So today I thought I'd just take a moment to let you know what the biggest thing I learned in my first year of being a DDCD (Ditzy Day Camp Director). The biggest thing you need to know is your limits.
Trust me, day camp or any camp is super crazy. Your office (if you are lucky enough to have one) has a revolving door, the phone keeps ringing, problems arise, parents need to speak to you, it rains, kids get bloody noses or huge goose egg bumps on their head, the schedule gets lost....the list just goes on. As prepared as you can be, you'll never fully be prepared for all the things that are going to happen and the problems and issues that will arise. So, I'm not saying this to discourage you or make you feel more overwhelmed but to suggest you get help....AND LOTS OF IT.
The biggest lesson I learned last year was that I can't do everything, as much as I want to, or try too, I can't do everything - and neither can you. I sometimes like to think I'm super woman (and the fact that my dad's ringtone for me is the superwoman song - helps to add to the allusion), but the truth is that we all need help.
So I guess the thing I'm trying to encourage you with is, that you need to know your limits. Try to be as realistic as you can and realize you can't do everything. Ask for help, search out help and then use that help. If you have trained your staff and assistant director (if you have one), then you need to trust that they can do it and trust that they are capable. And trust me...if they have a problem, question, concern, mistake they will come get you. Asking for help doesn't mean you are lazy or not involved...it means you are wise enough to realize you can't do it all and you are smart enough to know when you need help. If you try to do it all, you'll burn out, or break down and your staff and volunteers will think you don't trust them or have faith in their abilities.
Now trust me, I am the biggest ditzy day camp director out there. I forget my own lessons. I do. This summer we started a new leader in training program called Counsellors in Training and I thought to myself this is going to be a lot of work but that's okay...I can do it...I wanted to organize it all and put it all together - plus since it was sorta my baby, I didn't really want to give it up. Thankfully, I have a great boss and friend who kindly came alongside of me to say, "Tori you can't do this too...you need to let someone else coordinate it." And as much as it stinks to have to give up the control, I know he's right. I'll scream it from the roof tops now, "I NEED HELP!"
Okay...that sounded a little worse then it was meant too. I'm super happy we've hired an awesome coordinator to run the CIT program and I know it's going to be awesome!
So through my mistakes and life lessons I hope you learn this big lesson of knowing your limits and asking for help.
Good luck finding the perfect people to help with whatever it is you need help with.
Yours,
The Ditzy Day Camp Director
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