I think the largest staff issue is all the people named Ben.
But seriously, in my past two years on staff I can pull up two big issues.
First is cohesion, the idea of individuals becoming a solid group, a mixed salad if you will. Where the tomatoes and the lettuce and the cucumbers are all not only allowed on the plate but welcomed, and felt they have a place to nestle in amongst their fellow foods. I hope to continue to build a group of people who feel welcome enough amongst one another to join in without feeling the need for an invitation.
Secondly would be the issue of dual shifts being completed to both staff members expectations. I definitely have been guilty myself of sometimes not understanding or remembering that a shift with two people is a shared responsibility not two separate shifts that fall in the same time and place. A job should be done to the best of the ability of both persons scheduled and not simply to the lowest common denominator.
But seriously...Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben...maybe we could just all be called Ben?
I'm not sure what the largest staff issue would be, but from jobs I've had in the past, the dividing of responsibilities has been problematic.
At jobs I've had in the past, some people end up cleaning all the time, for instance, while others decide it's not something they're interested in doing.
But honestly, I don't know what issues specific to this staff are.
For the record, I think I should get to claim and keep the name Ben. All others should have to find new names, and I can think of so many good ones right now it shouldn't be a problem. I offer my services to the other Ben's in launching a public campaign to formally change your island names to something positive that will be both memorable and command respect from the young and elderly, rich and poor alike.
Ummm...
I think the largest staff issue is getting everybody oriented and comfortable with each other. Lots of forced team time is a good thing, the quicker we become friends, the better. But what about all those folks that go their ritzy, caviar eating schools in the north that can't even get to camp until halfway through youth-fest 09????? This is a serious issue I think, we need to have some extra orientation stuff go on to really bring the group together when new staffies arrive slightly later, so as to really integrate them into the group.
I agree with...everybody. I think several nails have been hit on the head here, as I'm one of the designated 'cleaners,' as well as one of the hoity toity gentleman attendees of a fancy midwestern private college that has a really godamn inconvenient schedule.
As for the 'clean up the shit' employees (as Steve Spyres called Lerryn and I), I just don't think it's possible or workable to expect everybody to do the same quality and quantity of work across the board. I really liked the approach last year, where people's shift preferences which were accommodated and even embraced to a very constructive degree. I mean, why should I do the same number of lunch prep/unprep shifts as Sonja when I hate that shift, and she really likes and excels at it? So yeah, the more we can work with peoples' preferences, the happier and more relaxed the summer will be.
And I demand a full initiation ceremony when I arrive (late) because it has been a problem the last two years - and Lerryn's not coming back so I'd really like for the sense of community/camaraderie/companionship to happen real quick-like, but then again, coming up alone will make it easier to join the group...I can't wait to see you guys!
Mr. Jeffries, I have made my position amply clear for the past eight years: I am The Ben. Others may call themselves what they will, but at the end of the day, I have an article. Verbage is power!
I think that biggest Staff issue other than my name is our tendency towards... social inbreeding, for lack of a better term. During my volunteering last summer, it seemed to me that whenever any Staffer (including myself) was off duty, we were almost always in the loft, hiding from the campers. A certain amount of privacy is important, of course, but cutting ourselves off like that seems unlikely to improve the campers' experience any, and it could keep us from noticing some important things.
Well, The Ben: you know as well as I do that it's a matter of keeping ones sanity, as well as physical stamina. I think that this 'hermitage problem' is actually a response to how campers perceive and therefore treat staff members who are 'at rest' and in plain view. That is, we are technically on call 24 hours a day (except on our days off) and there are some very needy campers out there who seem to have a knack for 'finding things for the staff to do.' For example: you've just gotten off a shift and you're taking a breather - sipping on some ice tea perhaps - but just as you start to look relaxed, you're spotted and approached by a camper who looks very determined/concerned. He/she urgently informs you that there are no paper towels in the lodge bathroom, and then they just stare at you impatiently as you get up from your restful slump.
Part of this problem is that some people are very needy/abrasive. Fair enough, but they don't have any way of knowing where the paper towels are, and just ignoring the problem isn't a good solution either. I'm hypothesizing that the heart of the problem is that campers are not encouraged or equipped (enough) to take care of camp themselves. There are plenty of campers out there who are more than happy to take part of the load, and if we make it fun/easy for responsible campers to 'give back' at their leisure, we'll find ourselves with far fewer menial tasks.
So, I say we label the lodge cabinets and closets really clearly, keep all of our supplies (such as lighbulbs, paper towels, tp, cleaning supplies, etc) really well organized, and maybe even have a map just outside the director's office which locates said supplies throughout the lodge - because as a camper it's so satisfying to give back to camp on your own terms and to be able to put supplies back in their right place (without having to ask for help every step along the way).
cory -- you're not alone at arriving late. i, too, would like a giant welcome-wagon/party when the two of us step foot on the island, freshly graduated and eager to join the bunch.
