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Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/the-silent-summerThis will be the most important staff training you’ll ever prepare.We made it! It’s 2021, but that doesn’t mean that camps are without adversity with this summer quickly approaching. With a global vaccine rollout for COVID-19 and differentiating public health policies and guidelines depending on your province, state, municipality or county, there are too many permutations and combinations circling to really understand what this year is going to look like. To make things more complicated, many camps didn’t run last year, meaning the identified “improvements” noted during a camp season are a full season behind. Take this one step further, your staff are all older and some senior staff might no longer be in a position to return to camp. We are just as happy as most of you where 2020 is finally behind us; as we turn the chapter to 2021, our hosts are here to help you succeed with summer camp training after a gap in operation. Our take on it - this is the most important staff training you have ever prepared. It’s important that as camp professionals, you reflect, take stock and set goals for this year. Your goals will have to include new training material, focusing on mental health during a pandemic. For us, that means two lists of goals. The first list is about what people will need from you, including COVID-19 safety, what’s changed at camp, the importance of feeling safe and perhaps your leadership style this summer leans more on being empathetic or more vulnerable to your staff. The second list is what YOU want to from this year. Define your goals, but being flexible to staff ideas is a key step to the foundation of a successful summer. -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Beth AllisonWe are in the midst of a mental health awakening. Role model types of behaviors and actions. Start every single day of training with personal check-ins. Ask a different question each day and offer everyone an opportunity to answer those questions. Continue at every check-in. Their well-being is paramount to you.Encourage peer-based support. Facilitate groups that work in support of each other. Weekly “Islands of Sanity” calls--are you willing to use whatever power and influence you have hold islands of sanity to invoke and create, produce, and persevere?Make time to share your own challenges and mistakes and vulnerabilities. -Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/what-we-learned-from-wicWe ran a traditionally in-person conference 100% online. And it was AWESOME. Here’s what we learned! This week’s episode falls during the holiday season of 2020. From all of us at Camp Code, happy holidays and we wish all of you a happy new year. 2020 has been quite the year, with a global pandemic affecting lives worldwide and to camp professionals, has created an unprecedented camp season where many camps simply did not have the opportunity to run. Furthermore, as camp Directors are well underway throughout their planning phases for next summer unbeknownst to anyone if camps will even run. It is easy for people to look at the history of 2020 and refer to some of the negative connotations surrounding it that lead us to believe that in the fog of 2020, there was nothing else but more fog. Although that may not be exactly true, as Camp Code looks to close the chapter in 2020, we aim for new goals and aspirations in 2021. As heard in the teaser of this episode, “positive change requires an effort of togetherness (Women in Camping Summit, 2020)” and we believe as a camp community we can continue to achieve our camp milestones collectively. In this episode, Beth, Gabz and Ruby reflect on their experience at the Women in Camp Summit Live Virtual Event where over 200 women from around the world contributed to some extremely memorable moments. Ruby starts us off with talking about a fantastic speaker from the summit, Leslie Keller, owner of Live Love Equity. Leslie teaches us about the importance of equity and inclusion and how it needs to be a foundational element to any organization. Leslie did hint about the power of social media and how tools like Instagram can influence some of the content you learn and teach to your followers. You can find Leslie and all the great work she does here: https://www.liveloveequity.com/Gabz dives in to talk about two of her leaders who develop a session that focuses on creating conversation about race with your staff. There needs to be a process of consent and consult from the people of colour on your staff to ensure that they are comfortable with the situation. White privilege is something that needs to be talked about and that to create change, there is a process you need to develop. At the core, the four steps of the process created by the presenters Mel and Ania are Awareness, Assessment, Prioritizing and Action. A copy of the presentation can be found RIGHT HERE. Beth reminds us about the importance of resilience and refers to our Camp Code friend Dr. G who developed a seven-step cycle for resilience https://askdoctorg.com/drg-resilience-cycle/.-Bonus Resources! & Leadership Training Best PracticeFind these at https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/what-we-learned-from-wic-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find full show notes and links here: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/surprise-delight-staffOne of the most important things we can do for youth is to show them that we’re thinking of them. ♫ The weather outside is frightful, but Beth, Ruby and Gabrielle continue to be delightful ♫ In this episode as they look to give you ways to show your appreciation towards staff.  