Last Monday we published part 1 of our interview with Jill Gilbert. Jill Gilbert is the founder and CEO of Gilbert Guide. Gilbert Guide is the leading resource on the topic of elder care or senior care. It educates, entertains and provides listings of service providers in your local area for senior care. We would also like to highlight that GilbertGuide is a Boomer411 Trustee and you can find their recommended articles here. This interview is being presented in two parts. Part 1 of this interview can be accessed here. Today we present the second and concluding part of this interview…

Boomer411: What motivated you to start GilbertGuide? How long has it been?

JG: Well, to make a long story short, I was motivated by another idea first. I began my career working in the film industry and decided it was time for a change. My parents run a cancer center in Lodi, CA, where my dad is a radiation oncologist. Their patients received excellent treatment, but they were at a loss when it came to accessing all the other, supplemental information they needed. We originally discussed building a cancer resource center to complement their practice, but when I started looking for resource books and couldn’t find anything that encompassed every category, the idea began to change. One thing you should understand is that I came from a really different background-for one thing, the film industry has amazing resource books. And for another, I didn’t know anything about senior care, and the books that I did find didn’t answer my questions. It was 2003. That’s basically when Gilbert Guide began, and almost a year later, my brother Jason joined the team, really making it a family company. Gilbert Guide started out publishing geo-centric guidebooks with comprehensive reviews of every senior care provider in the area. Before then, I’d never set foot inside a nursing home. But I learned from the ground up and surrounded myself with experts. I wouldn’t have done it any other way. It gave me a unique perspective. And since then, of course, Gilbert Guide has expanded its offerings greatly.

Boomer411: You have an impressive team that produces interesting, informative articles on a variety of topics. Can you tell our readers more about your panel of experts and the topics covered by GilbertGuide?

JG: We have a wonderful, articulate bunch of experts who write their own columns on GilbertGuide.com. The authors and the topics they write on are wide-ranging. We have an incontinence specialist, a cancer doctor who is a practicing radiation oncologist, a pharmacologist, a naturopath, a dentist whose practice focuses on geriatric dentistry, a nutritionist, two geriatric care managers, a senior move manager, a long-term care insurance specialist, a financial planner who works exclusively with the elderly, hospice experts and more. In addition to our columnists, we have select experts who contribute original articles to other areas of the site. Also, we have many readers who leave insightful questions and comments to the authors at the end of their articles, which often starts an in-depth conversation between the author and other readers, so it’s really quite an incredible collaboration. It’s very community-oriented.

Boomer411: How do you come up with the topics?

JG: Oftentimes, the topics come from our readers. They’re very vocal in letting us know what they want to learn more about. A conversation that develops in a comment thread following a particular article might pose interesting questions that expose the need for developing that topic further. Sometimes people email us asking for coverage on a certain topic. We work very closely with our contributors to help guide the topics and answer our readers’ questions. All of our experts work in some professional capacity in the senior care world, so they propose topics as well, often writing on topics their patients and clients come to them for advice on. And of course, we’re a part of the senior care industry, so we report on current trends and issues in a more journalistic vein, to keep our readers abreast of those developments.

Boomer411: What criteria should one use when trying to determine what kind of care a loved one requires?

JG: I could go on for hours and still never completely answer this question! Let me explain. Every senior, every family, every facility-and every situation is different. That’s not to say that this question is unanswerable. Of course it is-but I’m going to point you to our Care Planner to answer it! The Care Planner provides each individual with a personalized care plan tailored to their unique situation, guiding them through the process step by step, and granting them access to our supportive “how-to” tool-kits.

Boomer411: What are some of the common pitfalls and mistakes that Boomers make in choosing a care provider and/or facility?

JG: You know, the biggest-and most common-mistake that I see is that people tend to get stuck in the present and they don’t troubleshoot the future. They think, “Oh, Mom’s healthy now, and Grandma died peacefully in her sleep, and never went to the doctor a day in her life” Or something like that. But the reality is: we are all living longer, and that presents complications. Many boomers are facing the challenge of caring for an aging parent, having them move in or choosing a facility for them, in addition to simultaneously caring for a spouse and children, and working and planning for their own retirement. The best move they can make is to plan for the future and try to avoid making uninformed choices. Many families that don’t plan ahead end up having to move a parent from one facility to the next as needs change. Doing so can be extremely costly and take a heavy toll, both emotionally and physically, on the senior and the entire family. It’s worth taking the time to consider all the factors and weigh your options instead of basing decisions on what’s relevant today.

