Monday, July 15, 2013

Camp...Again

I'm feeling frustrated. Managing 90+ people is not an easy task. Especially when the majority of employees are teenagers. Different management styles work for different people. Different people respond to different things. That's a fact. And it seems to be nearly impossible to find a way to help everyone succeed. It's not like we hire people with the intention of making them fail. I find it frustrating that people don't recognize that this is their job, not a place to get paid to sleep or slack off.
I don't think that it is asking a lot that staff members are on time, help clean up, and that they shower. I don't think that making you do an extra chore is an unreasonable punishment for being late every day. Most places would fire you if you don't come to work on time. Maybe I am reaching here, but you know...
When our camp staff had 45 staff at most, it was a lot easier to have patience, and to allow room for error. But when I have 20 people not doing things correctly as opposed to 2, its a lot harder to help fix problems, and furthermore, have the patience to constantly correct. I found it ironic, that after 15 minutes of helping with my job last week, one of our junior staff said, "Wow, now I understand why you are so strict on this. This is a lot of work." I wish more of our staff understood how things pile up, especially when it isn't done correctly.
I am a firm believer in leading by example. If I ask any of our staff members to do something, I have to be willing to do the exact same thing. Sure, my work schedule might compromise with KP duties or Trash Sweeps, but it isn't like I would be hiding in my cabin if given the chance. I would be helping. Maybe I am off base, maybe I just need to relax and not do anything. Either way, I can't make everyone happy.

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