At the core of this episode, being a leader is really understanding those around you and what motivates them. For some, motivation can come in the form of extrinsic rewards, Beth recommends small trinkets for staff or stickers that reminds them they are a part of a great team at camp. Others prefer intrinsic rewards, such as personalized videos to camp staff during stressful times, such as exams that are used to remind staff just how awesome they are. Sometimes people just need a bit of motivation to remind them of what their impact is to camp. Ruby recommends trying something other than email, and shares with us some ideas including Bonjoro, Marco Polo, Voxer, and Yac. Working at camp is a unique experience, and it deserves to be celebrated! Gabrielle gives us the genius idea of celebrating a new hire on a live social media platform such as Instagram or Facebook. Social media continues to be a tool for camp and if campers see that their favourite staff member is returning, it generates excitement for the staff and for the campers. We’ve listed a few of the ideas above, but to learn from our hosts and their fantastic ideas, you will have to listen to this week’s episode. For more great tips, have a listen and don’t forget to leave a review, our hosts read every single one!-Bonus: If you listened to the episode, you learned about 5-minute Fridays. Click HERE for a quick peek into all the fun that we have, making 5-minute Fridays THE spot for bite-sized professional development. -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Gabrielle RaillGood note-taking can translate information into a new way of learning something. So during staff training, why don’t you enable your great note-takers on staff and ask them to take notes for the majority of the sessions during a session. Take it one step further, make photocopies or email these notes to your staff so that everyone can learn from the same information.

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/disagree-and-discuss-with-careTo disagree is not to destroy, it’s to dream about new possibilities. Here’s how to teach your staff that.In this episode our hosts are here to help listeners to understand that conflict can be good, it can create new ideas, decisions or avenues for new exploration. As Beth says, the goal of conflict resolution is to have all parties involved mutually agree and to do that, she reminds listeners of the 4 S’s:Is it SAFE?Does it SERVE the community?Does it promote SELF-ESTEEM?Is it good STEWARDSHIPThe S for stewardship really encompasses the individual’s being entrusted with any given scenario, so it’s important to remember that although you may have conflict with your peer at camp, you both are working towards the common goal of making camp a better place to be. Ruby reminds us that at times as a camp Director, you will have disagreements with your staff. Furthermore, sometimes since you are the camp Director, it ultimately is your decision regardless of any influence your team may have on you. If you stick to your original idea, you will have frustrated staff. It is important to create avenues for your staff and peers to have conversations about how that decision made them feel. Emotions are part of any conflict or decision-making process, so we need to listen to our staff and most importantly, we need to admit when we are wrong.Speaking of emotions, Gabrielle reminds us that conflict builds in our minds. The longer we put off dealing with conflict, the worse it becomes. Gabz reminds us of another acronym she uses, ACT.Awareness CommunicateTogether Problem Solve-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Beth AllisonTwo more quick exercises for staff training focusing on how to disagree, with care. First is a game of Wind in the Willows.Have camp staff to stand in a circle and ask six questions. if the question implies to the individual, they step into the circle. The six statements / questions are related to the following (taken from Inc.com - 6 Smart Ways to Disagree With Someone Respectfully)Focus on factsDon’t get personal Recognize the goodRemember to listenUse I statementsKnow when to move onFind images that look like two different things depending how you look at it and ask your staff to tell you what it is. Then have individuals to partner with someone who saw something different and have them talk about their points.-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find more at https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/hiring-in-uncertain-timesInviting staff into our uncertainty. That’s what hiring for Summer 2021 is all about!If you haven’t listened to the four-part mini-series devoted to our camp professionals helping YOU, you should go back and have a listen! This is the first episode after the mini-series and the timing of our hosts could not be more on point. In this episode, it is all about preparing for the hectic hiring season that is quickly approaching us, especially in these uncertain times. There are still a lot of specifics that our camps, regulators and government need to iron out, given the global pandemic. Now camp leaders have more contingency planning to do than ever before. If you’re struggling to figure out how to start, how to manage the waves of emotions that come with the pandemic, then this episode is absolutely for you. Our hosts, Beth, Gabrielle and Ruby dive into how you can go forward, do the interview process and help navigate your hiring for the 2021 summer. Ruby reminds us about the rapidly changing news with new scientific evidence and rumours of a vaccine on the way, we need to adapt. Some suggestions presented are virtual programming to prepare your