How Channeling Your Inner Child Can Increase Your Productivity

How Channeling Your Inner Child Can Increase Your Productivity

If you've ever watched a child playing, you realize that there's more to their innocent activities than simply having fun. It's through play that children learn about the world around them and develop their skills. Play really is work for children—it's the most important job they have—and they're good at it. So, what can we learn about productivity through watching children play? Here are three important ways you can be more productive if you tap into your inner child.

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Director on Call Achieves 16th ATSI Award of Excellence

Number 16 gold celebration candle on star and glitter background

We are pleased to announce that our company has once again won the ATSI Award of Excellence for the sixteenth year. Scoring within the top ten answering service companies across North America, Director on Call would like to thank our entire communications team for their consistent hard work and dedication to making every call a superior customer experience.

Springfield Funeral Home and Director on Call

Linda is catching up with some of our Clients.

Linda Kelowna 6.jpeg

She met with Mariko from Springfield Funeral Home in Kelowna.

After working with us at other funeral homes, Manager Rod Attwell had to make sure that Springfield Funeral Home was also represented by Director on Call.

The best part of FSAC for us to seeing the people we’ve been working with for a long time.  If you haven’t said hello, Linda is in Booth #10.

Director on Call Receives 19th Award of Excellence!

Wow Comic Speech Bubble, Cartoon

Director on Call is excited to announce that for the 19th year in a row we have worked hard to achieve the CAM-X Award of Excellence in Telecommunications.

"This award is very important to our company as it is a peer-reviewed recognition of the service we provide for our clients. This award is also immeasurable to our staff. It is tangible proof that our Agents, trainers and supervisors go above and beyond every year to ensure a superior customer experience," says Brad French, President of Alliance Wireless Communication, on their achievement.

We at Director on Call are cheering for the hard work that our front line staff do on a daily basis to represent us and our clients.


Three Ways to Manage Stress on the Job

A man frustrated with images of clocks and watches over his head.

Do you often feel stressed-out and overwhelmed in your job? Many industries are stressful, and working in the funeral business brings its own list of challenges and stressors. Keeping yourself relaxed and at-ease is not always easy, but there are a few strategies you can employ.

  1. Delegate Tasks

Sometimes, stress comes from trying to do everything yourself. If you can unload some of your responsibilities, your obligations will feel more manageable and your stress levels will decrease. Sit down and make a list of everything you need to do, and then put check marks next to those items you can delegate to someone else. Assign those tasks to other people, and then don't worry about them.

Also explore ways to delegate certain tasks on a more permanent basis. For example, consider hiring a funeral home answering service to handle some of your after-hours calls. Hire a cleaning service to clean your offices rather than staying late to do so yourself once a week.

2. Work Out

When you get busy at work, chances are, your workout routine suffers. But since exercise is such a great stress reliever, it's one of the things you need most when your job gets busy and stress-inducing. When you get home after a long day, you may not feel like hitting the gym, but what if you make a habit of working out at lunch time? This will give you a chance to regroup in the middle of the day. It breaks up your schedule and releases some endorphins to help keep you sane through the rest of the day.

Your mid-day workout does not have to be strenuous, either. If you don't want to get all sweaty and fatigued, take a walk around the block.

3. Make Checklists

The act of checking something off the list can make you feel accomplished, and seeing your progress on paper will help keep your stress levels down. So at the beginning of each day, make a list of tasks you need to complete that day. Break each big project down into smaller, manageable tasks that take an hour or less. Check them off as you finish them, and watch your stress levels drop.

By partnering with a funeral home answering service, delegating, making checklists, and making time for exercise, you can better manage your stress and navigate your workday with ease.

Why Self-Care is So Important in the Funeral Business

Man meditating in lotus pose, wearing a blue suit on his office desk.

Caregiver fatigue and exhaustion are common, and when you're exhausted, you can't do the best job of continuing to care for others or for yourself. Self care for carers is of the utmost importance, especially in the funeral business.

Why is self care for carers so important?

Caregiver fatigue is like a downward spiraling ladder. You end the day feeling emotionally and mentally drained. You don't quite recover overnight, so the next day, you feel even worse. Before long, you are going through your day like a robot.

Connecting with the families you care for becomes harder, and you start trying to avoid feeling that emotional connection because it's almost too painful and draining to do so. You feel like a shell of yourself, and the families you care for can feel that you're not quite connected and engaged. Some funeral business workers become so exhausted that they must leave the business.

Thankfully, by practicing some good self care techniques, you can keep yourself stronger, mentally and emotionally, and continue to have the capacity to connect with your families and give them the support they need. You'll be able to really feel what they need and what they are going through without having to consciously compartmentalize their feelings. This makes for happier families and a more rewarding career for you, too.

