Ever since it was revealed that SCI enjoyed a big discount the discussion around the convention lunch table has been preoccupied with the subject of discounts and rebates. For more than 15 years I have heard a lot about percentages but never about dollars. It's not my dog much less my hunt but I think [...]
"one cannot manage change. One can only be ahead of it." Peter Drucker The Cornerstone Assumption of the funeral side of DeathCare is that being nice is the same as being effective. Our "worldview" of being nice people is that we must never, ever make waves or create awkwardness. We run pell-mell from any form [...]
A Scarcity Mentality is the zero-sum paradigm of life. People with a Scarcity Mentality have a very difficult time sharing recognition and credit, power or profit – even with those who help in the production. They also have a a very hard time being genuinely happy for the success of other people. Yet it is [...]
Most people speak of those they work with as a team. But, in my experience, people rarely understand what a team really is. In funeral service what typically represents a team is really a group of people who are very nice but work towards their own ends independently. If the firm has clear standards and [...]
The saying goes, "It's lonely at the top." Who do you talk to when you're the boss? Edgar Schein, Professor Emeritus at the Sloan School of Management at MIT, observed that the most common self - image among business leaders is that of the "Lone Warrior - Hero." I have found this to be true [...]
Many Funeral Directors consider themselves caregivers. This article causes me to see a two way street. As you read it think about the critical role you can and should play with your customers AND their guests. But to those of us who support the practitioner, let's think about the critical role WE should and can [...]
Most of us do, especially those in the helping professions. Yet, we all know that our jobs require that we occasionally interact with others in challenging ways. When we engage this way our blood pressure rises, palms sweat and we may even lose sleep. For those of you who supervise or manage others here is [...]
A while ago I wrote on the subject of funeral directors and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in the belief that there was a lot out there. This is a sensitive subject that will benefit greatly from transparent vulnerable open discussion. But who wants to be first? Finally, a young man has stepped up. He has [...]
Nothing brings greater clarity than an impending death. You have spent a career writing obituaries for others. Now it turns out that if you AND your staff take the time to write your firm's obituary it will reveal some interesting insights that will help you establish your brand better...or...learn you don't have a brand after [...]
The Regressive Elements in Pennsylvania have apparently won a victory...or have they? Last week's Circuit Court Reversal regarding the Pennsylvania Funeral Licensing Law probably caused some champagne corks to fly in Harrisburg. But this "victory" begets the question: "What Have We Done To Ourselves?" Funeral Service' legacy of "circling the wagons and shooting inward" is about [...]