staff,  developing a safety guide decision tree and as always, over-communicate. The more information you can share, the better prepared your recruits will be. Speaking about a vaccine, Beth reminds us about the inevitable truth that some camps simply may not be able to run until a vaccine is available and camp staff and campers have received the vaccine. From knowing what considerations to think about and what decisions are needed to run camp successfully in a pandemic world, Beth brings us another great resource the Covid Slack, developed my GoCamp.Pro’s very own Travis Allison. Covid Slack https://zoic.ca/covid-slackGabrielle brings up a great idea about using the alumni staff on standby to run a life wellness session for potential staff. Look at Alumi and their professions to see how it can develop the competencies of your staff and their core. Gabrielle also reminds us that staffing this year will be harder this year as we tackle the unknown of the pandemic, so how about you gets your returning staff to identify what they love about working at camp, what life lessons kids and learn and what would they like to keep or change at camp. Work smarter, not harder and use this information to help you develop your 2021 summer camp program! -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby ComptonThe season of giving is approaching, so one thought is to share a 2020 camp swag that you can send to camp staff or alumni to remind them that although this year may not have been great for camps, the work that staff and alumni do throughout the years does not go unrecognized.-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find full show notes and links at: https://gocamp.pro/blog/women-of-gcp-podcastWhat do you call it when you gather a bunch of female camp and podcasting pros in a room? You call it AWESOME.In today’s special crossover episode, Beth Allison from Camp Code hosts a conversation with several of the women who podcast with Go Camp Pro. Today’s episode features Rachel Kent and Cassie Bloy from Beyond Camp, Sam Thompson from the Day Camp Pod, Kelly Schuna from The Camp Owner’s Podcast, and Ruby Compton from Camp Code and Gabrielle Raill from CampHacker and Camp Code. Listen in as these women discuss their mentors who inspired them in the industry, challenges women face working at camp and advice for new camp pros. Interestingly, all of these women have also attended the Women in Camp Summit in previous years. During the episode they discuss some of their biggest takeaways from the event as well as what they are most looking forward to for this year’s Live Virtual Summit taking place December 2-3. Find out more about the Women in Camp Summit Live Virtual event at https://www.womenincampsummit.com.Gabrielle announced this year’s Summit will also feature the first of the “Becoming Allies” series with an event titled “Becoming Allies: Supporting Women in Camp” on December 4. Folks who want to participate in the Allies event can register through this link: https://acai.wildapricot.org/event-4051965-The Women in Camp Summit needs your support! The planning team for the Summit has set a $7,500 fundraising goal to offer scholarships to attendees and off-set the costs of hosting this unique professional development event. Every dollar counts. Donate today and donate again on the Day of Giving for the Women in Camp Summit on November 24. Donate here: https://acai.wildapricot.org/allies/-Love this episode?Find more Podcast goodness at gocamp.pro/podcast. Also, if you want to support the work that we do, please consider subscribing to the shows, and leaving us a rating in your favourite Podcast app.-On This Episode:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant and Co-Owner - Go Camp ProGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsSam Thompson, Recreation Supervisor - Crystal Lake Park DistrictKelly Schuna - Owner - Hidden Pines RanchCassie Bloy, Consultant & Freelance Camp Director - Stephane Richard Development Consulting Rachel Kent, Coordinator, Member Risk - Girl Guides of Canada

Find more at https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/taking-care-of-your-staffOne of the most affordable AND most important things you’ll do at camp this summer.If you have listened to the three earlier episodes focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic, you’re already prepared with a new set of tools on your belt to help YOU as a camp professional. In the final part of our four-part series, we shift our focus on how you, the camp leaders can help your staff. If your camp was fortunate enough to run this past summer, things were different as you and your team braced for a camp that encouraged social/physical distancing and potentially lived the summer with a mask on. For those camps who unfortunately were unable to run, your campers and your staff were just as heartbroken as you were when we all learned that camp was not an option this past summer. In this episode of Camp Code, Gabrielle, Beth and Ruby break down the fact that camp people are often natural caretakers, which leads us to this question - as camp professionals, how do we take care of our own people at this time? We know this is a hard time for camp staff whose lives have been turned upside down. Employment may be hard for them to come by at this time, or they have shifted to going to post-secondary school fully online, The stress levels are unprecedented for everyone at this time, so if there is something we can do to help the camp staff we rely on for our summers, we should take action! Our hosts are full of ideas, from sending care packages, having “real talks” about the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement or COVID safety to even helping to provide resources to your staff to process grief or stress they are dealing with at this time. If you want to learn more about how a little bit of effort for camp leaders can be a foundational shift of much-needed mentorship for your staff, then tune in to this episode!