As a summer camp owner, each spring as I speak to college students about becoming a summer camp counselor. Often I get a response “I am not a teaching student. How will camp help me?” Will future employers want you to have an internship? They respond in the affirmative and continue “I need real world job skills”. Being a summer camp is the place to get these skills.
Today, as we categorize todays young workforce it is often said that they are lacking soft skills. These skills are what employers want and are what overnight summer camps best teach.
Here are 5 skills that any employer would want to see in their applicants. You can arrange these in any order because none is more important than another.
Teamwork
Most jobs require employees to work together as a unit, section or team building relationships and working together with respect toward a common good. Summer Camp is all about team work from your co counselors working together to building a team with in your cabin. Camp is a community not unlike a business organization. Camp is built of people who have very different personalities, backgrounds and life experiences that all come together for the goal of building each other up while playing and having fun.
Responsibility
At work we all want our bosses to give us greater responsibility. Very few jobs or internships can give you more responsibility than independently caring for someone else children. At Camp, counselors you are responsible 24-hours a day at camp or off in the woods hours away from civilization. It is the counselor that holds all of a child’s experience in their hand. From reducing injuries to motivating and encouraging a child, to stoping bullying. No place is a persons job more important than being a camp counselor.their work with campers is essential to camp’s operation.
Problem Solving
I once had a boss who said “Don’t bring me problems bring me solutions.” The same can be said as a camp counselor you need to figure things out and make it work the best way possible. Weather your getting 10 children to all brush their teeth or encouraging them to jump into a cold lake, you need to try things evaluate if it works and then make changes as needed. As a camp counselors you will be constantly provided with opportunities to solve problems and come up with creative solutions. Just the thing any employer is looking for in a new employee..
Communication Skills
Every job requires good communication skills. Without the distraction of technology and social media, camp counselors strengthen their communication skills by engaging in face-to-face interaction with campers and fellow counselors. Daily you will learn and practice how to lead group discussions and practice conflict resolution.
Leadership
Every job requires some amount of leadership. After all it is leadership that get the promotion. At camp your unique relationships with campers will allow you to practice your level of influence on others. At camp, you will share your life experience with their campers helping to build them into being better people. Even though camp is casual you will be required to be at the top of your game as a role model to children. Meaning you need to remain appropriate in language and appearance at all times. Living as a role model will cause you to step your game and be your best leader. After a summer at camp you will feel like a leader it is a powerful feeling.
Yes, you will get to practice these skills but equally important is you will be outside in nature and playing. To soon our youth passes but at camp we like to say "Act your shoe size on your age"
