Ever imagined what being a summer camp counselor feels like. Well for most of us who have never been in the role, its a dilemma whether to take the plunge? Is waking up at 6.30 am all through the summers worth it? Are long hours of standing in sun exciting? Will this experience prepare me for anything further? Yes! of course its all worth it and more.
There are ample benefits of being a summer camp counselor for its your once in a lifetime moment of glory. It feels exactly the same as being a superhero and also getting paid for every fun endeavor you indulge into. Summer camps are all about fun, all about excitement and more over enrichment. Everyone involved gets benefitted in larger than life ways.
Some benefits of being a summer camp counselor:
As an individual and as a professional; summer camp is a place where you learn to explore yourself, be your own mentor, and, guide yourself through the challenges in life. Summer camp counselor is all about rising above your fears and conquering them.
You fear being put out there, you fear about not being able to inspire and you also fear about failing; but being a summer camp counselor you are to help young kids overcome all these challenges which you have faced too. This helps in you conquering your fears and helping other kids get inspired to follow. Some more benefits of being a summer camp counselor are:
1- Form relationships which are directly connected to heart:
The circumstance you are into, makes you form strong associations. You learn to find whom you can trust and how you can become trustworthy. You have to constantly re-invent yourself to be able to meet the challenges. You connect with peers, young kids and also camp directors, all of which are from the circumstances which make most of all feel homesick and nostalgic.
2- You will explore the highest level of patience in yourself:
As a camp counselor you need to be extremely patient as the daily grind puts yourself to test. You may have amazing patience but being a camp counselor is an altogether different experience. You learn to be patient in most testing times. You are trained to have your head over shoulders all the time also think and act wise
3- You are paid while you actually have the experiences of an adventurous camping trip:
Outdoor fun, activities and events, fun in sun, getting dirty in rainy puddles and more; all this while you get paid, have a free place to stay, food served 3-4 times a day and also you have your salary intact. This is a dream for most of us
4- A chance to relive the most memorable days from childhood:
You may have loved attending a summer camp as a child. This summer camp counselor role will help you to relive those golden days from your past and make newer memories which would be cherished for life
5- Be a part of classic traditions once again:
You get to be a part of classic traditions like s’mores, campfire, splash in the pool, round of pirates, chip-which from a snack shop and many more. These classic traditions have always been a wonderful memory for all of us and being apart of them again is something you always wished for
6- Be a role model:
Be a wonder woman or a superman, and see how young kids follow you. You are expected to be the mot promising action hero for your batch. You learn to resolve issues, take charge, encourage and be their guiding force. We all have always fantasized about being super hero’s and this is our chance to redeem some goodies of being a role model.
7- You don’t have to worry about what you wear or what you’ll eat:
You have a camp counselor uniform and probably the coolest one. You are served hot food all the time and you don’t have to worry at all about anything but young campers and their safety.
8- You will learn art, craft, sport, music, dance and many more activities:
As a camp counselor you must know it all when it comes to teaching and training the young campers. You get all the professional training in the above areas and more. You learn them all so intricately and professionally that it helps you too further
9- You may find your passion:
Many times camp counselor roles are taken by students in their drop year or looking for internship. They are mostly unsure about their career path ahead and confused about how to go about planning a career. Being a summer camp counselor helps in finding your passion, what is it that drives you the most and you may find your career choice here
10- You learn to get ready in less than a a few minutes:
Since you have to be there all the time, you learn to get ready in less than 5 minutes. The art of being mentally prepared and dressed up in such less time speak highly about your time management skills further
11- You get trained without shelling out a single penny:
Rather you get paid and trained at the same time. The necessary life skills, essential survival skills for daily work and some specific skill related to the summer camp like sport, art, music, dance and more. All this without spending any money and also getting some good money and perks
12- Summer camp jobs are a great experience in your professional development:
As a summer camp counselor you have made your CV enriched by some wonderful experiences. Interviewers ahead would appreciate the skills you have learned in this role. People with summer camp job experiences are believed to be better team players and have more level of maturity than their peers. So they get benefit over the rest
13- It adds wonderful and enriching part to your gap year:
Students looking for internship or utilizing their gap year can get maximum benefits from summer camp jobs. This is the best thing you can do to make your year count like no other experience at the stage can
Conclusion:
Why i love being a camp counselor is all about the vast experiences and learnings a person can get by joining in the role of summer camp counselor. It is all the above and many many more, as it teaches the most important skill of being a role model. You learn to conquer your fears, lead everyone and inspire them too. You have to be your best self, everytime and you learn to give up all the things that may cause you to fault on the above
Check campnavigator resources for more on summer camps, special needs programs and summer camp jobs. Share ahead and keep writing us ,we love hearing from you!
By Minu Manisha
