A Fun Work/Life Rebalancing Act
Turn your vacation into something relaxing:
- Reinvent yourself.
- Pursue a beloved hobby.
- Meet lifelong friends.
- Have a summer ritual.
Be a kid again and sign up for an adult camp this summer. Permit yourself to let go of stress and routine. We work too hard and long all year. So many of us have nothing to look forward to every year. Attending a summer camp for a week can change your mental perspective. Here are some startling facts of how out of balance we Americans are:
- In 2019, Americans spent an average of 2.8 hours watching television vs. 19 minutes indulging in sports or leisure, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Time Use Survey.
- “The U.S. remains the only globally that doesn’t require employees to take annual leave legally.” (G.E. Miller, 2010). Other countries set limits on the workweek length and have laws on mandatory paid time off. Sadly, the U.S. does not set any limits, which causes unnecessary stress on the American worker.
Reinvent Yourself
It’s time to reinvent yourself by signing up for a summer camp as an adult. And the benefits are many: skill development, social interaction/new friends, feeling connected to a group throughout the year, having fun trying new things, positive change, the spirit of exploration, encouragement, group bonding, a unique view of how unimportant work really is/puts routine life in perspective, taking up an old hobby, and just feeling like a kid again. In addition, all of your meals are planned and prepared for you, if nothing else. You can’t get that at home.
There are vacation spots for almost every interest. Examples are listed in the References section below.
It All Starts With a Search
After all, you are arranging a trip. However, camps have a theme that brings people with shared interests together, such as sports, fine arts, cooking, traditional back to nature, helping others, religious, language immersion, conservation, work camps, travel camps, promoting world peace, fantasy camps (dude ranch, rock-n-roll, astronaut), and hobby camps. Try these two directories to help you locate your dream camp experience:
- Grown-Up Camps – You can search by type of camp and location on this site. It links to a multitude of centers designed for adults.
- Camp Resource – this site groups by fantasy camps, hobby camps, etc. and is best searched by utilizing the site search field in the upper right-hand corner by typing in the word “adult” to filter out all the kids’ camps.
Action Steps
Think of the old swimming hole:
- Go ahead and take the plunge.
- Inform your colleagues that you’re going to camp this summer and watch their expressions. When you return, they will not only be envious of how well-rested you look but will soon be asking your advice on where they might go next summer.
- Check out the set of links below designed to give examples of what fun awaits.
- Feel free to add your own.
