Setting Qualitative Goals:

A question often asked of a business owner is what goals have you set for your business to be successful. This usually refers to how many sales goals you set; how many sales a week, a month, a year. I have been asked this question several times over the last two years; I have never answered it in the expected manner.

My goals have always been qualitative as opposed to quantitative. My goals do not specify how many sales per week, month or year. I know I need to acquire clients to survive, and so I advertise, do social media, do sales calls, but I think I go about it a little differently from most of my competitors.  My goal is and always has been to provide the best care for our clients. As a company every one of our employees understands the need to embrace and engage our client’s body, mind and spirit. This, in a very practical way means our caregivers become friends with our clients. As a department chairperson in my teaching career, I always told the new teachers they will learn more from their students than they teach them the first year in the classroom. It is learning to be a good teacher your first couple of years. So it is with this business, our caregivers are learning how to become the best caregivers in the business.

The interview process has become a vetting process seeking and discovering who would be the ideal caregiver. Our office phone interviews over 100 possible caregivers a month. I have face to face interviews with 50 potential caregivers. We train 15 on a monthly basis and still we reduce it down a few more after their training according to their attention and enthusiasm levels.

We hire only caregivers who are Certified Nursing Assistants or have a Home Health Aid Certificate. Our training concentrates on building the relationship with our clients since they already know how to physically care for the clients. A massage therapist teaches introductory massage for the upper back, hands and feet. Our caregivers are trained by an RN who specializes in nutrition, every caregiver is taught two methods of meditation, and finally they are taught the psychological and emotional characteristics of a senior and how best to understand and speak with them. Relating to seniors socially, understanding them emotionally, stimulating then intellectually and if necessary to share their own belief system with them is taught and discussed.

My business has become our business, the office manager to the caregivers all believe and support our goals of being the best. Often when I complete an interview with an enthused caregiver they ask if it would be alright to have a friend call for a job because they like what they hear. Most people go into health care to make a difference; it is why I founded Caring Hearts and it is why we will continue to set as our goals together the desire to be the best.