EOT Blog

From the Desk of Professor Dave: Are You In the Groove?

It’s getting dark earlier, the holiday season is rolling along and it’s less than 200 days until camp! A lot of us are already starting to feel the pressure to build awesome programs for this Summer and hire the best staff possible in a really tight job market. Remain calm! Don’t forget, you did it last Summer and it was the “Best Summer Ever!”, right? Well, it won’t happen magically and the stress is there so it’s important to make sure you get “into the groove” so you can optimize your time, be ready for the next 200 days or less and put yourself in the best possible state of mind to make this Summer even better than last.

Here are some simple ways to make sure you get and stay in the groove:

Take care of yourself! It’s important that despite our hectic work and personal lives that we find time for some self-care. Watch a movie, go out to a nice meal, do something that’s just for you or just sit somewhere with your beverage of choice and some good tunes. It’s pretty incredible what happens to our brains/creativity when we “still the waters” and turn off all the distractions.

Get Organized! Technology has made our work easier in many ways and it’s also made it incredibly difficult to find balance and set boundaries. I use a calendar app to set my day up into different categories including “Dave Time” everyday. This is time that I reserve just for me and use as a time to work on a project, run an important errand or take some time for myself. The app also allows other people to schedule time based on the parameters you set up. It’s also a really good exercise in sticking to a schedule and staying focused.

Be Open! It’s easy to hunker down at our desks, listen to a podcast, go to the occasional conference and just keep plugging away at the seemingly endless list. What’s not so easy is asking for and accepting advice, reaching out to potential mentors or finding a community that you can rely on for support. It’s all about making sure that you don’t get caught up in trying to do it all yourself. It’s important to recognize that the camp community is vast and willing to help so put yourself out there!

Hope these tips are helpful as we get down to crunch time and offer you some solace that you aren’t alone! Everyone is feeling the heat and if you work hard to get (and stay) in a groove, it will make camp that much sweeter when it finally arrives!

Want to continue the conversation? Email me at [email protected] or find me on Facebook and Instagram.