https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj40gnE5rPQ
Last week I posted on giving youth a chance to shine in your workplace, and this week my wife Leslie suggested the perfect bookend to that video.
In 2007 we stumbled across a DVD of the movie documentary Young at Heart. It was a thrilling surprise to watch this documentary, a movie that critic Stephen Holden described as "an encouraging vision of old age in which the depression commonly associated with decrepitude is held at bay by music making." Not only is it held at bay – the depression is attacked by the joy of creation and song.
Please note: this is not a lip-synching act! The music all comes from them.
I chose one of the numbers from the movie because I love the irony of this song, originally by the punk rock band The Ramones. I highly recommend a viewing of the whole movie; you'll reframe anything you might think about older people in nursing homes, and you'll also reframe your thinking about a few classic songs!
How can you use the experience and creativity of the older people in your team, or in your customer base, or in your community? How can you empower the people on your team who are advanced in experience but still want to make a contribution? What creative outlets can you create for your customers, regardless of age or stage?