Boomer411: What are your thoughts on the ‘aging in-place’ initiative being experimented around the country?

JG: Aging in-place is what most of us want for ourselves when the time comes. A lot of people don’t realize there’s such a thing as nonmedical homecare available. It means that you can get help for your mom or dad to help them remain at home for as long as possible, giving them access to the care they need without having to move them to a facility. Home care workers can help with all kinds of everyday activities, ranging from light housekeeping, to helping an elder eat, bathe, use the toilet and so on. They can even provide medication reminders. Some simple home modifications can go a long way to help, too. And the assistive technology that’s available today-well, it’s pretty amazing! Just wait until you see what’s coming in the near future.

Aging in place is also possible in a facility. For example, if a senior lives in an assisted living community, she could potentially remain there for the rest of her life, without having to move again, even if her health status changes. Of course, all of this depends on the contractual agreement that she has with the facility. But the idea is the same: the senior remains in the residence where he or she is comfortable, obtaining the necessary care as health needs increase.

Boomer411: What is your outlook for the future of retirement communities and long-term care facilities?

JG: There has been a huge growth in these types of communities and I think the industry is trying to figure itself out. There will always be a need for them. There’s a growing trend of communities specializing in particular interests, which I believe we’ll begin to see more and more of. For example, there are university-based retirement communities and Hollywood actor communities, and of course those which are backed by religious organizations. Lately there’s been a rise in the number of LGBT-oriented communities. But I think we will start to see more “special interest” communities forming. Those will really be the most successful-common interests make for much happier residents.

Boomer411: Any closing comments, insights you would like to share with our readers?  

JG: Gilbert Guide’s goal is to ease the process of searching for senior care. It’s a big world, and you can be sure that there will be questions and issues that creep up every step of the way. When that happens, Gilbert Guide will be there to lend support, advice and information.

This concludes our interview with Jill Gilbert, founder of Gilbert Guide. Please use the links below to learn more about GilbertGuide, what they have to offer and a listing of articles recommended by GilbertGuide. 

Resources:  

Gilbert Guide profile on Boomer411 

Gilbert Guide’s article recommendations on Boomer411 

Gilbert Guide Resources

Care Planner      

Find a Provider        

Senior Housing Solutions Center   

Alzheimer’s & Dementia Solutions Center  

Care at Home Solutions Center

Partner Marketplace        http://www.gilbertguide.com/preferred-partners/

Popularity: 35% [?]

Continuing our series on interviews with interesting people and providers, today we bring you our interview with Jill Gilbert. Jill Gilbert is the founder and CEO of Gilbert Guide. Gilbert Guide is the leading resource on the topic of elder care or senior care. It educates, entertains and provides listings of service providers in your local area for senior care. This interview is being presented in two parts. The first part of the interview is presented here for your information, education and enjoyment…

Boomer411: Tell me about Gilbert Guide and how you see it fulfilling a niche in the marketplace?
JG: Gilbert Guide is a “mecca” for Baby Boomers with aging parents. What I mean by that is we provide the most diverse wealth of information regarding senior care on the Web. Very simply, we guide people through the process of searching for senior care—answering hard questions, and tackling tough topics that you won’t see anywhere else. That’s where the “guide” in Gilbert Guide comes from.

GilbertGuide.com is supported by a virtual community of topic experts, senior care professionals and family caregivers. The idea is that by bringing all of these people together, the caregivers will become well-informed consumers, and the experts and professionals will learn from the people who require their services—to really understand, in great depth, what those needs are and how they evolve. In that way, Gilbert Guide is an agent of change for senior care world.

Boomer411: What services and products does Gilbert Guide offer? Briefly explain each
JG: A few of the many incredible services GilbertGuide.com offers are our Care Planner (I like to call it the “Action Plan”), Partner Marketplace and Provider Finder. The Care Planner is a great interactive tool that guides users through a series of questions and delivers a personalized action plan, expert recommendations, names of providers and contact information for them, and maps—all within minutes.

One of the services I’m most proud of is called “Find Senior Care” or “Provider Finder”. It is the most comprehensive, detailed national directory of senior care providers and senior service providers on the Web. It lists independent living, assisted living, nursing homes, continuing care retirement communities, home care providers (both nonmedical and medical), geriatric care managers, adult day services, hospice providers, and senior move managers. Basically, no matter where you live in the country, and no matter what your needs are, you will find what you need. One really cool feature is that anyone can review their experience with a particular provider—good, bad or just in between—so that others can make more informed decisions in the future. The best part is: every single service we offer is 100% free.