-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Gabrielle RaillVisual presentation skills are critical to the success of your online training. Visual cues can create an anchor in the minds of your students to exemplify what it is you are talking about. Gabrielle recommends using https://unsplash.com/ to get great FREE images to help accentuate your presentations.-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/professional-development-in-2020In an off-season like no other, there is still room (and a need) to grow your skills! Get growing with this episode of Camp CodeIn part three of our four-part series focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic, we dive into the importance of professional development. Regardless if your camp was able to run this past summer with restriction, or maybe not at all Ruby, Beth and Gabrielle are here to help. We get it, 2020 has added an additional layer of the financial pressure that may limit your professional development, but our Camp Code gurus dive into some ideas to enable your professional development. The most important part of professional development is to know what you want to learn. The first step is to make a list of all of the things you want to learn. 2020 has brought on us an overwhelming amount of online content as organizations adapted to virtual work. Conferences and courses are two things that have gone primarily online and we’ve outlined a few resources to make it easier for you. Online Conferences - There are a ton of these around, some to note are as follows: Women in Camp Summit ConferenceInBound conferenceAs for free online resources, there are podcasts, videos, free university courses, but to get you started...here are a few of our favourties:Go Camp Pro’s 5-Minute-Friday Program - Youtube LearningUniversity and college courses - There are various resources for this, one that you can check out is https://www.edx.orgSkillshare - https://www.skillshare.com/ - This was one of Gabz’s favourties spots to learn and embrace her inner creativity. Podcasts - We’re huge fans of learning this way and we would recommend any of the GoCamp.Pro podcasts to learn all aspects of camp and beyond. Camphacker Podcast (the one that started them all for GoCamp.Pro) - https://www.camphacker.tv/podcastThe Day Camp Pod - https://gocamp.pro/day-camp-podFirst Class Counsellors - https://www.camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellorsThe Camp Owners Pod - https://gocamp.pro/ownerspodBeyond Camp - https://gocamp.pro/beyondcampThe resources listed above are just a sneak peek into some of the ideas that Beth, Ruby and Gabz are happy to share. To hear the rest, have a listen! -Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Beth AllisonInterview people and not to hire staff. If you know people that you think you can learn from, make that list! Next, send out some invitations to those people asking them for 30 minutes or less of their time and specify what it is you want to discuss. After you meet with them, it is a great idea so write them handwritten thank you cards and send it to them in the mail. -Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Find more at https://camphacker.tv/camp-codeIt’s going to be easy to de-prioritize yourself in the lead up to be 2021, let Camp Code help you move yourself up your to-do list. In part-two of the four-part series focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to help you take care of one of the most valuable things in your life, you! To be the most effective camp leader, you cannot forget to stop, take a moment of mindfulness and recharge the batteries. Ruby, Beth and Gabz are here to share what each of them do to recharge and be ready to be the best versions of themselves. For Ruby, it’s all about having a day without time. Ruby takes off her watch and puts the phone away. Rather than being caught up in the busyness that life can bring you, taking a day to disconnect and live your day from sunrise to sunset. Gabz takes a slightly different approach as living at camp during a pandemic has its perks. She takes the morning to do meets, emails and computer work, followed by some “her time” (usually a nap) and then spends the afternoon doing some labor around camp. For Beth, taking care of herself is all about understanding her emotions and really capturing how she is feeling now. She taps in to an article by Jonathan L. Zecher (source: https://theconversation.com/acedia-the-lost-name-for-the-emotion-were-all-feeling-right-now-144058) where the author reminds us that we are exhausted of zoom meetings, cocktails and parties. Our days of baking bread and other means of distraction during a pandemic is over, now it is time to take care of you. Taking care of yourself starts now, not tomorrow. Have a listen for some tips and tricks to get started!We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeLeadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby ComptonSinging songs is the perfect way to take time for yourself. It doesn’t matter if you can carry a tune or not, but taking the time to sing; in the shower, in the car or loud and proud for everyone to hear, a song can change your mood. Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Welcome to season 8 of Camp Code! Well, that was a summer that we will all remember for the rest of our lives. To kick off season eight (that’s right folks, eight seasons on Camp Code) we are launching a four-part mini-series to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic and how it affects you, the Camp Director. Ruby, Beth and Gabrielle are back after the most memorable summer that didn’t fill the cabins with the laughter of children of the joy that is found in song. In Canada, most provinces were unable to open summer camps, preventing Gabrielle’s camp from opening and Beth found it challenging to do summer camp marketing with Canadian camps closed for the summer. Similarly, Ruby found herself working at a few different restaurants as we all adjust to the normal of today. In part one of the mini-series, Ruby, Beth and Gabrielle ask themselves “You know you are a camp pro during a pandemic when: _________________” Ruby dives in to talk about learning to “people” again as we learn to reintroduce ourselves outside of an unfamiliar landscape post quarantine. Gabrielle focuses on moments when your brain misfires, causing her to buy headphones that she had previously done the research on and knew she did not want to purchase. The pandemic of 2020 has people coping and reacting to a new world. Listen in to part one of the mini-series to learn that you are not in this alone and now more than ever, camp folk need to stick together. -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Gabrielle RaillPlan and organize as much as you can… or “plan to plan”. Take two hours on Friday afternoon to review your week, validate that you accomplished everything you wanted to complete and focus on developing your goals for the following week. The pandemic is the enemy. If you have to break promises caused by the pandemic, keep in mind that we are all in this together, and more understanding than ever. -Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

That’s a Wrap for Season 7 of Camp Code!As summer approaches, the Camp Code season finale is here! Multigenerational staff may not be applicable to your camp today, but it absolutely will happen at some point, and what better time to have this in the back of your mind as summer camps eagerly way and adjust to many new guidelines being put in place as the worldwide pandemic continues. Multigenerational staff means that some younger staff may still live at home, not be used to doing laundry, or that their summer at camp may be their first job. At the same time, the older staff probably have car payments, or a mortgage or is used to going to bed at an earlier time than 18-year-olds. Additionally, there is a physical layer to an older generation staff where they may not be able to crawl on the ground, or have other limitations. In Ruby’s experience, she asked herself during any game “can rock paper scissors resolve this” and in most cases, the answer is yes and most people at any age can play rock paper scissors, so it is a great alternative to something like crawling under someone’s legs in freeze tag. As we wrap our season, we hope all you leaders are ready for what summer brings us. We all know camp will be different this summer, but camp is still at heart, summer camp leaders. For everyone who has tuned in to this season, have a great summer and we look forward to more conversations in the fall. Thanks for the season, friends! -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Gabrielle RaillEven though this best practice is from Gabrielle, it was Ruby that brought it up on another podcast. When you are designing camp training for the summer, bring your leadership in on the conversation. Send your leadership team an outline of the staff training and some of the decisions behind what you want to keep and what you want to change. Open the dialogue with your leadership team to see how decisions are made. -Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Ruby Compton + Emma Kennedy = Staff Training Brilliance!Switching things up this week, Ruby is on her own interviewing the fantastic Emma Kennedy, Director of  “Camp La Grande Aventure…en Anglais” summer camp, from Saint-Donat, Quebec, Canada. Camp La Grande Aventure….en Anglais is an English camp for francophones. Emma’s camp is located close to Gabrielle’s Camp Ouareau, Emma and Gab share many of the summer camp leadership tricks and tools. In this episode, Ruby and Emma dissect summer camp training and the importance of starting training, before training officially starts. Keeping in touch before camp’s arrival is something that is now a top priority. Touchpoints with your teams prior to the start of camp allows your team to collaborate right from the start. The current pandemic has reinforced what camps already do, engage staff, engage early, or in Beth’s words…. Frontload! Another great idea Emma brings to Camp Code is the idea of “starting fresh”. When working with your leadership team, remove your past schedules and training materials and allow your leadership team to think outside of the box. That older material is always there for you to lean on, but allowing your leadership team to collaborate on what skills are required to be a good counsellor and what other training tools would allow your leadership team to succeed, and your camp to have another great summer. -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Emma KennedyDuring staff training, take an evening offsite to do something as a group. A good example is to take your team out for ice cream and allow your team to talk, get to know one another and collaborate outside of the camp environment. -Guest:Emma Kennedy, Camp Director - Camp La Grande Aventure...en AnglaisYour Host:Ruby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Put out the spark before it becomes a dumpster-fire. Give your staff the tools to avoid and work through drama.Summer camp staff are usually a tight-knit group. As well, the expectations of a happy go lucky summer with friends vs the hard reality of living together in community smack into each other. This type of cosmic splatter happens to any and every organization at one point or another. As leaders, it is our goal to manage that state of cosmic distraction. We work from having differences and bring our community from disruption to resolution and work to land on collaboration.   