Clintcast

We’ve heard it all our lives... someone is or isn’t living up to their potential. When you truly consider what a subjective tar pit this puts in place, you quickly realize that little use can come from comparing one to their ‘potential’, especially when that person has little input into the equation other than to deliver on predetermined ‘guesstimates’. Instead, Clint suggests we consider utilizing agreed-upon outcomes that both/all parties can get behind that work in the favor of everyone concerned without putting anyone in ‘impossible to deliver’ situations. That way, everyone has the opportunity to win!

As we begin the holiday rush, Clint takes time out today to give pause to the idea that as we work these long holiday weekends, we should be mindful to remember that many of our customers would also prefer to be with their families or in other places or doing other things, just like we may prefer when selected to work the weekend/holiday shifts. If our hearts are truly in our work and we truly believe that we make a difference in the lives of others, then this provides an excellent opportunity to step-up our thankfulness and our efforts in a major way to help our customers (which helps us too!). Let’s all give thanks that we work in healthcare, which is cool for customers that are great!

Today, Clint observes one aspect about human nature as it relates to how folks handle their workloads. Are you a sorter, an organizer or a stacker (somewhere in-between)? Hear his take on how each group typically functions and how these traits typically manifest themselves beyond the piles on the desk. Most importantly, it is critical we find ways to co-exist and ensure our work gets done for our customers.

Today, Clint speaks with Scott La Rue, COO of the ArchCare system in New York City to get a pulse on some of the aspects that are faced on a daily basis in the field, specifically regarding quality and budgetary issues. Scott relates how strategies such as teaming, 12-week plans and revenue enhancement have really helped the business, especially in light of state funding shortfalls. Give a listen!

Life balance is the constant juggling of three basic forces in our lives - sleeping, working and playing. Each person has their own particular preferences for how much of each is needed in life to be happy. With that in mind, how can you then actually put in motion ways to truly achieve your target values for each of these forces on a daily basis? In today’s episode, Clint talks about these life aspects and how devising a plan can help you get the amounts of each you desire and better yet, get others to help you hit your targets! Find your balance!

The healthcare customer in years past was primarily a needs-based affair, but more often today, our customers are becoming accustomed to also having wants and desires addressed as well. It is vital to our customer service models that we find ways to integrate meeting and exceeding these needs as well, especially for ‘premium’ customers. Examples include aspects such as home comforts (pets, hi-def TV, internet, etc), additional meal options and such that help our customers enjoy that little extra that makes the difference between ‘got to have’ and ‘nice to have’. Learn how you can step it up a notch today!

As a nation, the US absence level is comparatively low, but nonetheless, absences still affect our daily work lives and can have a profoundly large impact on the effectiveness of our teams. That said, today Clint discusses some of the ways we can implement team-based policies to help deal with this aspect of our customer service model. By making this a team-directed strategy rather than the company’s, we can drive better team integration and personal accountability.

Today Clint discusses one of those aspects that should just be a given - our ability and drive to be detailed and accurate in our work, both in its execution and its documentation. Besides the simple altruistic aspect that it is simply the right thing to do anyway, it has the added benefit of putting us into a proactive model as opposed to a reactive one. We can provide ourselves (and our customers) a good measure of self-regulation and oversight instead of leaving the opening for doubt, carelessness, accidents and so forth. Listen in for a self-checkup!

Do you hire thinking you will be able to influence an employee’s value system to better suit your organization? Chances are you will not have much of any effect in this realm as most all of us have our value systems pretty well solidified in our early teens. While you may indeed be able to influence behavior systems, it is not likely that core values will be altered. That being said, it becomes the responsibility of the organization to try to synchronize and align with common values between both parties - thus is becomes very critical to be sure to understand a candidate’s core values during the hiring process to make sure both parties can prosper under a shared set up values.

We’ve all seen them - those little episodes where the ‘woe is me’ issue becomes out of hand. We’re all entitled to an off day now and then but it is critical to be able to overcome them and move on to more positive times and solutions as quickly as possible. As such, we must also be careful to not get caught up in other’s pity parties as they can be contagious and soon mire down entire groups, departments and even organizations. Today, Clint discusses the pity party concept and its potential effects on individuals and organizations. Don’t let these bring down your level of positive customer service!