Camp Counsellor Part 3, The Video

Hello and Welcome back to 'Boy in a Big World'

I know its been a while since I last posted but life has just been so hectic lately and it has just got the better of me and I am sorry for not keeping you up to date.

Today is going to be the 3rd instalment of Camp Counsellor series, and today its going to be all about the dreaded part of your application but probably the most important part.......... the video.

Now if I'm not mistaken and please do correct me if I'm wrong, most if not all agencies require you to make a video to support your application. And so in this post I'm going to try to help you make your video the best it can be.

I think the video is one of the hardest parts because people are stuck for things to say/do that they haven't already put on their written application. The main thing to remember here is that the video is a way of showing off YOU as a person and your personality as well as a way of BACKING UP ALL THE THINGS YOU SAID ON YOUR APPLICATION.

Note those two parts that I wrote in capitols down, they will come in handy. Trust me.

To make this a tad more easier to understand and digest I am going to break it down into steps so you can work through them and make the most of them. Please don't take my word as law and if you feel like you want to do it differently then please do. This is just advice on how I did and didn't go about mine.

So onto the steps.

1) WRITE A SCRIPT!
Make a list off all the tings you want to cover in your video. Don't worry about the length of the list (you will see why later). Make bullet points or a mind map or anything else but DO get it down in writing so you don't forget anything.
Now I work best when I just talk from bullet points, I feel I sound more natural and relaxed so this was where my script ended but I know people who felt more comfortable writing out exactly what they where going to say and reciting it word for word. It's all about getting your personality across so whichever works best for you.

2) LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
 Now you know what you want to cover in your video, think about where you want to film it. For me it was a case of filming it against a plain wall in my house but you might want to film in the park or at a place where you do one of your specialist skills e.g. Gymnasium for gymnastics.
Think about things like background noise and other disturbances. If your outside, are you going to be right next to the road with loads of car noise or is it going to be really windy and put you off. If you are filming at the gym is there going to be people walking in front of you or doing distracting things in the background. This was why I decided to film at home, the time when I wanted to film mine, it was raining outside and my camera doesn't like the rain.
Also, if you are filming anywhere that is owned by someone privately, hate to go back to it but.....like the gym.......make sure you have permission to film there, nothing worse than starting to say your script and being shouted at to get out.

3) THE TECHNICAL STUFF
Now I was quite lucky in the fact that I studied media at college for 2 years so I owned a fancy DSLR camera and knew how to edit on fancy software but if you don't have all this then don't worry. Do you have friend of family member that could help maybe? Does you place of work or where you study have eqipment you could borrow? Think outside the box people. If this isn't possible for you, then don't worry. Don't go out and buy an expensive camera. After all its not what you've got, it what you do with it. Your digital camera that you use for holidays will be fine or even your phone, just try to use the back facing camera and be in a quiet area for filming.

4) THE EDIT
This is the hardest bit (in my opinion). Editing is something that I studied for 2 years and still don't understand fully but most computers come with basic editing software now and so get your ass on youtube and find some tutorials for whatever software you have and work through it like that.
Alternatively get someone that's good at editing to do it for you if at all possible. If not, don't worry and just take it slowly.
Now earlier I said don't worry about your script being too long, this is where you will thank me for that. Ideally you want your video to be no more then 2-3 minutes and the more footage you have the easier it will be to make this happen, take out all the footage that you can't hear you in, your forgot your words, the wind was being a pain or you just don't like, take out all the times you said UMMMMM or AHHHHHHH and you will see that your video is already so much shorter.
Now find some music, it makes the whole thing seem so much more professional, try to avoid music with words (especially swear words) and try to make the song up beat and child friendly. avoid heavy beats and think about the final outcome of the video.

5) NOW YOUR DONE.
Sit back relax and if this was your last step before you application was complete then wait to be placed. If not then WHAT ARE YOU DOING? Finish it quick so you can go to America already.


So I hope that helped and here are some quick tips I didn't think fitted under any of the sub heading.

- Wear comfotable clothing that looks reasonably smart. I wore jeans and plaid button up shirt, dont go overly formal with a suit and tie, you will look silly to camp director and this will not play to your strengths.
- Think about light. Try to film on a bright day or in a bright room, it will really make all your footage 1000x better, trust me.
- Don't be afraid to make a fool of yourself (within reason), dress up like a super hero if you think will help, camp is all about having fun and working hard, just makesure you get the balance right.
- Think about who will be watching. Think about what camps you want to attract, if you want to atrract a specialist sailing camp, show off your sailing ability, if you want to go to specialist arts camp, maybe put in some shots of you acctually peforming.
- And finally the most important one again. DON'T WORRY. The camp directors know that we are not all tech savvy master video makers. So don't worry if your video isn't exactly Stephen Speilberg's latest film. Just make sure the content is there, make sure you show your personality and above all HAVE FUN WITH IT.

