There will be times when you need to be flexible and quick thinking to move from one approach or position to another in order to bring about success or a goal of being dressed or washed or ready to go shopping.

An example of this is getting dressed. If the person with dementia dresses in a manner inappropriate for the weather or the social situation, i.e., is ready to leave for a family gathering and is dressed in underwear only, adamant that they are ready. You may begin in the Expert position to bring it to the person’s attention, “I think you might need some trousers to go to lunch”. But you cannot remain there if you get a negative response or resistance and wish to avoid upset and be late for lunch. Given how certain he is that he is ready. You may need to move for instance to the Columbo position for a moment. “Oh, I forgot to tell you Aunt Grace is going to be there today. She really likes those black trousers of yours/that jumper of yours. Do you think that would be good to wear? I don’t know. What do you think?” Your goal is for him to be dressed appropriately. However, given the risk for upset if you impose your preferences on him, you may decide that so long as he has trousers, a shirt and a pullover on that will be OK. Which trousers doesn’t really matter. To achieve this you become the Collaborator, who works to achieve the goal of being at the family gathering in a peaceful mood. Or if it gets to be too difficult you may need to move to Companion for a few moments and sit quietly, “It’s all a bit much isn’t it?“