I came across this ridiculous list of 50 Insane Mistakes Companies Make and I got to thinking that I could make a similar list for senior living.

By Steve Moran

I came across this ridiculous list of 50 Insane Mistakes Companies Make and I got to thinking that I could make a similar list for senior living. I am thinking you might have some additional ideas. Feel free to post your additions in the comments or email them to me.

      1. Assuming their team does not care

      2. Assuming that because something worked once it will work again

      3. Assuming that because a building fills up fast, the executive director and/or marketing director is great, when they were just lucky

      4. Believing great senior living is all about the building

      5. Requiring report after report after report

      6. Giving too many second chances

      7. Assuming that when a person has a leadership title they have leadership skills

      8. Setting performance goals that are tied to compensation that can’t possibly be met

      9. Assuming the competition knows what they are doing

      10. Cutting costs to become more profitable

      11. Treating team members as dispensable

      12. Behaving in a way that is inconsistent with the stated mission and values of the company

      13. Not spending enough time in the communities they manage

      14. Not hearing what their teams are telling them

      15. Doubling down on a bad idea

      16. Firing people at the drop of a hat

      17. Not firing people who need to be fired yesterday

      18. Assuming the only people who walk through door and self-identify as immediate prospects are worth spending time with

      19. Not providing adequate training

      20. Not assuming that when something goes wrong it is management’s fault

      21. Creating a new policy as a way of dealing with a single bad incident

      22. Trying to control gossip

      23. Promoting someone because of time of service

      24. Providing mostly or only negative feedback

      25. Assuming that you can pay people enough to be great employees

      26. Assuming that because you can’t pay line staff very much they will never be great team members

      27. Cutting costs by short staffing

      28. Not providing real career advancement opportunities

      29. Being nitpicky about little stuff

      30. Not owning up when things go wrong

      31. Not learning from mistakes

      32. Not openly talking about failures and using them as teachable moments

      33. Jumping to conclusions

      34. Hiring experts to help you do a better job and then not taking their advice because it is uncomfortable

      35. Not hiring experts

      36. Assuming that you can do everything better in-house than using outside services

      37. Promoting based on friendships rather than leadership competency

      38. Promoting based on expertise and not on leadership competency

      39. Cheaping out on paying for conference attendance

      40. Rewarding yes instead of fresh ideas

      41. Getting mad when challenged

      42. Assuming they have no control

      43. Spending too much time putting out fires

      44. Beating up suppliers then expecting great support

      45. Taking action before fully understanding the situation

      46. Not taking risks

      47. Enforcing stupid rules

      48. Raining on Culture: Not capitalizing on employee interest and enthusiasm; thereby teaching your employees that their excitement and enjoyment of their job means nothing

      49. Blaming people instead of the system they work in

      50. Thinking they are cutting edge when really nothing has changed in the last three decades!