We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Victoria Kravchenko a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Victoria, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I immigrated from Russia with my family when I was 13 years old. My parents brought us (myself and my brother) to the land of opportunities and always wished for better future than what they had back in Russia. I grew up in Brooklyn, NY-got my high school diploma and my undergraduate degree in Psychology and pre-medical program in NY. My parents never babied us too much and the biggest lesson we had to learn in life is how to be independent and adopt to any situation in life. I had to learn how to navigate through high school, undergraduate and graduate school with minimum involvement from my parents. I believe going through a lot of obstacles, being independent and learning from my past experiences, that’s what made me resilient. After I got my graduate degree and working for 13 years in my industry-optometry, being a mom to 3 wonderful kids, I decided to open up my practice. It was a very tough decision and even currently I am still climbing up the ladder but it’s very gratifying and makes me eager to achieve my long term goals. The reason why I decided to do it is because once my business will be established I would love to have a good work-life balance. I worked in so many settings where I saw positives and negatives and was able to extract do’s and don’ts in my own practice. I care for patients, I give them full transparency and devote my time to each patient. I care about quality over quantity. I also want to be the best role model to my kids and show them that anything is possible in this life if you put your mind, energy and effort into it. Running a business is not for everyone because you have to be disciplined, stay positive and have a vision, learn from failures and convert them into positives. It’s never easy, especially when you are limited in finances, when you have to be the main breadwinner for the family and in addition to being an entrepreneur, to be a mom. I am still learning throughout the whole process and currently working in my practice part-time while bringing in stable source of income while being employed in another location.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I became an optometrist because one of my classmates back in high school introduced me to the idea. Before I made a decision to go into this industry I went to shadow 3 different optometrists from different specialties within the field and they all had their own practices and spoke very highly of optometry profession. They all had one thing in common even though they specialized in different areas, they found this career to be very gratifying. It’s so amazing when you can wake up in the morning and cannot wait to go to work because you love what you do! I wish this for every person who reads this. Find your passion, your niche. Do what you love so you can live a more fulfilled life. Another reason why I like optometry field is because it involves both healthcare-you help people, treat, cure them and fashion-you accessorize according to every person’s individual lifestyle and needs, eyeglasses make a fashion statement.
Taking care of people, helping people comes naturally if you are a genuine and kind person. We see patients at our practice and get to know everyone on a personal level. Some patients tell me that I should do counseling as my side gig :) It makes me happy when I can put people at ease and not only help them to see better, but can also help them to feel better. I think what sets me apart from others is my ability to listen and hear my patients. There’s not a single answer to all. Everyone is unique so we have to be curious, get to know people and find the best possible solutions.
In my practice I specialize in a couple of different areas such as dry eyes, myopia (nearsightedness) control and Neurolens. All these specialties have been gaining a lot of popularity in the last few decades and have a significant correlation with our lifestyle changes including extensive use of digital devices-phones, computers, iPads, etc. In addition to the cutting edge technology solutions we also offer wide variety of hand picked eyeglasses frames, we work with high end luxury brands as well as some boutique independent brands. We ensure that durability and style come in one package.
I always stay on top of technology and new advancements in the industry, it’s important for patient retention otherwise patients will seek answers to their problems elsewhere.
Once in a while I like to host fun events in the store: paint and sip night, sound meditation, etc. Someone may wonder why we do that- it’s important for bringing the community together. Let people get to know you not only as a professional but also as an individual. Bonding amongst staff is also imperative It creates a friendly and welcoming culture in a work setting.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

One of my favorite book is Second Chances from Surviving to Thriving by Dr. Kenneth Harris. I read this book right after meeting the author himself, who came into my life by synchronicity. This is actually another book of his- Synchronicity.
After reading this book I realized that even at darkest times I have to keep my head high up and after the rain there will be a rainbow. Staying positive and disciplined is crucial to maintain on the right path. Having a close support system whether it’s family, friends, or mentors is also essential part of the journey. You have to celebrate small victories in order to achieve long term goals. I turn every bad experience , encounter into something positive. I choose to concentrate on what I have rather than what I lack.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Honesty and kindness are the 2 characteristics that I possess. One time in my own practice I remember I had a patient who wrongfully accused me of being dishonest. It really hurt me because I always stay true to myself and always give full transparency to patients. The next day the patient brought me flowers as a sign of apology and it really melted my heart.
If you’re genuine it will reflect in one way or another. Making one person happy and earning their trust will in turn bring referrals to you. Word of mouth is the best form of advertisement, that’s why it’s imperative to earn trust and good reputation especially when working in a small community. Be kind, honest, genuine and curious.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://a2zeyecarenj.com
• Instagram: a2z_eyecare
• Facebook: A2Z EYECARE
• Linkedin: VICTORIA KRAVCHENKO

Image Credits

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