Before the crane kick...

If you're an 80s kid like me, you probably remember the crane kick at the end of Karate Kid. For all the home care agencies I talk with daily, I'd love to fast forward the movie about their business successes to the end so they can kick their competition or kick caregiver turnover or kick caregiver shortages in the face. But, everyone knows fast forwarding a movie to the end is cheating and robs you of the whole experience. You miss character development, just as skipping past certain steps robs a business of true development.

At the best estimation, there are about 30,000 home care agencies in a growing sea of businesses catering to the increasing demand for home care. It isn't just enough to open the doors, get a business license, certify with the state, and start up. You could, but then you'd end up like Daniel LaRusso after his first encounters with the kids from Cobra Kai - a little beat up and worse for the wear. To home care owners, the kids from Cobra Kai could come in the forms of (to name a few):

• Caregiver turnover
• Caregiver shortages
• Slow (if any) client growth
• Competition from other home care agencies and alternative job sources
• Passive and Detractor clients and caregivers (lack of satisfaction and positive word-of-mouth)

In two early encounters, you see Daniel attempt to fight. He has his hands up and throws a couple punches on the beach, but fell way short with technique. It's almost as if he read a few stories on karate or watched a couple karate movies. Today we have myriad blogs and YouTube videos that only scratch the surface of what it takes to make an agency successful. His cheap punch to Johnny's face is akin to quick tricks people look for all the time, but it didn't end the fight. From the high school dance - after employing yet another quick trick of soaking Johnny with a hose over a bathroom stall, you see him get winded and eventually overcome by the kids from Cobra Kai.

(Yes... I remember quite a bit about this movie. Please, don't judge me.)

A couple of scenes later, Daniel turns to Mr. Miyagi to learn karate only to be told to do a series of mundane things over a handful of scenes: wax a car, sand a deck, paint a fence, paint a house, trim bonsai trees... I remember his confusion as he has no idea what's going on. As a kid, I had no clue what the point was either and empathized with Daniel's building frustration. When Daniel eventually cracks and starts to question Miyagi's strategy, it sounds like the doubt I might hear from some agencies when I say, "You want to grow or get more caregivers, let's stop and measure satisfaction and compare against the industry."

Repeatedly, Miyagi would stop Daniel-san from doing what he assumed he was being asked to and say one of two things: "Concentrate" or "Focus", along with "Always look eye."

What Home Care Pulse does might seem counterintuitive to the agencies looking for solutions to get more caregivers or more clients. Yet, think about the contrast between Daniel at the beginning of Karate Kid and Daniel-san at the end. Gaining insights about your clients and caregivers adds a whole new level of focus to your business. And, the ability to benchmark against the industry - comparing your performance with others - is levels above just looking through the windows into the dojo of the Cobra Kai or imitating a decent karate stance. It's looking the competition and the landscape of home care in the eye so you can see what's going on and know what's coming.

Sure, a quick lead generation site for clients or caregivers might give you the sprint you need for a moment. But, if you're agency hasn't built up client and caregiver satisfaction and brand endurance, it's not going to take long before you become winded and are overtaken. When I ask agencies looking at Home Care Pulse as a potential solution to focus on Net Promoter Score, impact on daily life, communication from office staff, client/caregiver compatibility, training satisfaction, caregiver recognition, office staff support, etc. it's my absolute desire to see them make the connection and strengthen core techniques that turn them into champions of home care - just as we've done for hundreds of other agencies over the years.

Remember, before the crane kick came ~20% of screen time showing frustration and failed efforts; ~70% of time covering a progression of patience, learning, and focus (with continued frustration) followed by training recognized as karate; and 10% showing an amazing movie montage to "You're the Best" capped with the winning scene remembered by generations. And, the learning continues in the sequel movies. Over ten years, the landscape of home care has changed - and it will continue to - just as the oppositions Daniel faces in the movies evolved and his caliber of karate had to continue improving.

Basically, I'm here if you need someone to help remind you how to catch a fly, break ice blocks, wax on/wax off, dodge a pulley hook, shake a den-den daiko (the Japanese drum rattle), stand on the end of a boat in water, do a standing kick on a post, trim a bonsai tree, etc. "Ai! Concentrate! Focus! Look in eyes!"