I think that is all for now, any questions then by all means leave a comment below or email me on jljriley@gmail.com and I will try my best to help.

Please remember my word isn't law and you do whatever you want.

Wishes,
Jack

Being good with Money

Hello and welcome back to 'Boy in a Big World'

So it would be a lie to say I'm good with money.

In fact it would be the biggest dirtiest lie ever. I get paid every month, I pay all of my outgoings and the rest just gets thrown at things like clothes and a mad night out and then, all of a sudden its 2 weeks until pay day and I have a tenna left to spend.

So with the new year I am determined to get my finances in order.
I have so many big expenses coming up, like my all my Americamp cost (flights, visa, spending money). Saving so that I have money to come back from America too and I would like to learn to drive at some point in the future and that will cost me more money.

Now I only work 4 days a week so I'm not on a full time wage, but I do live with my Mum still and pay her a small amount of rent so I'm not that bad off. But I still need to sort it all out.

My plan is to pay all my expenditures on the day I get paid, look at what I have left and divide that by the number of weeks till I next get paid. Then take this money out of the bank in cash every week and leave my debit card at home so that I am not tempted to use it.

This way if I want something more than 'said' amount then I will have to be extra frugal that week and it will give me a visual representation of that I gave left to spend every week.
That is the trouble with paying on plastic, you cant 'see' what your spending every day.

I have even made a little spread sheet that is VERY simple and just takes away the numbers I put into it of the total amount I have been paid.

Now at the moment I am in one of these 'broke 2 weeks before pay day' situations because I went a tad mad on new years eve and in the sales. So this is all planned to start on the 26th when I get paid so I guess only time will tell. I think I will do an update towards the end of February on how I am getting on.

So in more exciting news I have planned the next Camp Counsellor post and that will be written and posted within the next week or so maybe. I want to space them out in the lead up to camp so that there isn't a sudden influx, but something's wont be written about till the happen.

I also have other exciting news to do with camp but I don't want to jinx that before it happens. So watch this space.

I know its only been a short one today but sometimes there the best ones.

Wishes,
Jack

Summer Camp: Part 2, Application and Interview

Hello and welcome back to ‘Boy in a Big World’

 

So this is part to of a series I am writing about my experience in applying and going to America to work as a camp counsellor.

 

This is a very long post but do keep reading, it will be worth it, I promise!!

 

If you want the first post which is all about how to choose the right company for you and why I chose to do it then that’s here, but if not then read on because today’s post is all about the application form and the initial interview you will have with whatever agency.

 

NOW……..I applied through a company called Americamp so this post will only be talking about their process directly but I have friends that have gone with other agency’s and as far as I am aware they all operate in a VERY similar way when it comes to accepting applicants onto the programme. So read on because this post will include some useful lessons I learnt when applying.

 

The written/online application

So you have decided what agency you want to go with?!?

Great…….so now you are probably staring at an online application form thinking its really daunting and what the hell is there 24 pages for and what the Nora Batty am I going to put in all these boxes.

Well don’t worry. The first 15 of those pages will be details about you like your address and what school you went to and things like that. You know all this (or you should) so just plug in some music fill it in and away we go….

 

Now it’s the next part you have to pay attention to. This is where you are gonna want to dig out every bit of childcare experience you have. Whether that’s baby sitting for a neighbour or the fact you’re a trainee teacher and have worked with class full of kids.

For me, I am scout leader so that’s where the majority of mine has come from but try to think of a least 2 different examples to work with, the more the merrier.

Think about all the times you have had to run activities or entertain them at a moments notice. What did you do? How many kids? What where the challenges? And don’t be afraid to admit it was hard at times. Camp directors will be seeing your application and they know that being a camp counsellor is hard, if they see someone who can admit to challenges they know, that you know, what your getting yourself into, and even though you have faced adversity, it shows that you aren’t afraid to pick yourself back up and get on with it. Don’t admit to it going diabolically wrong just say something like, ‘It turned out to be more of a challenge than I expected, but it a challenge that I took in my stride and learnt greatly from’

 

Its all about clever wording guys!!!!!

 

So this is probably the most important part of your application in my opinion!!!!

This is the skills section. This is where you need to decide what you want to teach at camp. Now there are general counsellor roles at most camps where you do a bit of everything and help out on whichever activity needs you but most camps also like you to have skills you are prepared to teach and often lead a lesson in.