There are a few ways to take better care of yourself as a carer:

Delegate Tasks

See if there are some tasks you can delegate to other employees in order to lighten your load a bit. The less there is on your plate, the less stressed out you will feel after a long day.

Choose a Hobby

Look for a hobby you love that does not require much engagement with other people. This will give you some alone time to focus on something else without having to worry about others' burdens. Running, swimming, cycling, and knitting are some examples.

Set Your Hours

Working in a funeral home does not have to be a 24-hour job. Contract with an answering service to handle after-hours calls so you can take time for yourself each evening.

Taking better care of your families starts with taking better care of yourself.

How To Stay Focused When You Wear Multiple Hats

While dealing with their grief, families depend on funeral directors to guide their decisions with patience, empathy, and dependability. Every detail, from the wording on the gravestone to the menu at the reception, needs to be designed to allow celebrants to heal while finding joy in their loved one’s legacy. With so many details to attend to, how can a director stay focused during their busy day?


Funeral homes don’t usually have a large staff. Supplement your manpower with temporary workers and creative labor solutions.

  • Hire temporary workers through a staffing agency. They can help set up chairs, clean the grounds after an event, or even park cars during large services.

  • Contract with an answering service to field incoming phone calls. Compassionate and professional customer service representatives can answer simple questions, take messages, or forward calls to someone who can help.

  • Partner with local florists, caterers, and stylists. Offer advertising space or other perks to help families select the right elements for their occasion.


Making big decisions while grieving is tough. Simplify choices to reduce strain on families and staff.

  • Create comprehensive, pre-made packages. Include the price of burial or cremation, final resting container, floral arrangements, displays, and room use. Use different price points. This will make it easier for families to select the services they want.

  • Reduce the number of services you offer. Instead of arranging things like transportation, obituaries, and receptions, offer families a list of trusted local businesses that can help them with these things.

  • Define staff roles. When everyone knows exactly what their responsibilities are, your business will run more smoothly.


Organize your office space to reduce the time you spend looking for information and supplies.

  • Keep a menu with up-to-date pricing. Update your list once a month.

  • Check your inventory often. Place frequently used items, like paper products, on auto shipment.

  • Invest in a scanner. Your paperwork will be organized and accessible without adding stress-inducing clutter.

It is an honor to help others celebrate the lives of deceased loved ones. With a little help, planning, and some regular maintenance, you can enjoy your important work without wearing yourself out.

Middle Eastern Funeral Rites Today

A lone person stands in a the desert sand dunes at sunset.

Funeral rites and rituals show great variation around the world. In the Middle East, most funeral rituals stem from the Islamic belief that the deceased will remain in their tombs until the Last Day, upon which they will be sent either to paradise or to hell. Here is a closer look at how modern families and loved ones mourn and honor the deceased in the Middle East.

Prior To Death

The time leading up to death is a special time to Middle Eastern families. They gather around the family member who is about to pass on, offering them comfort and religious prayer. When the person passes, family members close their eyes and cover the body with a sheet.

Funeral Preparations

In the Muslim faith, which is predominant throughout the Middle East, it is traditional to begin funeral preparations as soon as the family member has passed on. Local organizations may assist the family in planning a funeral service, which often takes place at the mosque.

Embalming is not routinely practiced in the Middle East, and the deceased is usually left "natural" rather than being decorated with cosmetics. Instead, the body is washed and shrouded by close family members. White sheets are carefully folded around the body in a specific pattern, and the shroud is secured with ropes.

The Funeral

Since Muslims believe in burying the body as soon as possible, wakes are not common in Middle Eastern countries. Instead, the prepared body is taken directly to the mosque. During the funeral service, members of the community enter a special prayer room, face mecca, and recite prayers. Then, the body is transported to the grave site. In some countries, only men are allowed at the grave site; others allow women and children to attend.

A grave is dug, and the body is placed on its right side within the grave. The deceased's head always faces mecca. A layer of stones or bricks are placed on top of the body to prevent direct contact with the soil, and then mourners each add three handfuls of soil to the grave as they pass. The grave may be denoted with a small marker. Following the funeral, the family remains in mourning for 40 days, during which friends bring them food and comfort.

Middle Eastern funerals are steeped in years of religious tradition. They are not ornate occasions, but rather an opportunity for prayer and mourning.

The History Of African Tribal Funerals

Tribal Hut with drum outside of entrance

Throughout the world, there is so much variety in funeral and burial practices. Africa is one region with a very unique history and culture surrounding death and mourning. Most practices are influenced by Africans' traditional belief in the afterlife, and Christianity has also played a key role in shaping the practices over the years. Here's a closer look at African tribal funeral traditions.

