If you're thinking about senior living, wondering what the first steps should be, what to expect, what's the process like, questions can hold us back. Karla talks about the process of selecting the right community. It takes a lot of courage to pick up the phone or visit a community. Karla Clark is the Regional Director for Sales and Marketing at Era Living, and she talks about how a community relations team member can guide you through the process — finding the right fit based on your needs.
What should you expect when you call a community? Karla says, "First of all, they should expect someone to be warm and welcoming, and help guide them, to be that trusted advisor. They're probably going to be connected with a community relations team member, and that person is going to be asking some questions of the family member, or maybe the person considering making a move themselves. And these questions are designed to get to know that person, because everybody has a specific unique journey, and our team members have helped hundreds, thousands, of family members go through this. But it's different for everybody, and we don't know what has happened at the other end of the line that has caused them to reach out to us. And so, by asking these questions, we can find out important things, like what's not working out so well right now, what are you hoping to gain by making a move to a retirement community, and what's gonna be most important to you, because that is going to mean something different for everybody. And so it's less about our story and what we can offer, and it's more about their story, and what we can help provide a solution for. And only by asking questions can we find out if we're going to be the right fit for them, right? We're not going to be the right fit for everybody. But by having that conversation and that dialogue and asking good questions, and building that relationship together, then we can perhaps invite them in for that next step, guide them through this journey or give them other recommendations that might meet their needs better.
"They've been through this before, they have the insight of what has worked or hasn't worked for others, and by talking through certain topics and conversations, whether that has to do with finances, or their needs, their hobbies, and their interests, as our residents are so engaged, and we wanna see that liveliness and that engagement. And so that person is somebody that they can call on the phone, or come and talk to ask questions. And we always think it's best, if it's a good fit from that first conversation, is we're gonna invite them into the community, so they can see it, touch it, taste it, feel it, because there's nothing like actually just walking in the community and describing that feeling that you get.
"That visit is going to be very personalized for what's important to them. And I can guarantee that they are going to meet some amazing people. It's so important to meet the community directors, the executive director, other team members. We're gonna make some introductions to some other residents. It's amazing how the connections that you find with people who go to the same church or the same organizations or retired from the same industries. And so we make those connections, because that's what's important, and then of course we'll show them some apartments.
"We encourage people to come back and visit multiple times. Come back, and have a lunch or dinner. We really like to pair people with other residents. Or come back and participate in one of our events — if somebody likes to play bridge with the bridge group, or be in an exercise class, or yoga, or Tai Chi, or a happy hour.
"We have a lot of different lectures and presentations that are specific to helping people make a good decision and guide them through the process. Some of our most popular ones are our resident panel, and that's where we invite usually 5 to 6 residents, and they share their story and what they went through. It's so popular because the people who are considering making a move, they want to hear that from the residents. Our downsizing events are very popular. It's all designed to help somebody make a good decision.
"We do want other family members, or maybe friends, somebody who they rely on, and trust to make decisions like this, to be a part of that. And that's why multiple visits to the community is important too, because they can buy in, they can make the selection as far as like, OK, this is it, I feel good. And it's amazing, oftentimes when you're with people and they revisit this apartment that they love, you can just see it on their face, lighten up. It's almost a sense of relief, too. Like, oh my gosh, I'm moving forward out of the status quo. I'm looking forward to this. It's a very hopeful, positive moment and we love it."
Hear more podcasts about Era Living at Answers for Elders, including conversations with other residents, at Answers for Elders: https://answersforelders.com/era-living/
Learn more about:
Answers for Elders: https://answersforelders.com/welcome-to-answers-for-elders/.
Era Living's website: https://www.eraliving.com/
Answers for Elders is part of the SeniorResource Network: https://www.seniorresource.com/
Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer's Speaks: https://alzheimersspeaks.com/
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