Try to think of things you know a lot about, for an example I will use me.

Because I have been involved in scouting for years I have a lot of outdoor skills that I am very competent in, like cooking outdoors and orienteering but my big one was the fact I can sail, but I am also very crafty, I can knit, I make cards and I sew, but I also do performing arts and studied media for 2 years, if you are struggling then talk to your agency about what to put or what could be a skill, they will go through this more in depth at your interview, but more on that next.

 

 

The Interview

So you have sent off your amazing application and the agency has contacted you asking to book an interview. Now as far as I am aware, all agencies ask you to pay an admin fee before your interview that is non-refundable, even if you don’t get placed. For Americamp it is £40 and I guess it is around the same for all of them but its worth checking if that would be an important factor for you.

 

Now all agencies run there interviews differently and I have a friend that used Camp America and they did it face to face in a hotel. For Americamp a lot of their interviews are done on skype but I do know if you are local to their Manchester HQ then they do it there.

Now don’t be worried for your interview, its more of a chat about your application, why you want to be in America and then they talk about your skills.

 

For my interview we went through my skills and highlighted all the good and….not so good. We changed them around multiple times until we where settled on a set that I was happy with and my interviewer thought I would most likely get placed with.

 

Remember, the agency want you to go to camp too because that’s how they make money. Don’t worry about your skills not being good enough or not having enough child care experience, they will point things out to you that you NEVER would have thought of in a million years.

 

Now the next part is the bit you should think about the most, the scenario questions?!?!?

To be honest they are nothing to worry about again. Use common sense and just think about your answers before you say them, a couple of examples of these questions could be…….A child is sitting on there own a lot and doesn’t want to join in, what do you do? OR It’s a Childs first time at camp and they seem nervous, what do you do? OR it has just started to rain and the next activity was planned to be outdoors, what would you do?

 

As you can see these are things that would happen a lot at camp so have a think along those lines and see what you come up with. But to be honest, they could ask you anything at all, just think about your answer and explain it as best you can!!

 

And to finish this section some tips that will help you, and you may not have though of :

• Think about what will be behind you (if on skype), tidy your room, or sit against a plain wall to keep it the least distracting. Also you going to be living in a Cabin with up to 15 other people, show you can be tidy(ish).
• Wear headphones (if on skype) it saves from echo and feedback noise and just makes the whole thing a lot easier.
• Have a print out of your application form near you and know you availability dates and how flexible they are. I didn’t do this and while it didn’t impend my interview it did mean that I had to email my interviewer after to confirm things I couldn’t remember.
• HAVE A DRINK BEFORE AND A GLASS OF WATER NEAR YOU. Nothing is worse than dry mouth and having to cough out your answers.
• SMILE. If you smile when you talk you not only look happier but you sound happier and your eyes light up and you look excited.

 

 

And I think that’s it. Gosh this was long but it all needed to be said.

GOOD LUCK

And let me know it goes!!!!

 

Wishes,

Jack

Noticing Change

Hello and welcome back to 'Boy in a Big World'

I hope you all had a lovely weekend, I most certainly did, I slept an awful lot and ate far to much food, and I completed the first half of a knitting project I'm working on.

So today's post is going to be all about noticing change within myself. This is both physical and psychological and it wasn't until recently I realised how important it was to notice change and to feel good about it.

This thought process stems from the other week when I wrote this post about how I was having a crappy day and how feeling crappy is okay.
And then that night as I was falling asleep I realised that I was, in that moment, truly happy. Not to say I have never been truly happy before, just I have never noticed it, and when I took account of that feeling it spread throughout my entire body and I just felt so relaxed and uplifted and at ease.

I know this sounds ultra weird but stay with me it will make sense soon.............I hope.

So anyway, after that happened I woke up the next day an realised that I had not only slept so much better but I also felt refreshed and while there where still stress's in my life I felt like I could handle them and that they where so insignificant to my happiness. From this I then started to make a note of all the positive things that are happening in my life now.

I went to the gym yesterday and looked in the mirror to see that my arm's are not only bigger but more defined, same as my chest. And my jawline seems more pronounced.
My Mother and I haven't had an argument in like weeks and while we never have full blown shouting matches we do disagree from time to time and this seems to have disappeared.
Work has been really good and I have just been cleared to do more hours at another show room so more money and more responsibility......YAYAYAY!!!!!!

And noticing these amazing things that I am so lucky for makes me feel at ease with my life and no calm.

And that's enough of the mushy-ness for today, so yeah notice all the good things in your life and just let them fill you up with happiness.


