With a great team, great planning, and a great vision, almost any dream can become a reality.

Every Camp Director I have ever met has always had a great vision for what they want their camp to be. It may include buildings, or new program areas, it may include dreaming of owning the property next door, maybe it’s completely programmatic - like developing a camp that is truly accessible and welcoming to all or inspires campers to grow in their faith. Camp professionals are great at ‘the idea’ - they dream big and have great vision for their camp and campers.

So, the question is - how do we take a great vision from dream to reality? To be fair - sometimes luck steps in and it just happens. Other times it gets done on sheer will and drive. But how about the rest of the time? Luck and stubbornness aside, are there steps we can follow to bring a great vision to life consistently? The answer is yes, if you are willing to follow them.

Camp people are busy, running a camp is a big job. So, often, vision and dreams get lost in the busy day to day of operations. But with intentionally, it doesn’t have to happen that way. It may be that we need to let some things go or find a better way to manage our time. Maybe it’s bringing in more help. But before we do anything - we need to develop a plan for our vision.

With the right team, developing a plan doesn’t need to be hard - but it should be based on data and group think. Involving a group of stakeholders to test your vision and provide feedback is key and a great place to start. The resources needed, including time should also be considered. Weighing the pros and cons and considering the impact on people, facilities, budget, and property should all be part of the equation. Breaking the vision into smaller objectives that help reach the end goal, with measurable tasks on a timeline will help the team stay on focus. Find a task force or a team to test the steps and help you think of the roadblocks as you go. Then develop solutions that are realistic for each roadblock - don’t over commit or plan on something that cannot be delivered. Patience and planning are needed.

Delivery is where it gets fun. Who will be the point person? Who is taking what tasks? Creating a dashboard of responsibilities and timelines and holding each other accountable is a large part of the recipe to make things work.

Camp Directors are dreamers - but they are also do-ers. With a great team, great planning, and a great vision, almost any dream can become reality.

~ David Sherry

   President

   The Sherry Group