I started Thrive 9 years ago. We began with 1 client and used my house as my office. I really had no idea what I was doing, but 100% knew that I wanted to change how people are supported in our system. I wanted there to be choices and to teach everyone who chose Thrive as their provider, that living an active and healthy lifestyle was attainable even with all of their different needs and situations. 

So many things have happened during the last 9 years. Dane County stopped funding us and we transitioned into the world of Family Care and IRIS. E.V.V. reared it’s dysfunctional, expensive (to all providers on every level), ugly head. Covid upended all of our lives and destroyed an already shrinking base of people willing to work as caregivers. We have trudged through all of it, trying to keep all of our people safe. and our heads above water We lost people to illness and Alzheimer’s. Started supporting new people, had others move on…all the while developing new relationships filled with laughter and tears, frustration and victories, new beginnings and bitter endings. 

Through all of the events that have shaped Thrive as a whole and where we are presently, something started gnawing at me. I was getting so frustrated and angry with everything that was happening within my agency. I felt like Thrive was becoming everything that I hated within the Supported Living community and once I finally stopped and thought about things, I quickly realized that if I wanted change….I needed to change. I didn’t need to change what I wanted Thrive to be, I needed to change how I approached my company and specifically the people that worked for me. How could they do their jobs the way I wanted them to if I wasn’t showing them and teaching them what Thrive’s core beliefs were? I was not giving them the tools or support to feel confident in their abilities and succeed with what they were doing at work.

I spent he last few years being on the defensive and always ready to react negatively to anything bad that was happening with my staff. I was so focused on hiring people to fill our staffing shortage that I wasn’t taking the time to sit down with everyone and talk about what my expectations were for them as my employees and also with the awesome responsibility they now had as care takers for the wonderful people who we support. If I can’t give everyone the training tools they need to succeed while at work, how can I be mad when they didn’t do the things I expected them to do? 

This thought process has been therapeutic for me as I suddenly had all these ideas flowing again on how we can train people to understand each person that we support in the unique ways that each of them needs support. There is not one single person that can be supported in the exact same way. There are no blueprints we can hand someone and apply those rules at every home we support. That would be a recipe for disaster! The unique differences in all of the people we support are exactly what makes this job so incredible. I don’t think I have ever felt bored in the 20 plus years that I have been in this field

What do I do? Should I utilize technology, written word, time honored shadowing of current staff, video or god awful checklists to assist in training my staff? Should I send them to boring 3 hour seminars given by people that have not supported anyone at all or for several years?  The truth is…I have no idea!! All I know, is that I have a million ideas going and all are focused on Thrive making the people we support be an active, healthy,  integral and vital part of our community in Madison. That starts with getting my staff to understand this vision for our company and give them the tools to become confident and comfortable with making decisions that shape the every day lives of each and every person we support.