Working with people is complicated, you have to set the expectations at the beginning of staff training. As Beth says, by frontloading, it is easier for your staff to reach those attainable goals.  When you are faced with challenges, you can separate these in the two steps of analyzing the situation and work together to resolve issues. To do this, you can break the “views” into a quadrant so you can have a better understanding of other people's perspectives. An example of a view would be campers vs parents vs directors vs staff and dissecting each perspective and how each view can influence the outcome of your resolution. We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeLeadership Training Best PracticeFrom Beth AllisonKeeping camp drama free is going to be a challenge. If you flip this around and be the challenger, you can reward your staff who best made it through the week without any drama! Beth recommends a pin, keychain, bracelet or a t-shirt of a llama. Perhaps call it the “No-drama Llama” and make it visible to open it up as a discussion piece between staff and campers. Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Giving staff the tools to be able to have one of the most important conversations of their lives & directors the tools to make their culture even safer.This week, our hosts Gabrielle, Beth and Ruby explore the impact that the #MeToo movement has on summer camps. As summer camp leaders, empowerment begins with you. Educating people and Sexual harassment policies are not enough. Camps need to outline the policies and create a dialogue to ensure staff are empowered to act when they recognize something inappropriate. We need to realize that not everyone is going to be comfortable enough to speak up, we must find other ways for staff to feel empowered to share or point out uncomfortable situations.Training empowerment is not easy and neither is the conversation around sexual harassment. This episode was designed to help you cultivate your approach and build your community on trust and respect. Have a listen as Gabrielle, Beth and Ruby dissect the frameworks around these conversations. A small shift in the way you approach the subject will make a big difference. -Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby ComptonThis one is simple; Choose to communicate rather than to assume. We all know what assumptions do! When you feel something is unsettling or something you have questions about, it may lead to an assumption. Instead of assuming, lean in and ask a question to understand more. This will help us handle conflicts in a more constructive way.-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode

How to help your future leaders see their future at camp!Are you like Gab? Does your camp have that special “little black book?”.You know, the one where you keep all the names of the campers and young staff that you just know will be great leadership team members someday?As directors, we are always looking out for the future. We do this because the earlier you can identify who may eventually take on the senior roles at camp, the earlier that you can start to help them realize their potential and hone their skills.How you do that is a whole other story - and it depends on the specific person. If they are a keener who recognizes their skill and may be a little over-ambitious or cocky, how can we help them understand the realities of the job they want and give them the patience they are lacking? Conversely, what happens if that person doesn’t realize their potential? What resources and experiences should you give them to not force them, but guide them to the idea that they have a prosperous camp career ahead of them?It’s hard - but it’s also a good thing Gab, Beth and Ruby aren’t shy about tackling hard issues!Tune in to this episode to give you over 40 minutes of great ideas that you can implement both now and this summer to plant the seeds of potential for your future leadership staff.Have a listen!-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Jacqui Raill (via Gabrielle Raill)Raincoat treats - reminds staff that your rainy day programs need to be as good if not better than your sunny day programs. Put a reminder in the camp staff's raincoat pocket so they have a reminder later in the summer to keep the rainy program full of treats!-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Not everyone is an all-star camp staff at the beginning. We need to help them get there!As camp leaders, we’ve all been there. We've all hired staff that are great on paper, but who just didn’t perform the way we thought they would. However, just because they may not be starting out the way you hoped, doesn’t mean they cannot become the great camp leader you were hoping they would be. To help them, and your whole team succeed, start by frontloading information to your staff. Use this time to ensure your expectations are clear right from the beginning. If your staff are not aware of what is expected of them, it’s on the Directors, not the staff! By building trust in your staff, in particular, some of the challenging staff; you are able to connect with them so you can be truthful and address what needs to be addressed. As well, keep an eye on self-esteem levels. If you can identify