Becoming a Professional

FOR THOSE interested in a career in recreation and leisure services, here are some suggestions.

1. Obtain a degree in the field. Several colleges and universities now offer a degree in parks, recreation, tourism, or leisure studies on the undergraduate level. Some also offer graduate degrees.

2. Talk with current professionals. Learn about opportunities in their organization, and other openings.

3. Contact the state association of park and recreation professionals. Look at their job bulletin listing openings in that state, or neighboring states.

4. Get a volunteer or part-time job with a local recreation agency. See if you enjoy being in this type of people business, and display your interest to your supervisors and managers.

5. Apply for every job that you are conceivably qualified for, and ask for an interview. Ask questions about qualifications and expectations of each position.

6. Attend state, regional, or national recreation conferences. They almost always have a job mart! And, it is a great place to make contacts.

7. Design a resume with a particular market in mind. Be ready to rewrite the document for a different audience or type of agency.

8. Establish your own network of potential employers then mail your resume to everyone who might be interested in you. Follow up with a phone call, and continue to stay in touch.

9. Be ready to talk about your education and experience and how it fits in with the needs of a particular agency or organization. Think creatively, and show how your credentials will coincide with the agency's needs.

Recreation and leisure services is a dynamic, exciting, and growing field. It provides satisfying and rewarding careers for trained and qualified individuals. Creative and competent administrators, managers, and leaders at every level are needed. The field of recreation and leisure services has matured way past the old idea of yesteryear that "anyone can do it."

The need for recreation and leisure services in many settings continues to increase in our nation. There is also a need for highly capable and qualified professionals to serve in this field. Take a good look at yourself. You may discover that a career in the recreation and leisure services profession is the perfect match for your own personal goals, objectives, and interests for the future.

Developing Leisure Services

COMMUNITIES, churches, businesses, and agencies interested in providing leisure services often go about the developmental process in the wrong way, and the "cart gets placed before the horse." Consider the suggested model below as a proper order of development.

• 1. Philosophy - this answers the question of WHY
• 2. Leadership - this answers the question of WHO
• 3. Program - this answers the questions of WHAT and WHEN
• 4. Facilities - this answers the question of WHERE

Any group of people contemplating the development of leisure services should think about these things. The following questions need to be asked and answered.

First, and foremost, "Why do we need to provide for leisure activities?" "Do we have a reason or purpose?"

Next, "Who will provide the necessary leadership?" Most organizations will need to consider both professional and volunteer leaders.

Thirdly, "What will be the program ingredients, and when will they be calendared and scheduled?" Emphasis here should be placed on "something for everyone." Leisure activities should be made available for all ages, both sexes, and for people with wide spans of interest.

Lastly, "Where will we put the program?" "Where will our leisure activities take place?" Here the consideration must be on available facilities and space where leisure activities may occur. Both indoor and outdoor space should be considered.

The construction of a recreation building is not really the first step, nor the priority, in developing leisure and recreation opportunities for people to enjoy. Civic, church, business, and agency leaders should guide their communities, companies, and organizations to "keep the horse before the cart," and give attention to the proper order of development suggested above.

Sportsmanship and Sports Officials

ATTITUDES shown toward sports officials is not always in the best spirit. Parents, and other spectators, sometimes show disrespect when calls go against their teams. Players oftentimes question the decisions of referees and umpires. Coaches, all too often, want an immediate explanation of a call.

What do these attitudes reflect? Do they reflect that officials believe they can make no mistakes? No referee or umpire with any experience will contend that mistakes are never made. Are officials overly eager to exhibit authority? The truth of the matter is that they do not, in many cases, put on display all of the authority given to them under the rules of the game.

Perhaps all of us need to recognize that the game rules provide that the official is the final authority at an athletic contest. Coaches and managers of athletic teams have developed the habit of charging onto the playing floor, or directly confronting an umpire on the playing field to question calls. This is - in reality - questioning the authority of the official. When their team has lost, fans often blame the officials who are doing no more than applying the game rules, regardless of various other factors.

What is the chief reason behind these kinds of attitudes toward persons delegated authority to administer athletic contests? Regarding community recreation - including Boys & Girls Clubs and Y programs - and church leagues, perhaps it could be due to an extreme desire, and possibly an over-emphasis, on winning. In many of these settings, emotions win out over good common sense and a spirit of respect for those who serve as sports officials.

Perhaps we need to be reminded of some key points - especially with regard to leisure activities and recreational sports. Games are meant to be for the purpose of good clean fun, fellowship, and enjoyment; they are not to be battles or fights. Sports activities are provided for personal growth and development - not to provoke bitterness or sorrow. And, games ought to produce a spirit and attitude of genuine sportsmanship on the playing field, on the court, in the locker room, and on the sidelines.

Life's Tiny Delights

MOST OF US miss out on life's big prizes.

The Pulitzer
The Nobel
Oscars
Tonys
Emmys

But we're all eligible for life's small pleasures.

A pat on the back
A kiss behind the ear
A four-pound bass
A full moon
An empty parking space
A crackling fire
A great meal
A glorious sunset
Hot soup
Cold drinks

Don't fret about acquiring life's grand awards. Enjoy life's tiny delights. There are plenty for all of us. And, our leisure gives us ample opportunity to relish them all.
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Adapted from material from The Wall Street Journal

A Voice to Leisure

SCIENCE is really marvelous! Look at what it has done for us. A description by Richard Armour illustrates this fact.

Science, it seems, is now well on the way, to achieve its considerate aims for us. First, machines to provide us with leisure to play; then, machines to play various games for us. When machines do our work and machines do our play, we'll rejoice, for we'll then be in clover. We'll have nothing to do all the live-long day - 'til machines that do nothing take over!*

And, even then, our problems won't really be solved. Changes of untold proportions have taken place in our lifetime. Now, it is predicted that we will see far more changes during the rest of our lives than any of us have witnessed up to this point.

Change - that's the name of the game. With changes continuing to occur all around us, we begin to realize that we must change also. The history of civilization indicates that there has always been a serious lag between the getting of greater means, and the gaining of increased free time - and the intelligent use of these two things. So drastic has this lag been, we find that no previous society has been able to bridge this gap. Indeed, the perpetual misuse of increased means and leisure has threatened the termination of civilization. We can conclude that there has never been a time in history when a society enjoyed to much leisure on such a broad sociological scale as our own. Much of this free time, however, is spent unwisely. Twelve to seventeen years are often spent in learning to make a living - yet with little attention given to living the life provided through the efforts of our labor.

In a time when opposing political ideologies, backed by weapons which could annihilate all civilization, compete for the minds and hearts of people, we may be more sensitive to - if not more skillful in - preserving our freedoms. But, once freedom is won, what are we to do with it? What does it hold for us? The advantage of freedom from want and fear; freedom of speech; freedom of worship; freedom of assembly; freedom of the press; all these are clear enough, and we know what to do when they are ours. But having achieved all of these - with time to spare - will we know how to use this time to nourish and cultivate rather than to undermine individual freedom?

It's too late to think casually about the problems that unplanned free time will bring. The problems are already here! One answer to the leisure revolution is the church. Churches need to be alert to their opportunities; churches need to be awake and geared up to meet the challenges in our world today. One approach to a church's ministry that has limitless potential is through the effective and planned use of recreation.

It is time for a strong voice to leisure to be heard. Churches could provide that voice. Church leaders of every denomination should be reminded that leisure is neither good nor bad, but rather what matters is what use is made of it.
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*Nash, Jay B., Philosophy of Recreation and Leisure. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown, Publishers (1960), p. 25.