Providing the camper with the power to do things themselves.. at least as much as finding the TP and such has infinite potential for relieving work and hopefully stress on us. I would hate to make the schpiels longer but the more the campers know the less we have to tell them!
I agree with the idea of providing campers with the basic tools to deal with simple problems/shortages themselves. In particular, providing them with a map to supplies could be a fairly unimposing way to allow most campers to take care of themselves. We could perhaps highlight the location of a map during the portion of the Saturday schpiels dedicated to camp as a "do-it-yourself" community.
yeah, good call Claire. I'm also into keeping the spiels as concise as possible because less is more (if we want to hold their attention). Maybe we could integrate all of the 'do it yourself' materials into one area/bulletin board/3-ring binder or all of the above. We also have the more involved do-it-yourself projects (which will all be going through Tommy, I think), and last year we had a list of things to do/fix that we showed campers who were gung-ho about tool use.
And it might be less stressful for Tommy if this was all near, but not inside the office. Maybe there could be a bulletin board located in the lodge, on the wall between the concourse and the board games. This would be a good place for maps of camp (emphasizing where to find cleaning/fixing stuff) because it's a good central location, and it's easy to orient oneself when facing that direction, know what I mean? And the closet with the camouflaged door could be less...cryptic. I should really be sleeping right now. what the hell?
I'm super for Camper Initiative and letting them get their own blankets and light bulbs and sewing kit.
I was gonna say that sometimes we keep things kind of hidden because they are kind of expensive or we have limited supply but I would think that campers would be able to not abuse an open resource like that. However it's something to consider.
Well, to be fair, past years have seen us have an open *tool room*. It seems unlikely open access to light bulbs would cause more problems than that, and I seriously doubt the insurance companies care about the latter.
I don't know what kind of base map we have to put a list of supplies on but I would be glad to help along or create whatever is needed. I think that along with the map a glossary/list in every cabin would be helpful. If we make self help more user friendly than finding a staff member the campers will act accordingly, for the most part.
15 comments:
I think the largest staff issue is all the people named Ben.
But seriously, in my past two years on staff I can pull up two big issues.
First is cohesion, the idea of individuals becoming a solid group, a mixed salad if you will. Where the tomatoes and the lettuce and the cucumbers are all not only allowed on the plate but welcomed, and felt they have a place to nestle in amongst their fellow foods. I hope to continue to build a group of people who feel welcome enough amongst one another to join in without feeling the need for an invitation.
Secondly would be the issue of dual shifts being completed to both staff members expectations. I definitely have been guilty myself of sometimes not understanding or remembering that a shift with two people is a shared responsibility not two separate shifts that fall in the same time and place. A job should be done to the best of the ability of both persons scheduled and not simply to the lowest common denominator.
But seriously...Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben...maybe we could just all be called Ben?
I'm not sure what the largest staff issue would be, but from jobs I've had in the past, the dividing of responsibilities has been problematic.
At jobs I've had in the past, some people end up cleaning all the time, for instance, while others decide it's not something they're interested in doing.
But honestly, I don't know what issues specific to this staff are.
For the record, I think I should get to claim and keep the name Ben. All others should have to find new names, and I can think of so many good ones right now it shouldn't be a problem. I offer my services to the other Ben's in launching a public campaign to formally change your island names to something positive that will be both memorable and command respect from the young and elderly, rich and poor alike.
Ummm...
I think the largest staff issue is getting everybody oriented and comfortable with each other. Lots of forced team time is a good thing, the quicker we become friends, the better. But what about all those folks that go their ritzy, caviar eating schools in the north that can't even get to camp until halfway through youth-fest 09????? This is a serious issue I think, we need to have some extra orientation stuff go on to really bring the group together when new staffies arrive slightly later, so as to really integrate them into the group.
These are my thoughts.
I agree with...everybody. I think several nails have been hit on the head here, as I'm one of the designated 'cleaners,' as well as one of the hoity toity gentleman attendees of a fancy midwestern private college that has a really godamn inconvenient schedule.
As for the 'clean up the shit' employees (as Steve Spyres called Lerryn and I), I just don't think it's possible or workable to expect everybody to do the same quality and quantity of work across the board. I really liked the approach last year, where people's shift preferences which were accommodated and even embraced to a very constructive degree. I mean, why should I do the same number of lunch prep/unprep shifts as Sonja when I hate that shift, and she really likes and excels at it? So yeah, the more we can work with peoples' preferences, the happier and more relaxed the summer will be.