when self-esteem is low, you can seize these moments to promote camp leadership and shape weaker staff to be leaders! When developing trust, there are 4 key concepts that can be used to help develop your staff:Explain things clearly Ask questionsInvolve staff in decisions and discussions Appreciate them for the work they do! For more tips and tricks, have a listen!We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeLeadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby:Ruby's plea to Camp Directors of the world. Format your staff training schedule to how it looks during the summer. Do your best to make the timing match up as closely as you can so they start to understand what the camp day looks like. You can add as many details as you want, or keep detailed information in other places around camp, but do your staff this small service and it will make a huge difference!Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Make your meetings so extraordinary, your staff will actually look forward to them!How’s that for a challenge?At camp, we have the awesome privilege to get to inject every single moment with creativity and find new ways to engage our staff and campers. So why should meetings be any different?All meetings have a framework to follow to make any meeting successful. The basics are fairly simple, use an agenda, frontload the expectations of the meetings, and make sure it has a clear purpose. Some simple goals to take into consideration are what you can learn, achieve or solve during the meeting. Staff retaining information is another thing that needs to be considered. Meetings can easily become repetitive and valuable information for staff can become easily forgotten. Engaging staff is a key leadership ability to help your staff retain information. The way you deliver your information has a great impact on what information will be retained.One of the best ways to kick off camp meetings is to begin with some singing or games. These add positivity to the room and allows your team to get focused in a more positive environmentUse visuals - Staff are more likely to retain pertinent information when charts, wheels, pictures, or other visual tools are usedDon’t use rest hour - Rest hour is a sacred moment for your campers and staff, let them rechargeGet staff members to talk about great moments in camping (GMICs), it will get your staff to reflect Ask questions - How can I support you? - what campers are you struggling with? -  what's the best part of the day? - this will engage your staff and collectively work to resolve challenges.Get your staff to take notes! - Be obvious for important notes, say things like “Write this down”Recap your meetings - it gave one more opportunity for the staff to catch something they missed.-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Beth:What do I need to remember about my age group?Before your next group of campers arrive, have your team talk about what they need to remember when it comes to their specific age-group. Have them share their wisdom and remind one another to adjust the way you communicate, interact, and supervise them based on the age of campers. Example: If you have 8-year-old campers this week, remember that they need concrete instructions.-Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

How to help your domestic and international staff acclimatize to your camp.The full ensemble is back!In this week’s episode Gabrielle, Beth and Ruby dive in to explore the culture shock of staff and developing techniques to train international staff. International staff members are a wonderful addition to your team, and, it takes a little extra work on your part! On top of the usual onboarding, there’s more intention that needs to go into the way that you help that staff member develop initial relationships with senior staff and ensure that they are feeling comfortable and valued within the camp community.Being valued is something that every employee finds desirable. As a leader, it is up to you to find ways to make your staff feel valued. When hiring international staff, there are a lot of things to take into consideration:Having conversations about cultural differences between your international staff and the country you are inShowcase the international staff’s culture, by introducing their food, games and songs to your staffAssign a staff ambassador to international staff, make the ambassador your go-to person.Before your international hire arrives, find a camp alumni to sponsor this hire, so they could write to them at camp and be part of their camp familyFor more tips and tricks, tune in to this episode!We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeLeadership Training Best PracticeCredit: Ellen Nash - Camp Northland B’nai BrithIt’s important that you look every single staff member in the eyes every single day. By doing this, you let the staff know that you see them and acknowledge them for their efforts.Always have a staff snack in the evening as pretty much all of the staff show up and do as Ellen does and serve as many staff members as you can. By serving the staff, Ellen gets the opportunity to greet them, socialize and thank folks for their work each day.Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsThanks to our sponsor for this episode:This Go Camp Pro podcast is sponsored in part by CampGig - CampGig is more than just a job board, CampGig is designed to be the most useful matching/search tool for camps and camp staff. Camps can sign up today to scan and search through CampGig’s vast selection of candidates. If you’ve ever wanted an “easy-button” for finding your next great camp staff, then head over to CampGig.com and set up your camp’s profile today.

