Greetings,
How are your New-Year’s resolutions coming? Remember, these are promises we make to ourselves each January. Things like, “I am going to stop smoking”, or “lose weight”, or “exercise more often.” Rarely do many of us recall that promise we made to ourselves much beyond the middle of January.
So why do we do it? It sounds good, it makes sense, and it has become a tradition. I would submit to you that it is a good idea, it does make sense, and it is a great tradition. But, I would also submit that maybe if we focus our resolutions in a direction that truly benefits someone else, instead of ourselves, we will be more likely to stay with it. So if you are in the majority of those who have already given up on your original resolution, I have some thoughts.
We all have so much that we can be thankful for. Many of us have wonderful families, good jobs, freedom of speech and religion, food on our tables, and a warm bed at night. At NER we also have the opportunity to work with people who really need our support and families who appreciate the good work that we do. A great resolution, one that everyone at NER can and should keep, is to improve their abilities as quality employees and caregivers. It is all about attitude.
Attitude can make all of the difference in the world. Any of us can choose to complain, or we can choose to find the good things in life and appreciate what is good in the world. But for many of the people we serve, the ability to understand and reflect on this is much more difficult. They live in the here and now and tend to have a more difficult time seeing beyond their own personal needs and wants.
So here is where we come in….What can we do? Do we really “listen” to the people we serve? To do this we need more than just our ears. We need to pay attention to their emotions, to their actions, to their fears, and to their feelings. This is a difficult balancing act because we must also learn how to gauge what is real, what is attention seeking, and above all, what people are truly trying to tell us.
“I hate the cold,” or “I hate winter,” are just phrases that many people use during this time of year. But do we really hate winter or the cold, or do we feel more shut in, maybe a little depressed or sun deprived? Or, are we afraid of getting in an accident on the icy roads? Maybe we have a sore throat or an earache?
As staff, what do we do when someone refuses to do something or acts out in ways that are less than desirable? Are we REALLY listening? Are we TUNED in?
Our jobs at NER are so much more than playing games, cooking a meal or helping with grooming. Our jobs require us to be attentive, tuned in to people’s emotions, their health, their thoughts, their joys, and their fears. Not everyone we serve can articulate their needs and wants and that is why we must be supportive in every way possible, not just in what we do, but in our words, our tone of voice, our body language and our facial expressions.
We must respond to what people are communicating to us in a positive and respectful way. If we each take the time to always consider how or what we say would sound to our best friend or family member, maybe then we will have a better understanding of the role we can play in helping the people we serve to feel better physically, and especially emotionally.
We are all blessed to have the opportunity to serve others and no matter what happens with the economy or the world around us, we, and those we serve, have the right to feel hope and be encouraged by all that life has to offer.
Thanks to all of the staff for the excellent work they do, and as always, a very special thanks to families for sharing their loved ones with NER.
I’ll close with this famous quote: “Life is 10% what happens to us, and 90% how we react to it.”
Corrine Schmidt, Administrator
