The CampHacker Podcast

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! COVID-19 and Summer Camp as of April 1st, 2020. The hard question that we need to be asking in April 2020. This question is a definite punch in the gut. However, as the COVID-19 situation evolves, we need to consider the very real possibility that we may not see a summer of camp until 2020.  It sucks. A lot, but if we think of this in the sphere of...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Being (or acting as) a marketing expert. The perfect answer for when someone asks, “so, what do you do the rest of the year?"   Many of us didn’t get into this business because we love marketing.  We do what we do because we believe in the transformative power that the camp experience has on a child’s life. We do it because we want to create co...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Where can you find some creativity in your daily schedule? (and where shouldn’t you?) As camp people, it’s in our nature to innovate. We are great at looking at routine or program and think, “Hey, wouldn’t this be better if we did this!?”. This is even something that we praise staff for. How many of your evaluation forms list “creative thinking” as...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Find the full transcript and video here As of March 6th, 2020, What you need to know about COVID-19 and Summer Camp This special edition of the CampHacker Podcast is an interview with Dr. Amy Greer surrounding COVID-19 and what we know, as of March 6th, 2020 and summer camp. Dr. Amy Greer is one of Canada's top infectious disease specialists an...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! 2020 Re-post - Preventing Spread of Norwalk and Other Infections at Camp Hey Camp Pros, with concerns about the coronavirus and COVID-19, we’re going off-schedule and digging this show out of the CampHacker archives. Shortly, we’ll be releasing a new episode that specifically focuses on what camp pros should be thinking about when it comes to camp,...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Find the Tools of the Week and more links from this episode at http://camphacker.tv/podcast If you don’t make your expectations clear, it’s your fault when people don’t meet them.  Harsh, right? Well, it’s true! As Camp Directors, one of the biggest disservices that we can do to our staff is to be unclear about our expectations of them. From the app...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! More money, more mission, but also…more problems? You’ve heard Travis say this time and time again. “Money moves the mission”. In this day and age, if you want to run a successful year-round camp business with multiple full-time staff, all while keeping camper fees reasonable, you likely need some financial support! Donations and grants are incredib...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! What you should be thinking about to ensure your summer camp stands the test of time. If you’re reading this on release in February, then you know that time is running short on your time to do some of the deep philosophical work that can only happen when summer isn’t on the horizon. This episode is for when you have the brain-space, or, maybe it’s f...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Adventure programming is about way more than a $1M ropes course! Adventure programming, challenge courses, low ropes, rock walls, team-building, staff construction, initiatives, WHATEVER you want to call it, this episode is about that. This type of camp program has really been changing and growing over the years. From the early days where people bui...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! A New Podcast from Go Camp Pro - The Camp Owners Podcast! Whether you are a Camp Owner, an aspiring camp owner, or a lover of some of our other Go Camp Pro podcasts, we’re so happy to have you here. The Camp Owners Podcast is here to explore a side of the summer camp world that is experienced by those that have the privilege of running an independen...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! The All TOWS Show #2 - CampHacker #120 January 9, 2020 Fantastic Focus Groups - CampHacker #119 CampHacker Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Stitcher Tool of the Week - (insert trombone music here) We’re back with a second edition of an all tool of the week show. We received a ton of positive feedback about the last episode and because we’re all about...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Fantastic, frank, feedback from families and staff. There are not many industries out there like ours…for many reasons! One of the primary ones is the focus that we all share on relationship building. Whether it’s between campers, staff and campers, staff and staff or admin and staff, building cohesive and strong relationships may as well be the the...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! We can go beyond acceptance. One of the things we all know to be true about camp is how much better of the world would be if EVERY child spent at least one week at camp. With that in mind, it’s important that we are consistently looking at how we are best serving campers and families that may be under-represented in our camp communities. Newsflash!...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Because you’re not in this alone. It wouldn’t be the revelation of the century if we said that being a full-time Camp Pro can be incredibly lonely. Most of us work in small (or solo) teams, we usually are the only person in our part of the hierarchy, we manage many people (and their emotions) and we work incredibly hard. If we don’t think about buil...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Being not just productive, but effective. This is an episode for the off-season. It’s an episode that you may need when camp is quiet and you’re in the sweet spot where the summer is still fading and the next one is not yet coming. As a camp director, your brain is the most important resource you have. It would be an understatement to say that there...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes! TIME TO FACE THE STRANGE Is it stuck in your head yet? Gotchya! Change. A 6 letter word that can start a revolution. Change. The nemesis of the phrase “we’ve always done it like that”. Change. One of the hardest things about being a full-time camp professional. Change. Absolutely necessary. The moment we stop changing as an indu...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Learn outside of camp, to lead at camp. Following along with our last episode ’s theme of learning, we wanted to bring this podcast episode to you at a time where you may be planning your professional development for the year. However, even if you aren’t, it’s never too early or late to start thinking about how to invest in your professional develop...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! We are always learning. We’re back! After another wonderful summer of camp, Travis, Gab, Dan and Joe are here for Season 9 of the CampHacker Podcast. To get things started, our hosts share the biggest lessons that they learned from their 2019 camp season. That’s right, even these camp pros with over 50 years of combined experience are still learning...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Tools, Podcasts, Books and Strategies for Sustainability as a Camp Pro One of the best things about being a long time camp pro is that every year, we essentially find ourselves doing the same cycle over and over again. While this can be tiring, even exhausting, if we think about it another way, it’s also an incredible opportunity to get better and b...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Camper today, camper tomorrow, camper for life. This is the time of year (January, for those tuning in later) where we are really starting to think about bums in bunks. Your registrations are starting to roll in and your dedicated, long-time camp families have picked their sessions and things are looking good. Take a second and think about those ret...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Hey Camp Mavericks. We’re excited to be setting the Day Camp Pod free this week! We also want you to know what is up with then next episode: the first First Class Counselor episode. There will be at least 5 more happening this season. Oliver and Matt have been working with me to bring in the First Class Counsellor podcast to the CampHacker feed. Our...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! It would be easy for the hard and fast overnight camp pros to see “Day Camp” in the title and move on. Don’t do that. There are logistical differences with both models of summer camp, but it’s so easy to see that what is relevant and pertinent to one, is the same for the other. Rituals, traditions, culture, integration, camaraderie, it’s a part of e...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Hey! Welcome back! We hope that you had an incredible summer. We also hope that you’ve had an incredible chance to take a breath and reflect on the magic that surely happened this summer. Or even, to not think about camp and…you know…sleep! Whether you’re still recovering, coming out of hibernation, or still in the busy season, it’s time to start se...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! Hello Camp Pros! Well, it's late April/early May, and you know what that means. EVERYBODY PANIC! No no, only kidding! But likely, it can start to feel like it at this time of year. As we finish stretching to prepare for the sprint that is camp, we can't forget that the race we are about to run is not a solo event, it's a relay! For ma...

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us! On this CampHacker interview Travis talks with Dr Deborah Gilboa (@askdoctorg) about her own camp experiences and how camps can become great resources to families. To see the resources we mentioned check out our shownotes at http://camphacker.tv/podcast.                 Our free Resilient Camp Blueprint diagnostic is available at: https://camp.mba/t...