For over 5 years, my wife and I have been making a living workamping around the country. The perks of the seasonal workamping lifestyle are being able to explore new-to-us locations, learn valuable skills, and meet interesting people across the country. In regards to meeting new people, we have noticed that with every workamping gig comes the opportunity to work with at least one or more of the following kinds of workampers.
The Community Organizer
This is the extroverted, social butterfly. They are literally fluttering about, flashing their smile and passing out invites. This person wants to hang out with you and everyone else all the time. They want to meet up at this attraction or that one after work and on your off days. They want every weekend to be a potluck or campfire roundup of all the “workamping family” to swap funny stories and make merriment.
The Go-Getter
It seems that every job has at least one person who is extra eager to go above and beyond to get approval from management. Their high energy and willingness to learn make them a star employee. We are guilty of being in this category but find ourselves waining if the job gets overwhelming or less gratifying. A go-getter can burn out quickly, loose their zest quickly in that case.
The Inmate
This person is there not because they want to but because they have to for one reason or another. They could be someone who really needs the money but they can also be a person who is retired and only wants to work the 3.5 hours a week required to get their site for free. They are generally ok there at first but the moment the job asks them to work an hour or two more or perform an extra task, their demeanor changes. The job becomes their prison.
The Consultant
This person may have worked a high profile job in the past and/or have a lot of experience and advice relative to the job. They may feel the need to offer suggestions on routines and policies to management and fellow co-workers. All of this, they feel, will help create a more streamlined, efficient business.
Final Thoughts
Are you one or more of the workampers listed above? Are there other notable characteristics you’ve noticed or identified with yourself at your workamping jobs? Every workplace takes all kinds of people to make it effective and we, ourselves, have fallen into one or two of the categories above from time to time.
