NewsLine - June 2011 - (Page 8)

Creating Excellence in All Processes By Ronald P. Culberson, MSW, CSP Many members know Ron Culberson for his engaging presentations at NHPCO conferences. While he is a speaker, coach, humorist and author, Ron actually began his career as a hospice home-care social worker and went on to serve in several leadership capacities. Today, he helps a range of business clients see how infusing humor in their work can help them achieve new levels of success. In this article, he shares some of his strategies. Life is short. Hospice people know that. So what do you do with that knowledge? What we all should do is make the most of the relatively short time we have in this world. Whether you’ve just begun your career or you’ve been at it for decades, there is always time to change the way you approach your work (and your life for that matter). Abraham Lincoln once said, “It’s not about the days in your life, but the life in your days.” (Apparently beneath his stoic, presidential appearance was a party animal just waiting to emerge.) Richness. Success. Responsibility. They’re all about making the most of your days, no matter how many days you have left in your life. That’s also the foundational principle of the concept, ‘Do it Well, Make it Fun’—the idea that excellence plus fun equals a valuable and valued existence. I spent a decade in hospice care (as an employee, not a patient). I began that work as a 25-year old social worker and eventually moved into a senior leadership position. I could not have asked for a better job to begin my professional career. Hospice taught me to value life. Hospice taught me that time is limited. And hospice taught me that we don’t want to have regrets when we get to the end of our lives. In fact, I had a button displayed in my office that read, “Live each day as if it were your last. Because one day you’ll be right.” I love that message. It combines a sacred truth with a bit of humor for a profound concept worth paying attention to. And because we never know what tomorrow will bring, we should prepare for the unknown by making the most of the known—today. Eckhart Tolle, in his book The Power of Now, refers to it as paying attention to the “now” because now is all we have. continued on page 10 8 NewsLine

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NewsLine - June 2011

Managing a Multigenerational Workforce
A Message From Don: Why a National Center?
We Earned Our Merit Badge in Value (display ad)
Do It Well, Make It Fun
Introducing NHPCO’s Custom Print (display ad)
Honorees from Quality on Display
Experience the ACHC Difference (display ad)
Personalize Your Outreach and Education (display ad)
The Pathways Counseling Center of Pathways Hospice
Voice of NCHPP: Integrating Touch Therapies into the CNA’s Practice
NCHPP CNA Section: Getting Involved
FEHC Data in New AHRQ Report
Michel’s Walkathon to Promote ‘Dying Well’
Become a WHV Partner
Get Hospice-specific Management Training Without Leaving Home
New Report on Importance of Consumer Engagement
Toolkit to Implement Concurrent Care for Children Requirement
Recruiting Problems? HMR (display ad)
Upcoming Educational Offerings
Cover 2
FHSSA Newsletter

NewsLine - June 2011