Boomer411: What’s new at Gilbert Guide?
JG: We recently expanded the site with the addition of three new Solutions Centers: Alzheimer’s & Dementia Care, Senior Housing and Care at Home. These centers  support readers through the entire process—for example, in the Senior Housing Solutions Center, you’ll learn about all of the housing options, beginning with independent living, continuing care and life care, assisted living and nursing homes. There’s detailed information, provided by the industry’s leading experts, on each of these subcategories as well as related topics like moving and downsizing. That’s actually a big issue—it’s tough downsizing after you’ve lived in your home for many years, accumulating more and more possessions. Readers come to Gilbert Guide for answers, and our Solutions Centers are where they find them. We take a very consumer-oriented approach in creating all of the content on our site. No matter what your level of knowledge, be it beginner, expert or something in between, Gilbert Guide’s job is to answer your questions.

Each center features multiple tool-kits with essential “how-to” information. In the Senior Housing Solutions Center, you’ve got access to an Assisted Living Evaluation & Moving Kit, in the Care at Home Solutions Center, you have How to Evaluate Home Care and How to Evaluate Home Health Care kits, and so on. We equip our readers with the best tools to get the solutions they need.

In the Alzheimer’s Care Solutions Center, users are guided through diagnosis and treatment, finding Alzheimer’s home care, finding care communities, and managing Alzheimer’s care. The topics encompass a broad range—for example, in terms of managing Alzheimer’s care, there are in-depth articles on: creating an Alzheimer’s friendly home (a step-by-step guide), dealing with combativeness, managing the behaviors associated with Sundowner’s Syndrome and much, much more. There’s a lot of information, but it’s all organized so that even first-time visitors to the site will have no problem finding what they need.

Boomer411: Do you have another outlet for communicating with your readers other than through your Web site?
JG: In April we launched our newsletter, Gilbert Guide Monthly to make sure our readers stay on top of what’s going on in the senior care world. It has been a huge success. I know a lot of people see senior care as boring and dry—so my biggest goal is to make sure everyone has a little fun with it! 

Boomer411: What can we expect next?
JG: We recently launched our version of Daily Candy (my personal newsletter staple—it gives me the skinny on new local restaurants and stores). It’s called The Weekly Insider. Here’s a sneak preview of what you can expect: “Get in-the-know advice and reviews on home modification tips and tools, senior gadgets, must-have services—and anything that’s new, helpful or just impressed the heck out us!”

Boomer411: What else makes Gilbert Guide unique?
JG: Our Partner Marketplace is a special part of the site where we link to the best senior-related products and services—but first, we do all the background research to make sure they’re reputable. Boomers are probably the busiest people on earth, so we’ve eliminated the time they would otherwise need to spend comparison shopping. When they click on the Partner Marketplace, they can feel good about making a solidly researched choice.

Boomer411: Who can benefit from your services? Where do they start?
JG: Baby Boomers who are searching for services for their parents OR who want to understand more about an aging parent’s condition OR who want to connect with other boomers and caregivers—these are the people who are on our site every day. Baby Boomers drive GilbertGuide.com. They tell us what they want to read about, what they want to educate themselves on, and we fill those needs. The starting point for most everyone is our Care Planner.

This concludes Part 1 of our interview with Jill Gilbert. Stay tuned for the second and concluding part of this interview to be published this Thursday…

Popularity: 30% [?]

Last week we discussed about the current financial crisis and the resulting economic situation in the country. Since we last discussed a lot has happened on this front. It appears that the country’s legislative bodies have agreed to a deal in principle and have written the draft legislation. It is widely expected to be passed by the Congress this week.

Also, one of the greatest investing legends of our times, Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway decided to invest $5 Billion in one of the two last standing investment banks, Goldman Sachs last week. In light of this ground breaking investment, CNBC recently interviewed Warren Buffett over a telephone call. The complete transcript of the interview and the audio/video of the interview can be accessed here. This is a very interesting, no holds barred interview. It gives the listener a very good opportunity to peek into the legendary investor’s mind at such a critical juncture in our nation’s economy. Mr.Buffett also shares his outlook, his rationale for this investment and more. So we wanted to spread the news about this interview to our readers. Hope you’ll like it. Please do post your comments and let us know your thoughts.

Note: The audio/video of the interview is in 3 separate parts. Be sure to go to the transcript of each part to access the audio/video of that part.

Popularity: 29% [?]

