Jack's Camp Friends Newsletter |
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Let’s just start with…Wow.
When I wrote about not recording YouTube videos a couple of weeks ago, I expected to hit send and have what usually happens: go on to think about the next week’s newsletter. But nope.
Inbox explosion.
Dozens and dozens wrote back answering what the “YouTube” thing was for them. And I thought I’d hear about the strategic projects being avoided, the big CEO work sitting undone.
Which def did happen.
Partnership packets. Alumni networks. Staff training systems. Capital campaigns. All of it. There were lots of examples. Lots of cool stuff.
But that wasn’t the wow part.
It was this line, buried in one of the emails responses:
Feel guilty being the bee, feel guilty being the CEO, resulting in nothing getting done sometimes.
And I was like, oh. This is way bigger than YouTube videos.
Because that’s not about avoiding camp work. That’s about something way harder.
The Guilt Spiral
So many camp pros described the same pattern:
Working on that capital campaign, and feeling guilty about the 47 unanswered parent emails.
Answering those parent emails, and feeling guilty about not working on the capital campaign.
In a staff meeting, thinking about the mold in Cabin 7.
Checking the mold in Cabin 7, thinking about being in staff meeting.
No matter what was getting done, there was a feeling that it should be something else.
It’s not just task-switching. It’s guilt-switching.
And the worst part?
The guilt doesn’t actually help to do better work in either mode. It just makes both modes feel terrible.
Why This Happens
This isn’t about being bad at a job.
It’s just caring too much about too many real things.
Both modes actually matter.
The parent email does need a response. Presence at that staff meeting does make a difference. The mold actually should be checked.
And the capital campaign is genuinely important. The alumni network not getting off the ground? That would actually help camp.
No one is making up these priorities. They’re all real.
The problem is we’re often just one person trying to be in two (or more) modes simultaneously. And the brain is punishing us for whichever one isn’t happening.
Someone wrote about the dopamine hits from worker bee work versus the ambiguity of CEO work. Feeling the brain pulling toward the immediate, tangible stuff.
But then when that tangible stuff is happening another part is screaming about avoiding the strategic work.
So it all ends up nowhere. Guilty and stuck.
Intentional vs. Reactive
The difference isn’t about finding perfect balance. Nobody has that.
The difference is between something like intentional mode-switching and guilt-driven mode-switching.
Intentional looks like: “Yo, I’m in worker bee mode right now because summer is three weeks out and s@#$ needs to get done. Thursday AM is blocked for CEO work.”
Guilt-driven looks like: “I should be working on that strategic plan. Oh wait, I should be answering this email. Actually, I should be——”
And then six hours pass, and nothing’s been done well.
Another camp pro wrote about how they know what good worker bee work looks like because they lived it for years.
But they’ve never really seen what their mentors did day-to-day as CEOs. No role models for what that work actually looks like.
That uncertainty makes the guilt worse. At least when you’re answering emails, you know you’re doing it right.
I can def hear that.
What Actually Helps
I’m still figuring this out. But here’s what I’m trying:
Name the mode I’m in. Out loud, to myself. “I’m in worker bee mode for the next two hours.” Just saying it helps.
Decide ahead of time when to switch. Not in the moment when I’m not amazing about it, but the night before or maybe at the start of the week.
Just do one mode at a time. In CEO mode? Close my email. Worker bee mode and I can I let myself be in worker bee mode without the guilt.
One director shared something cool. Their team created a document called Low, Medium, and High. It tells the team when to pull the director in and when to handle it themselves.
That’s not delegation. That’s protecting CEO time by making worker bee decisions clearer for everyone.
Another is frantically in worker bee mode right now because they’re about to go on maternity leave. And you know what? That’s the right mode for that moment. No guilt needed.
Maybe the goal isn’t to never be in worker bee mode. It’s to choose it deliberately instead of defaulting to it out of guilt or comfort.
My Thing This Week
Honestly, it’s admitting I am not going to do the Youtube video.
Doesn’t feel great to say that, but it’s honest.
There are too many things to do, and I can’t justify the ROI on my time in order to do a good enough job right now.
Sometimes it’s going to happen like that. So my thing from a couple of weeks ago is still a thing.
But in that time, we had team planning meetings, got a new website off the ground, figured out a ton of program stuff, and on and on and on.
Worker bee mode. CEO mode.
All a work in progress.
Glad to know I’m not alone.
We got this,
Jack
Long (But cool) PS:
Work with me this summer.
We’re building a new arts program at Camp Kenwood & Evergreen. It’s a blank canvas that needs a real leader.
The Studio Director runs the whole thing, a team of 20 staff, multiple studios, and a program that’ll shape how hundreds of kids experience creativity.
This isn’t a “help out” role. It’s a run it role.
You’ll lead people, make decisions, and build systems that actually work.If you want a chance to prove you can lead, figure stuff out, and make something real, this is it.
Leave with real impact, a tangible project to point to, and an amazing reference (if you crush it)
Hit reply and I’ll connect you with Violet, who’s running the search.
June 1-August 10 (Flexible on both ends) $5,000-$7,500