The Quota Problem

The Hearth Core — Metrics That Actually Work

Welcome to The Hearth Core -- the center of the flame, where sustaining wisdom lives.

Everything you have learned so far -- the landscape, your legacy, the family journey, the Family Service Counselor role -- it all converges here. Because now comes the question that breaks most programs before they start: How do you measure any of this?

Let us begin with a story that will feel uncomfortably familiar.

A funeral home in a mid-sized city hired a new sales team. They set clear quotas: 50 outreach calls per week, 10 community events per month, 5 pre-need consultations per week. On paper, the metrics looked great. The activity was happening. The spreadsheets were filling up.

In practice? The counselors were rushing through conversations to hit numbers. Families felt it. Directors felt it. The warmth that should have defined every interaction was being squeezed out by a stopwatch.

Within four months, two of the three counselors had quit. The pipeline collapsed.

This is not a failure of people. This is a failure of measurement. And it happens every single time a funeral home borrows a metrics playbook from an industry that does not understand what it means to sit with a grieving family.

The Hearth Core Principle

A fire that burns too hot, too fast, consumes itself. The metrics you choose determine whether your flame sustains families for decades -- or burns out your best people in months. At the center of The Hearth, we learn to measure warmth, not just heat.

Root Cause of the Pipeline Collapse

In the opening story, a funeral home's pre-need pipeline collapsed within four months. What was the primary cause of this failure?

The counselors lacked the skills needed for pre-need conversations The funeral home did not hire enough counselors to cover the territory The measurement system forced counselors to prioritize volume over genuine connection Families in that market were simply not interested in pre-need planning

Impact of Aggressive Targets on Counselors

When compassionate counselors are measured by aggressive activity targets, what is the most common outcome?

They adapt quickly and learn to balance speed with warmth They honor the moment with families and eventually leave a system that punishes them for it They request additional training to improve their closing rates They stop attending community events to focus on closing policies

The Hearth Core Principle

The Hearth Core principle teaches us to 'measure warmth, not just heat.' What does this mean in practical terms?

Stop tracking numbers altogether and rely on intuition instead Only measure results like closed policies and revenue generated Choose metrics that reflect the depth and quality of family relationships, not just the volume of activity Set higher targets so only the most dedicated counselors remain on the team