Today, continuing our series on interviews with people serving our community, we are delighted to present to you our interview with Judith Auslander of Wise Heart Coaching. Judith is a seasoned life coach and has helped many a people rediscover their calling and helped them make their lives meaningful and their relationships satisfying. We are delighted to have Judith on our panel of distinguished ‘Boomer411 Trustees’. You can find Judith’s recommended articles on Boomer411 under the user name WiseHeart. So here is our interview with Judith…

Q: We hear a lot lately about coaching, so, what exactly is a life coach?

A: Coaching is much like the sports coach you had in school – but I don’t yell at you. Basically, coaching is an ongoing professional relationship that helps people achieve extraordinary results in their lives, careers, businesses or organizations.

Q: How does coaching work?
A: I ask lots of questions – most of them requesting that you go deep inside to find a response to. Afterward I offer honest feedback as to what I heard or felt. My job is to inspire you with new ideas, concepts, strategies and frameworks that help reorient you around the success you are looking for. I am there as your friend, mentor, supporter – and most importantly – treat you with honesty and respect.

Q: So is coaching the same as mental health therapy such as counseling?

A: Well, yes and no. Coaching is a different and separate profession from counseling or psychotherapy in that it focuses on the present and on what you can do to create the future you want – NOW!!! Counseling may take years of therapy, where coaching usually produces immediate results. This does not mean that coaching is for everyone. If you have really serious issues, you may need a doctor who is trained in those areas. But for most people, a coach will help you find the happiness that eludes so many of us.

Q: What kinds of things do you generally coach people about?

A: Actually, a lot of things. It depends on what their particular hiccup in life is. It may be about setting goals – which by the way I wrote a book on – or finding romance or rediscovering the romance in your relationship. I have coached people on finding a new career, rediscovering their passion in life, organization, getting unstuck – it is amazing the things that pop up in a life that create a feeling of disorientation and loss that can be taken care with my program.

Q: Does coaching take years of work?

A: Again, much different from your standard therapy, coaching only takes about 3 to 6 months depending on the things we are working on.

Q. Is it expensive?

A. No, since it takes so much less time than counseling, the cost is significantly less.

Q. What is your main focus as a coach?

A. Recently, I have started to focus on boomers and being sexy. It seems that many boomers have forgotten what it is to be sexy. Being sexy, by the way, has nothing to do with sex. It is about how you feel about yourself, how you dress, how you operate or move in the world. With the rapid changes that seem to occur in our body after turning 50, it is easy to stop thinking of ourselves as sexy. My feeling is that we are still sexy – and that we should still have fun. With this concept in mind, I am starting a new market called “Shift2Sexy.” How do we make that “shift” is what I am starting to write articles about, creating workshops, and planning on my second book to be about. Boomers are not like their grandparents – we are living longer more active lives. Boomers have always been the movers and shakers and we will reinvent what getting older is all about.

Judith Auslander, MA, PCC, is the owner of Wise Heart Coaching. You may find out a lot more about coaching and about Judith at Wise Heart Coaching.

You can also read her blog here.

Popularity: 25% [?]

You have probably seen the user name ‘Beyond50Radio’ next to many articles on the www.Boomer411.com website. Some of you sent in comments that you like the wide array of topics covered by this trustee. (Definition: A “Boomer411 Trustee” is a person selected by Boomer411 board based on his or her expertise in the field;  a trustee selects articles and recommends them to be included in the search engine called, Boomer411, based on their working knowledge with Baby Boomers. So you can be sure that any article you find on Boomer411 is already reviewed and recommended by an expert). We are delighted to present you a closer view of the person behind this user name you often see on Boomer411, Daniel Davis and his amazing work on the ‘Beyond 50 Radio Show’. We thank Daniel Davis and his team for doing such a wonderful job in bringing interesting material to Baby Boomers through his radio program and for sharing their intriguing collection (click this link to access the complete listing of articles tagged by Beyond 50 Radio, to date) of valuable resources with our readers on Boomer411.com.

Boomer411: What is the “Beyond 50 Radio Show” and what makes it so unique?

DD (Daniel Davis): So many people think the name “Beyond 50” refers to age.  It actually means to get beyond half-way thinking toward solutions. At the heart of it, “Beyond 50” is not only an educational program for Baby Boomers (in their 40s – 60s), but also a socially and creatively-responsible one to bridge the generations in an inclusive way.  We like to regard ourselves as an alternative form of media that serves our growing audience with heart and intelligence. 
“Beyond 50” has been on-the-air for close to 5 years, getting our start in local radio stations in Portland, Oregon. We later moved the show online in November of 2007, which turned out to be an excellent move.  By offering the interviews as a podcast (in mp3 format), we’ve been able to syndicate our interviews on 125+ podcast networks and directories (like iTunes that has millions of listeners).  Every week, we have “new ears” from all over the world downloading past interviews from our archives.  It’s amazing to see the numbers of people tuning in double every 2 – 3 months and to interact with them during a broadcast. 