Home Rituals

The burial process in most African tribes often begins several days before the funeral itself. Family members gather to delegate funeral-related tasks and to prepare the home for the state of mourning. The deceased family member's bed is typically removed from the home, and the windows are covered. It is though that by covering the windows, they prevent the dead from seeing their own reflection. This is all done before the body is removed from the home.

Transporting the Body

Africans feel that the spirit of a person is still present and aware until the body is properly buried. Much of their ritual has the goal of ensuring the spirit is allowed to move on, and particular attention is paid to how the body is transported from the home to the burial site. Some tribes remove the body from the home through a hole in the wall; they then patch the hole. This is done to prevent the spirit from re-entering and haunting the home. Other tribes take a zig-zag path from the home to the burial site for the same reason.

Burying the Body

Typically, what westerners think of as a funeral is held at the burial site in Africa. The body is wrapped in clothing or a special linen shroud, and it is buried along with items like food, spears, and shields that are though to help the spirit as it travels to its new home in the afterlife. Family and community members are present during the burial, but it is a silent affair. Children don't typically attend; unmarried people are also banned in some tribes.

Following the burial, African families often observe a period of mourning. During this time, they keep their voices low, avoid socializing outside the home, and wear black clothing.

African tribal traditions are still followed in many areas, and African families living abroad sometimes wish to integrate aspects of this culture into their burial practices. These are rituals that date back thousands of years and have great meaning.

Egyptian Funerals: From Pharaohs To Modern Day

Great pyramids and desert with camels in forefront of photo

It's always interesting to look at how funeral practices in a region change over time. Nowhere is the change more significant than in Egypt, a country known for its ancient practice of mummification. Indeed, Egyptian funerals have changed drastically over the centuries, but it has been a slow, progressive transformation. Prehistoric Funerals

Before the days of pharaohs and elaborate tombs, prehistoric Egyptians buried their dead in simple, round graves. The body was not carefully prepared. Rather, it was placed in a large pot and covered with earth. Little is known about the cultural and religious beliefs during this time period since few graves have been found.

Old Kingdom Funerals (2600 - 2100 BC)

As kings came to power, burial practices evolved to include elaborate tombs, shaped as pyramids, for kings and other elite members of society. Mummification, the practice of preserving the body and wrapping it in linen bandages, began during this time. This practice is thought to have evolved out of a growing belief in the afterlife.

Middle Kingdom Funerals (2100 - 1650 BC)

The dynastic pharaohs of Egypt hailed from Thebes, so it was tradition to return their bodies to this region and bury them in the sides of mountains. For lower-ranking officials, however, burial in a plain wooden coffin was common. Mummification was still common, but bodies were now placed on their backs rather than their sides. Most tombs became family tombs, housing the dead from multiple generations.

New Kingdom and Late Period Burials (1650 BC - 30 BC)

During this period, tombs grew into multi-room chambers cut into rock. Pyramids were no longer commonplace, and tombs of officials were fitted with furniture, clothing, jewelry, and other items needed in the afterlife. Later on, temple-like tombs became an option even for the non-elite.

Roman Period to the Arab Conquest (30 BC - 600 AD)

As the Romans gained influence, Egyptian burials began taking on Roman traditions, such as adding Roman-style masks to mummies and covering the feet with a shroud. Roman-style portraits of the deceased were often made and placed in the tombs.

Modern Burials

Today, most Egyptians are of the Islamic faith and follow traditional Islamic burial practices including burying the deceased as quickly as possible, covered in simple white linen. Cremation is forbidden, and funerals are a community affair.

From pots, to mummies, to simple linen, Egyptian burial practices have really come full circle over the nation's history.

Creative Post-Memorial Gathering Ideas

Turquoise plates holding food while people join together to eat a meal.

Once the memorial service is over, many families like to gather and spend more time together in a laid back setting. Many post-memorial gatherings are low-key events where a few dishes are passed and stories are shared. However, there is plenty of room to get creative with the post-memorial gathering. Here are a few ideas to share with families looking to do something a bit out of the ordinary.

Watch the deceased loved one's favorite movie.

This idea works best with smaller groups. Everyone can gather around the television and watch their deceased loved one's favorite movie. They may reminisce about times they viewed that same movie with their loved one or chat about everyone's favorite scenes. 

Play music that the deceased enjoyed.

Did the deceased loved one have a favorite band or a genre of music that they really enjoyed? Families can play that music in the background as they engage in whatever activities they desire at the post-memorial gathering. For a more formal affair, everyone can observe a moment of silence as they listen to the loved one's favorite song.

Serve their favorite foods.

