Guest post from Cory Harrison, Camp Director, YMCA Camp Benson Mike Markkula isn’t a household name. Yet millions of households are impacted by his influence.  Perhaps you’ve heard of his business partners… Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. Markkula was an original investor in Apple Computers Inc. before it ever became to be known as such.  [...]

During the Super Bowl Chrysler ran an ad with Clint Eastwood proclaiming that is was “halftime in America” and that we should buy a Chrysler that is imported from Detroit. I don’t really get what the commercial was about and I don’t plan on buying a Chrysler any time soon, but the reference to halftime [...]

this is a guest post from Jon Bontrager, Facility Director, of YMCA Camp Harrison near Wilkesboro, NC. I am not, nor do I claim to be, any sort of “horse person.” I do, however, like a challenge. I was excited In 2008, when I arrived at YMCA Camp Harrison at Herring Ridge, to learn that [...]

Meet Dave, and Dave, and Dave…. (it’s a video, click on the link) Does your life as a camp director feel like this? If you work at a small camp this can be a reality and if you work at a larger camp, but have failed to master the magic of delegation this can also [...]

(originally written for Camp Business Magazine) I’ve been thinking and talking about trust a lot lately. Usually it has come up in conversations I have had about what is the defining element in why parents choose one camp over another. I believe that reason is trust. This is why it is so important for camp [...]

I’m not sure if readers pick up on the fact that most of the things that I write about (and speak about at conferences) are things that I have struggled with, or more often than not, continue to struggle with in my professional life. Sometimes I wish my work still centered around leading games and [...]

Even though summer camp is over 150 years old it really hasn’t changed that much. It began when some individuals took kids to a remote location to separate them from the hustle and bustle of the world, and today, we are still removing kids from the hustle and bustle (more like removing them from their [...]

I think one of the worst things that can happen at a summer camp is what I like to call HOS or “Hanging On Syndrome”. This happens when a camper begins coming to camp around age 6 and they continue through the evolutionary process of camper until they become eligible for a leadership training program [...]

I am Denver Broncos fan! I have been one since 1983 when John Elway was drafted #1 over-all by the Baltimore Colts and told them he would play professional baseball unless he was traded. Elway ends up a Bronco and I end up a Broncos fan! I am a Tim Tebow fan! He is quite the [...]

I know what you are thinking – “Dave is trying to get us to hire him to be a speaker for our staff training”. Sorry to disappoint, but that is not what I am doing. I am trying to get you to hire an outside speaker for your staff training this year though. I have [...]