be successful.” I try to make sure that everything I do in business will be successful and not just hoping and praying that it will work.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

When I opened my first office, I wasn’t prepared for how busy I would become. I had to shift and make another space work that wasn’t set up to do medical work and chiropractic. We were so limited in the space that if I didn’t shift and I didn’t make it work, I definitely would’ve just fell flat on my face. You have to be able to change and make things happen.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

In today’s day and age, something in the shipping/online business. It’s incredible how much people are ordering and returning items. Between Amazon, UPS, and FedEx, everyone is shifting to more online delivery/shipping. I think that’s never going away.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

I just bought my whole staff and my toxicology lab lunch last week, and I have never seen so many people so appreciative and so happy just for that little gesture of me buying them lunch.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

I use box.com to host and integrate my lab services and send the reports to all the doctors’ offices that use our lab. It’s really convenient.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

“The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho

It’s a book about a man’s pursuit of treasure. It goes through all of his travels and following the man’s dreams, but how you need to pay attention to the journey itself.

What is your favorite quote?

“The most reliable way to predict the future is to create it!”

Key Learnings:

• Be nice to everybody. Everything always comes full circle. You never know who you will need a favor from or who you might work with, so it’s always best to treat everyone with the same kindness and respect.
• Be able to adjust to things quickly. Life can throw many curveballs at you, and being able to stay flexible and open-minded will keep you moving forward and help you succeed in any fast-changing environment.
• Let people help you instead of trying to do it all yourself. I’ve learned that asking for help or accepting someone’s support will only help you keep your sanity. It could lead to more productivity and a better outcome. Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses, so allowing someone else to share their strengths creates a better and stronger team. After all, they say two brains are better than one.