Hilda was having her annual insurance check-up online via her computer. They were in the middle of the session, and insurance representative Mrs. Jones was asking questions. “Do you understand everything so far? Do you have any questions?” Mrs. Jones was on top of...
It is the Power of One theory. Twenty years ago, a photo of cellist Vedran Smailovic sitting in the bombed-out National Library in Sarajevo brought beauty in the middle of the devastation of siege. That strong but reassuring picture illustrates how one person can make...
Charles was having an impromptu and informal lunch with two colleagues in a private dining room at the Senior Living Community. He was anxious to hear the first results of the new training they began for all employees, including their leadership staff. “Well, what are...
This conversation came to me from a woman who knows how I work to improve senior and assisted living through staff empathy and kindness. “I stopped at a small local café type restaurant for lunch the other day. It was after the usual lunch hour which I chose because...
Do you realize that Creating and Expanding Your Company’s Philosophy is a title for what Kind Dining® has been encouraging and teaching for numerous years? Have you read about our belief in residents' and staff's sense of belonging, finding purpose, and knowing that...
A friend told me recently that while having lunch at a local café, she overheard this conversation from the booth next to hers and could hardly wait to repeat it to me. “I just found a larger senior living community with more amenities than where my mom is living. I...
“My daughter tells me it is hard to make new friends,” Coleen told Kelly. They were having lunch after a long stretch of being too busy to get away. “She’s at college, the first time away from home. I almost laughed at her because I know how hard it is when you get...
A great way to invest is to encourage them to do their very best on the job. Let them know that you see their potential, expect them to do their best, and that your company believes in them and depends on them. Remember that complimenting good work will encourage one...
DiningRD Acquires Kind Dining I want to let you know that Kind Dining is transitioning to become part of a more significant movement to enhance relationships and the dining experience in senior living communities across the United States and Canada. Please understand...
What makes your residents want to stay in your community? Many older adults have the wrong impression of what a senior living community is like. Just because an individual moves into your community doesn’t mean he/she is happy there. It is often more difficult...
Do your food servers know the crucial role they play as they interact with residents during mealtimes? Do they know kindness is one of the skills needed to play that role successfully? Many residents and even other staff suffer from an emotional disconnect in...
A few on the second shift food serving team gathered at a table for their dinner break. They picked up the conversation where they left off earlier about their pre-shift training session that morning. “With a little more practice, I think everyone on our team will...
Do your community supervisors continue to read research on how to secure and keep healthy employees? Do they know why it is necessary to have healthy employees and how it benefits your residents and your community? Do they know the benefits of teamwork?...
How do you become ‘one of the good ones’, as an employee is sometimes referred to? Many times several employees do the same work, get it done on time and never cause a problem. Yet they aren’t especially referred to as ‘one of the good ones’. ...
Think of when a toddler takes that first important step in learning to walk - setting an intention is the first vital step for your food server to be the best at their job they can be. That intention brings focus to building on the skills they already know, to further...
Do you know that holidays can bring severe, sometimes unexpected, melancholy to many seniors? Even though the pandemic is gone, it has left many elders without loved ones who passed away during that time. There is nothing a food serving staff can do to bring...
“Does this new management team take care of us employees as we take care of our residents? No, I’ll answer for you. As you know, I’m unhappy and have been for the last six months since the new, upper regime moved in. I’ve brought my concerns to the bosses hoping to...
“How did you come to work in this assisted living community?” Maryann, who is a part-time food server on Spring Break from college, asked Helen. They formed a friendly/mentor relationship since Maryann first came to work and now share a table during their lunchtime....
Can you honestly recommend your assisted living community to friends who are looking for a job? If you know they are naturally thoughtful, caring, and considerate, and would look forward to training and education sessions to hone their skills, would you alert them to...
Do your residents ever make a complaint or suggest the food service? Do you take the time to listen? Or do you try to change their mind before they even finish saying what they have on their mind? It costs absolutely nothing to pause, stop what you are doing, look...
During a coffee break at the Senior Living Community, Lillian was chatting with her food serving team. “Whew! Thankfully, today is going along much smoother than yesterday! I don’t remember having a day like that when everything that could go wrong did go wrong! It's...
The two women were walking down the hallway heading towards the kitchen to begin their work shift at an independent living community. They just finished a segment of the training session and were discussing their opinions. “First of all,” the older one said, “I never...
Do you know what the most successful companies look for in an applicant when hiring? They seek a person with the combination of skills that enable a person to learn, relearn, and relearn again. We know how rapidly changes are happening in our long-term care...
A retired friend told me recently how she made an excellent living in the old days, by being a waitperson during the years of raising a family. “I was good at it. My aunt trained me,” she said. “I was pleasant and paid close attention to my customers’ tables without...
The latest trend towards cooking to order is setting assisted living community chefs and food serving teams on fire! Spring changes in the kitchen in food preparation and in the dining room in serving food have awakened creative culinary minds. The focus on utilizing...
Finding a new approach to dining in Residential care communities while still keeping within the present budget has been introduced by trending chef leaders of creative community dining. Using fresh, local food supplies to serve on order ala restaurant-style dining is...
Is the goal for your long-term care community to be superior in service to other communities in your area? To have your reputation rise above all others? To be a top-notch community where service people want to work, and aging adults want to live? If you answer yes,...
"When my husband and I decided it was time to move to a senior living community, the first thing I said was, 'I'm going to miss going out to restaurants to dine.' Mrs. Long was talking with her friend about her and her husband's plans. "As seniors, after struggling...
Is this a good time to look at your food service through the eyes of your customers as top-notch restaurateurs do? Do you realize that your residents yearn for the same quality of food and service that their favorite restaurants gave them? Those are the restaurants,...
Many seniors will decide to leave their present home and make their new and final home in a senior or an assisted living community. This is a lifetime decision and not one that is made lightly. When keeping this in mind, your food servers have the power to...
Starting over. Your new residents are starting over, sometimes after living in the same house for 50 or 60 years. They had to downsize, give away, donate, or throw away their lifetime of brick a brac, and souvenirs. Art treasures and wall hangings must go. There is no...
Everyone has a story. Ending an old year and beginning a new one brings out the stories that residents find satisfying to tell. The savvy food server gives the best gift and builds a good relationship when he/she listens intently to what the resident wants to share....
Imagine sitting in your room in a senior retirement living community. You have survived the loneliness of isolation from the Covid-19 pandemic, but now it is over. Yet you are still lonely because you moved into this caring community just before the pandemic started,...