A post-memorial gathering during which the loved one's favorite foods are served is a nice final goodbye. The family can also serve their favorite cocktail or wine if alcohol is to be served. From that day on, whenever anyone in the family orders or makes those favorite foods, it will remind them of their loved one and the beautiful memorial service.

Play a game they loved.

If the deceased loved a certain board game, or perhaps even a lawn game, their family can spend a little time together playing that game. This is sure to inspire memories of playing the game with the loved one who has passed. They may even want to use the loved one's game set to make the experience even more personalized.

Watch home movies.

If there are any home movies of the loved one who has passed, gathering everyone together to view some of them is a good way to end the day of the memorial service. Family members will enjoy recalling times passed when the deceased was younger and vibrant.

Recommend these creative additions to families who want to honor their loved one with a post-memorial gathering. Each one has its own unique twist but will end the day on a positive, loving note. 

How Did Native Americans Honor Their Dead?

Person wearing a traditional Native headdress looking at the sunrise with a bird flying overhead.

Every culture honors life events differently. Ceremonies for births, marriages, and deaths figure largely as significant events, and are symbolized using specific observances. In the Native American culture, rituals play an especially significant part of their beliefs and who they are. Understanding the various Native American funeral rites and how they honored their dead can help you support and comfort families grieving their lost loved one.

Over the years, the practices performed for Native American funerals have evolved. Death ceremonies to honor loved ones were both spiritually and personally significant. Many tribes believed that the passage of death was simply a journey to the spirit world, and the rituals were conducted to make that journey successful. As part of that unseen world, their loved ones and ancestors became part of the spiritual influences that impacted the lives of the living. Other tribes believed in two separate souls; one that died when the body died, and another that lived on, but may ultimately die.  

In most Native American funerals, the family was responsible for transporting, arranging, and burying. Making family an integral factor in the observance. Because burial customs varied extensively from tribe to tribe, the following examples explore some of the most common rites performed.

  • The ancient Hopewell tribes built lavishly furnished tombs.

  • Coastal tribes in the Northwest placed family members in canoes or in dedicated mortuary cabins.

  • Some tribes in Southern California practiced cremation.

  • Western Mountain tribes used caves or rock fissures for burial.

  • Like ancient Egyptians, South American tribes practiced embalming and mummification techniques.

Regardless of the method of burial, many Native American funerals included specific rites. These were designed to not only comfort the family by their tradition, but to also ease the loved one’s passage into the afterlife. In addition to songs, prayers, and a dedicated length of mourning time, some funerals included:

  • Restrictions on the activities bereaved family members may do, and what they may eat.

  • Leaving food and possessions either in, or near the gravesite.

  • Widows would often cut their hair as a sign of mourning.

  • Blackening of the face to honor the dead.

  • Rituals performed on the anniversary of the death.

Understanding the various methods used in ancient Native American funerals can help comfort families who are grieving today by providing a connection to the past.

Celtic Burial Rites: Traditions That We Still Use


The ancients Celts were a preliterate society. With no written record, modern researchers rely heavily on archaeology to understand their lives and the Celtic burial rites that still influence modern funerals and how we memorialize those who pass away. The religious views held by the Celts undoubtedly influenced their opinions of death and how the remains of the deceased should be handled. There is not a lot known about the funeral ceremonies, but a lot of information has been gathered from excavation and analysis of Celtic burial sites.

Elaborate funeral rituals and trappings

Some Celts had relatively simple burials in accordance with their social class. As their social status increased, their funerals were more elaborate. A chieftain would be buried with trappings of his wealth. The most elaborate tomb of a known Celtic woman is that of the Lady at Vix. She was buried with her funeral wagon, jewelry, mirrors, and a food service for nine people. Modern funerals for heads of state and famous people tend to be elaborate affairs to accommodate the thousands of people who wish to pay their last respects.

A comfortable resting place

The deceased were often placed on large burial coaches in spacious tombs that included items that could be of use to the person as they crossed over to the next life. Modern coffins include pillows and padded sides. Friends and family members will often place items inside the coffin such as a favorite candy or small personal item that had special significance to their loved one.

Full body burial

Previous cultures would typically cremate the dead and then bury the ashes in urns. They are referred to as the Urnfield culture. This practice continued from approximately 1300 BCE to 750 BCE until it was succeeded by the Hallstatt culture of the 8th to 6th centuries BC. One of the most widely noted Celtic burial rites was the practice of inhumation, also referred to as full body burial.

Many Celtic burial rites developed based on their belief in an afterlife and their respect for the person who died. It takes time for loved ones to accept that a cherished person has passed away. Regardless of faith or view on life after death, people still want their deceased loved one treated respectfully and with care.