What makes our show a standout is our knack for seeking out and attracting exceptional radio guests who are innovative, cutting edge, top experts in their field, offbeat, and visionary leaders.  We’re constantly getting remarks from people wondering where we find these people because they’re so interesting.

Because of the high quality of our show’s content, we’ve got listeners who are young adults to seniors in age, but mostly those in their midlife who are listening regularly. 

Boomer411: Who were some of your favorite guests you’ve had on-the-air?
DD: To date, we’ve had over 700 guests on “Beyond 50”.  A common tie between all of them is that they are great educators. We prefer that.

Some of our most remarkable guests include Jeanne Keene, the lady in Homer Spit Alaska who feeds breakfast to hundreds of eagles in her backyard daily; Jacques Gauthier who walked all across Canada, then all across the United States after healing from debilitating all-body pain; TJ Marrs who teaches how to pay off your mortgage through his unique rapid mortgage payoff program in less than 5 years; Dr. Gabriel Cousens who has helped many with Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes reverse their condition completely within 30-days; the “Columbo” actor, Peter Falk; Futurist Thomas Frey on the future of money; and so many more. 

Boomer411: Do you find that Boomers are receptive to listening to your show online?
DD: Absolutely! At first, we were apprehensive about moving “Beyond 50” from terrestrial radio to being totally online. Our assumption was that Boomers are so used to tuning in on their radio dial that they don’t want to change their habits. Not so. We’ve been told by many that they like the convenience of being able to hear our episodes whenever they want because everything is archived online. 

The other surprise was seeing a lot of Boomers with their own podcast show. The number of people doing this will increase as entrepreneurs in midlife use podcasting as a means to market and educate to new and existing customers. It is becoming more mainstream for many tuning in to broadcasts from their computer.

By listening online, there’s just more variety, compared to what’s offered in traditional radio on the AM and FM side.  This is similar to the numerous offerings on cable television versus free programming. What’s amazing is that podcasting has only been around since 2004.  Over time, you’ll notice a lot of traditional radio stations moving totally online to grow their listener base.  

Boomer411: What are your thoughts about how Boomers are portrayed by the media?
DD: We can tell that most of the media are having trouble figuring this group out. There’s no regard for diversity and complexity within the Baby Boomer population. Many in media just lump them together as if they all shared the same age and life experiences. The biggest no-no we find is lumping Boomers with Seniors like that. The media can be quick to offend their audience unknowingly by doing this.  That’s the same as when AARP says that 50 is Senior age. There’s definitely no group agreement on that, no matter how great the senior discounts can be.

Someone in their mid-40s doesn’t necessarily relate nor have the same practical interests with a Boomer in their mid-60’s. There’s definitely a generational gap. Media is slow to recognize emerging trends like those in their 50’s still having children or older Boomers going back to school and starting a business. There’s even a growing number living back home with their parents due to layoffs or from unfortunate circumstances. They are not all looking into retirement anytime soon or have lots of discretionary income as the media and mass marketers want you to believe.

Boomer411: Can you please share your experience of being a trustee on Boomer411?
DD: We like it a lot because we’re able to serve an even larger audience of Boomers.  We’ve never been a part of a combination search engine and bookmarking service before. It took us by surprise when some of our entries on Boomer411 started showing up as high rankings within the first few pages on major search engines like Google. This was within 24-hours to a few days after posting them on the site.
 
Also, we love to share the best of what we know and treat the privilege of being a trustee responsibly because there are thousands of readers every month going to Boomer411 that really want to find reliable and good information. We want them to keep coming back for more.

*Since 2004, Daniel Davis has served as the Radio Host of Beyond 50 Radio: America’s Talk Show for Baby Boomers. To tune in to the educational program, live broadcasts are every Friday, from 12 – 1 p.m. (PT)/3 – 4 p.m. (ET) on http://www.Beyond50Radio.com . They also offer a free e-newsletter from their website to learn more about their interviews.

You can tune in to the show by going to www.Beyond50Radio.com.  And check out our blog as well at www.Beyond50Radio.Blogspot.com.

Popularity: 19% [?]