How do you train future staff? Look to your campers!You might notice that this week, Ruby is steering the Camp Code ship by herself! Not to worry, the triumphant trio will be back next episode, and you’re going to love this one!Tune in to hear Ruby’s interview with Dan Davis, the Camp Director of Camp Rockmont. Dan has dedicated over three decades as a camp leader and has an abundance of knowledge to share with us.Transitioning Campers to Staff starts early on in your camp journey. Dan talks about doing little things such as putting returning campers further from the dining hall or the beach and giving them the slight responsibility of having to walk that much further and still being punctual for meals and activities.Have you ever wished you had a second chance at a job Interview? Dan talks about his experience with giving staff a second chance at an interview. Sometimes it can be eye contact or even slight body language that can make an interview start to go sideways. Dan and Ruby talk about getting a do-over and stopping an interview when things are going wrong, but taking that pause to address whatever it is that is not going well, then giving the opportunity to the potential staff to restart the interview process. If a potential staff member accepts the do-over and is able to make the small adjustments to have a better interview, it is a good indicator that you are interviewing someone that is capable of change, accepts criticism and most importantly, is really interested in the role they are applying for!We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeLeadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby:Never miss the opportunity to talk about reminding your staff to sit up, and take a deep breath when sessions are going long. What happens to the brain when you sit up and take a breath of fresh air can really get the body stimulated again. A bonus tip for today is to try to start every training with questions to be answered. This will allow both the trainer and trainee to understand that at the end of the session, a certain question is to be answered...creating a partnership between everyone involved.Your Hosts:Ruby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsSpecial GuestDan Davies - Camp Director at Camp RockmontThanks to our sponsor for this episode:This Go Camp Pro podcast is sponsored in part by CampGig - CampGig is more than just a job board, CampGig is designed to be the most useful matching/search tool for camps and camp staff. Camps can sign up today to scan and search through CampGig’s vast selection of candidates. If you’ve ever wanted an “easy-button” for finding your next great camp staff, then head over to CampGig.com and set up your camp’s profile today.

Because conflict is going to happen, people!The Camp Code crew is back for their very first episode of 2020!To ring in the new year, this episode is filled with great tips and tricks, helping to give staff the tools to deal with conflict. Gab dives into an array of acronyms such as the A.C.T Program - Awareness, Communication and Together, and V.I.P - Validate feelings, Investigating and Problem-solving. She also goes in-depth talking about The power of mirroring and how to use mirroring to build connections with people.Ruby talks about the importance of dealing with conflict in person. Too often, conflict involves emotions, and emotions cannot be shared over text, so having face to face discussions are the keys to success. As Camp Directors, it is important to equip your staff to some conflict management work for you. Your staff need the practice, and you cannot do it all!Beth provides listeners with a ton of insight and explains that EVERYONE must take proactive steps to handle conflict. Personality tests are something that we should all take at various stages of life, camp leadership is one of those times and here is one Camp Codes favourites: True colors personality test. We are all going to be faced with it at some point, so Beth explains some key improvisational negotiation tactics:Let people tell their storyBring a reality check to the tableIdentify the true impediment.Leadership Training Best PracticeFrom Ruby:When dealing with conflicts, Show awkward moments video to kick things off. These people all lived through these awkward moments, so you can get through your conflict conversations!Your Hosts:Gabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauBeth Allison, Camp Consultant - CampHacker.tvRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsThanks to our sponsor for this episode - CampGigThis Go Camp Pro podcast is sponsored in part by CampGig - CampGig is more than just a job board, CampGig is designed to be the most useful matching/search tool for camps and camp staff. Camps can sign up today to scan and search through CampGig’s vast selection of candidates. If you’ve ever wanted an “easy-button” for finding your next great camp staff, then head over to CampGig.com and set up your camp’s profile today.