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