In 2020 people found themselves at home for extended periods of time, and they identified what worked well for them and what didn’t – giving us an opportunity to help them make the changes they have identified
Turning the page on 2020
Regardless of anyone’s perspective, 2020 has been an unusual year – challenging, frustrating, painful, different, surprising, unscripted, and a few other adjectives that you may apply.
Regardless, that doesn’t matter anymore – not the impact of the year and some of the many challenges it presented – because it is over. Onward to 2021. Initially, there may not be any remarkable differences between 2020 and 2021. The new year may look and feel essentially the same. After all, it’s just a calendar page at the outset.
As we move headlong into the new year, however, we get to take charge and make our mark.
Rediscovering our homes
Many people had never spent so much time in their homes as they did in 2020. They became reacquainted with their homes and rediscovered the reasons they had purchased them. Many found that they like their home much better than they had thought and that their home was more than four walls and a roof. It was actually something they could enjoy being in for extended periods of time – alone or with the people that occupied their living space with them.
This is aging in place in a way that most people had never thought about or embraced. Their homes were going to be their constant companion in an inanimate way – something that was with them for many hours at a time, and several days in a row.
For many, 2020 was a great preview of what aging in place in their current home is all about. Either it worked for them as it is, with everyone in the home getting along rather well with each other and the space, or it identified changes that need to occur to make the home even better for them for remaining in it long-term.
Aging in place becomes personal
For many individuals – especially those younger than the traditional retirement age – aging in place is either a term they are familiar with or a concept they have not embraced. Still, they actually experienced it. They lived it firsthand – prepared or not.
No one had a month’s, week’s, or even a day’s notice before being told they needed to remain at home and confine most of their activities to their property. Fortunately, many homes were far more able to accommodate their occupants that the residents might have thought.
Had we given people a quiz ahead of time about how much they like their homes or thought their homes could accommodate them for an extended period of time, many of them may not have regarded their homes in the same favorable light as actual experience revealed.
Aging in place – though not something they consciously selected – became a reality for them. They woke up, lived in, and went to sleep in their home. Any shortcomings their homes presented to them were likely identified. Now we have an opportunity to get with most anyone and discuss their findings – and make plans to fix what isn’t quite right for their long-term enjoyment.
A new year, a new opportunity
No one knows if 2021 will be a repeat of 2020, or if it might present even more changes in how we conduct our at-home and in-public lives. One thing is sure. Our homes took on a new significance.
No longer is a home someplace just to return to after a day at the office, or a place to keep our furniture, clothing, and other belonging. It truly is our sanctuary and refuge from the outside world.
Had 2020 been a normal year, like it started out at the beginning, our homes still would have been an important part of our lives – a place to come home to, to relax, to be ourselves, to be surrounded by familiar items, and to pursue our hobbies and other pleasurable activities. But, it wasn’t a typical year!
Now we have seen how well our homes accommodate us for extended periods of time, and hopefully, they passed that test surprisingly well. For people who identified issues in their homes, we are available to help them,
2021 is the year to get started engaging people on how they want to improve their homes to make them even better for the next time there might be a response to Covid or similar public health concern, or they decide to remain at home to work or retire.
So many people need our help and input
We don’t have to look very far to find people that may need some help in modifying their homes – almost everyone has been affected by the virus and required to spend extended periods of time at home. Therefore, they should have identified areas of their home they would like to have modernized or renovated. That’s where we come in.
For people who know that something isn’t quite right between them and their homes but they haven’t identified how to approach it, we have the ability to help them with those issues.
The opportunities for business have never been stronger than they are right now!