And I demand a full initiation ceremony when I arrive (late) because it has been a problem the last two years - and Lerryn's not coming back so I'd really like for the sense of community/camaraderie/companionship to happen real quick-like, but then again, coming up alone will make it easier to join the group...I can't wait to see you guys!
Mr. Jeffries, I have made my position amply clear for the past eight years: I am The Ben. Others may call themselves what they will, but at the end of the day, I have an article. Verbage is power!
I think that biggest Staff issue other than my name is our tendency towards... social inbreeding, for lack of a better term. During my volunteering last summer, it seemed to me that whenever any Staffer (including myself) was off duty, we were almost always in the loft, hiding from the campers. A certain amount of privacy is important, of course, but cutting ourselves off like that seems unlikely to improve the campers' experience any, and it could keep us from noticing some important things.
Well, The Ben:
you know as well as I do that it's a matter of keeping ones sanity, as well as physical stamina. I think that this 'hermitage problem' is actually a response to how campers perceive and therefore treat staff members who are 'at rest' and in plain view. That is, we are technically on call 24 hours a day (except on our days off) and there are some very needy campers out there who seem to have a knack for 'finding things for the staff to do.' For example: you've just gotten off a shift and you're taking a breather - sipping on some ice tea perhaps - but just as you start to look relaxed, you're spotted and approached by a camper who looks very determined/concerned. He/she urgently informs you that there are no paper towels in the lodge bathroom, and then they just stare at you impatiently as you get up from your restful slump.
Part of this problem is that some people are very needy/abrasive. Fair enough, but they don't have any way of knowing where the paper towels are, and just ignoring the problem isn't a good solution either. I'm hypothesizing that the heart of the problem is that campers are not encouraged or equipped (enough) to take care of camp themselves. There are plenty of campers out there who are more than happy to take part of the load, and if we make it fun/easy for responsible campers to 'give back' at their leisure, we'll find ourselves with far fewer menial tasks.
So, I say we label the lodge cabinets and closets really clearly, keep all of our supplies (such as lighbulbs, paper towels, tp, cleaning supplies, etc) really well organized, and maybe even have a map just outside the director's office which locates said supplies throughout the lodge - because as a camper it's so satisfying to give back to camp on your own terms and to be able to put supplies back in their right place (without having to ask for help every step along the way).
That... is a really good idea. I applaud you, Sir Cory.
cory -- you're not alone at arriving late. i, too, would like a giant welcome-wagon/party when the two of us step foot on the island, freshly graduated and eager to join the bunch.
more thoughtful posts to come.
Bah. I arrived 11 weeks late last year, and nobody threw me any parties. I cry foul upon the entire enterprise!
Providing the camper with the power to do things themselves.. at least as much as finding the TP and such has infinite potential for relieving work and hopefully stress on us.
I would hate to make the schpiels longer but the more the campers know the less we have to tell them!
I agree with the idea of providing campers with the basic tools to deal with simple problems/shortages themselves. In particular, providing them with a map to supplies could be a fairly unimposing way to allow most campers to take care of themselves. We could perhaps highlight the location of a map during the portion of the Saturday schpiels dedicated to camp as a "do-it-yourself" community.
yeah, good call Claire. I'm also into keeping the spiels as concise as possible because less is more (if we want to hold their attention). Maybe we could integrate all of the 'do it yourself' materials into one area/bulletin board/3-ring binder or all of the above. We also have the more involved do-it-yourself projects (which will all be going through Tommy, I think), and last year we had a list of things to do/fix that we showed campers who were gung-ho about tool use.
And it might be less stressful for Tommy if this was all near, but not inside the office. Maybe there could be a bulletin board located in the lodge, on the wall between the concourse and the board games. This would be a good place for maps of camp (emphasizing where to find cleaning/fixing stuff) because it's a good central location, and it's easy to orient oneself when facing that direction, know what I mean? And the closet with the camouflaged door could be less...cryptic. I should really be sleeping right now. what the hell?
I'm super for Camper Initiative and letting them get their own blankets and light bulbs and sewing kit.
I was gonna say that sometimes we keep things kind of hidden because they are kind of expensive or we have limited supply but I would think that campers would be able to not abuse an open resource like that. However it's something to consider.
Well, to be fair, past years have seen us have an open *tool room*. It seems unlikely open access to light bulbs would cause more problems than that, and I seriously doubt the insurance companies care about the latter.
I don't know what kind of base map we have to put a list of supplies on but I would be glad to help along or create whatever is needed. I think that along with the map a glossary/list in every cabin would be helpful. If we make self help more user friendly than finding a staff member the campers will act accordingly, for the most part.
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