Onto other things, I found someone else on twitter who has been placed at the same camp as me through Americamp and so we are talking and it has made me more excited for this summer.
And I haven't forgot about the series I am doing about my application experience. I think the next one is going to be about the application form and first interview and all the tips and tricks learnt from that.

Wishes,
Jack

How I now eat Healthy (Sort of)

Hello and welcome back to 'Boy in a Big World'

*****So I was just re-reading yesterday's blog post and realised 2 things.
1) It was so majorly deppresamondo
2) It didn't really make vast quantities of sense

So I'm going to leave it there as a sort of reminder to me about how not to be a s**t writer but also because this blog is as much a diary for me as it is for you to read.
And that's all I'm going to say about that because it does not to well to dwell on the past.*****


And onto the topic based around the title of this post. Healthy eating and the new year.
Now I do not profess to be a nutritionist or anyone that knows anything major about food but I know a thing or 2 about eating crap all day everyday because that is possible my favourite thing to doc(after writing this blog and walking my dogs).

So anyway......This new year I have vowed not to eat healthier and remove crappy food from my life all together but to just be more conscious of what I eat. I started going to the gym about 3-4 months ago and don't get me wrong, I feel fitter and have seen results in things like the fact I sleep better at night and my wobbly bits don't wobble as much anymore. But one thing I have noticed since I started going to the gym is that fact that I my diet is not that great. Its by no means appalling but it could be better.

I eat good wholesome main meals (I will never be one of those people who prep 50 meals in Tupperware and live off it for a week, I like variety). By that I mean that they include good amounts of food from all food groups and they keep me full for longer. But what I am a nightmare for is SNACKING!!!!!!!
Chocolate, crisps and pastries are my angel. I'm lucky that I have a high metabolism but I know this wont last forever and that one day I will wake up and be 25st (jokes).

So about the end of November time I vowed to be more aware of what I'm eating. Not to drastically change my diet and become a salad loving maniac.



Look at that salad loving woman, she loves her salad so much but I swear to you, that is most definitely not me...........at all..........one bit.

And you know what it worked. Rather than just mindlessly shoving a croissant into my mouth. I would look at said croissant and think 'Do I really want this?' 'Am I really hungry or am I just bored?'

And most of the time I would just be bored. I would make myself a cup of tea or get up and go for a walk around work or even just sing a song to myself and you know what 90% of the time it would work.
Other times I would find myself walking towards said croissants location and devouring it in 3 bites but it has been easier than I thought it was going to be.
Don't get me wrong I haven't given up crap all together. Last night I indulged in a dinner of oven chips, fish finger and beans but (correct me if I'm wrong in saying) that that has more nutritional value than a bag of m&m's?

So what I'm saying is, don't try and eat healthy all at once, I have done that before and in a few days you are back to square one. Just try different things. See what works for you. And get active. The fact that I know I have just burned X calories at the gym makes me very reluctant to shove them back into my body in crisp form.

I hope you all had a wonderful new year and again sorry about yesterday, there will be days like that in the future because I am allowed to have crappy days every now and then.

Wishes,
Jack

Down Day

Hello and welcome back to 'Boy in a Big World'

So it's a new year and that makes all the difference apparently. Well not today for me. I have never suffered from depression or anxiety or anything of that nature, and don't get me wrong I have times when I feel down but normally I am able to pick myself up and move on fairly quickly but today for some reason it hasn't worked like that.

My life changed drastically a few months ago when my parents decided to split up and it just threw me off guard. I have to plan where I am going to be, make time to see both of them at separate times and sometimes it feels like no matter how hard I try, I always end up with someone not being happy.
I normally just think f**k it and get on with it anyway because sometimes you have to put personal feelings aside and please other people but today I kind of just wanted to do a big middle finger up to the world and crawl into bed and watch Netflix all day.
But I can't. I have to be an adult about it. And don't get me wrong I know that people have it worse and that you do have to suck it up, but I do that so often that I just think I am full now, I just think that I have been 'happy' for so long that it now just makes me angry and resentful. Gosh this sounds so depressing and ungrateful. I am so lucky to have the family I do and the friends around me but today I just kind of want to cry. Every time a client has walked into work I have just been secretly willing them to go so I can go back to feeling cack and sorry for myself. I think that's it you know.
I think I just need to feel sorry for myself and accept that for what it is.

I know that I will wake up tomorrow and not feel like this at all but tonight, I am going to go to the gym and burn some anger and then do some knitting and then sleep.

I know this was probably very depressing to read but this blog is as much for to vent as it is for you to read.

I hope you all had an amazing new year.

Wishes,
Jack