Something for y’all to think about:
Recently I heard a discussion on the radio about how we define success in various endeavors. That got me thinking (dangerous, I know, but sometimes I’m quite the risk-taker) about how one might define success as a caregiver. If you’re caring for or supporting a friend or loved one, how do you define “success”? How can you know if you’re doing a good job? Particularly if you’re caring for someone who may be near the end of their days, when the end comes, does it even make sense to wonder if you “succeeded”?
Another program I heard on NPR talked about when we tip, and when we don’t. A criteria suggested is that we should tip when the customer is the best one to evaluate if the job was done satisfactorily. For example, while a restaurant manager might have some idea if food is being delivered to tables in a timely manner and the money is being collected, only the customer can say if they received the right degree of attention. Some diners might just want their food and to be left alone, maybe to ponder weighty matters (like how to define success…) or discuss Important Things with a companion. To the boss, it might seem that that customer is being neglected, but in reality, the server is doing a Good Job. So the customer leaves a tip to indicate their degree of satisfaction.
While it’d be ludicrous to expect tips from those we’re caring for, perhaps that’s the perspective to take. If the cared-for is happy, maybe that’s all that matters. “The customer is always right”.
Whatchy’all think?
