184 How to Be an Exceptional FSY Counselor: Expert Tips From Over 35 Counselors-Part One

Back in November, I had a prompting to create a podcast episode with tips, tricks, and advice on how to be a great FSY counselor. Because I have done it the last three years, I feel I have some good advice! Quickly after coming up with this idea (which I believe to be from God), I thought about how it would be an even cooler (and more reputable) resource if I got advice from as many counselors as I could. The next day, I created a google form and sent it out to as many people as I could think of. I asked them to share it too, and I ended up with over 35 responses!

As many of you know, I invited people to reach out to me to record a podcast episode about their experience (not giving advice but telling stories and bearing their testimony) at FSY. I had six people reach out to me from that, and I believe that is another reason why I felt prompted to follow through on this idea!

The form has 22 free response questions in addition to some demographic information, so you can imagine that there is a lot to get through! But isn’t that exciting?! I’m pumped if you can’t tell!

Because I knew that I would not be able to create a solo episode with all the insights I’ve gathered, I decided to split it into three parts. (Though it will actually be more than three parts … I’ll explain later haha!) Unfortunately, I know that oftentimes “part one” of a series is listened to most, so I asked ChatGPT for help deciding which questions to answer in each part.

For part one, this is what it recommended (and what I answer in this episode):
1. What inspired you to become an FSY counselor?
2. Why should someone be an FSY counselor?
3. What was the most rewarding part of being an FSY counselor?
4. What advice would you give about preparing to go to FSY (spiritually, emotionally, and/or physically?)
5. What advice would you give about how to make the most of the experience?
6. What do you think was the most important part of your job?
7. How can future counselors ensure they leave a lasting positive impact on the youth they work with?

I hope that this resource is a helpful tool in preparing you for your AMAZING summer at FSY. I also hope you listen to all of the parts because the advice I’ve gathered is seriously top notch! Lastly, please share with friends and family if this episode might be applicable to them. I hope these episodes will stand the test of time and will be helpful for all future FSY counselors, no matter the year. Thank you!

The goal: Set the tone and share inspiring and foundational insights that will motivate you to want to learn more.

*Thank you to the counselors who took the time to fill out the google form. It is much appreciated!!!*

Here is a link to my table of contents: https://docs.google.com/docume...

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Dude, Hello, and welcome to my podcast. So my name
is Kyra Nielsen, and the reason that I'm kind of

(00:21):
introducing myself is that I'm assuming that for a lot
of you, this is your first exposure to my podcast.
So if you only listen to these FSY podcast episodes,
I am really happy and really content. I'm hoping that
these episodes will stand the test of time and that
someone can listen to them any year upcoming and be

(00:44):
prepared to be a better FSY counselor. I should probably
back up, so to start off, if someone has sent
you this episode, it is because today I'm going to
be talking about tips and tricks and advice on how
to be an exceptional, amazing, fantastic FSY counselor. So to
give you some backstory, back in November of twenty twenty four,

(01:06):
so right now as I'm recording this, it is April
twenty twenty five. Back in November of last year, I
was actually just it was low key, it was actually
shower thoughts. I was just thinking, and this idea popped
into my mind, which I believe it to be from God,
that I should create a podcast episode with tips and
tricks on how to be a good FSY counselor. I've

(01:28):
done fs Y for the last three years. I did
it in twenty twenty two, twenty twenty three, and twenty
twenty four, and so I thought, you know what, my
advice is pretty good. You know, I would say I
have some experience, I can give some good advice. But
then I thought, wouldn't it be even cooler and wouldn't
it make it even more reputable if I had a

(01:49):
whole bunch of counselors give me tips and tricks and
answer questions that I can share. And so then I
was like, oh my gosh, this is so exciting. So
I created a Google four and I sent it out
to as many counselors as I possibly could. I posted
it in FSY Facebook pages. I don't think it got
approved in twenty twenty three or twenty twenty four's fs

(02:12):
Y page because I didn't see it actually post, but
it did post in twenty twenty twos and I had
a couple people from their reach out so twenty twenty two,
and then I posted it there. I also sent it
to a whole bunch of counselor group chats from just
over the years. You know, like I sent it to
my training group from twenty twenty four and then I
individually texted it to over fifty people. Not even kidding

(02:34):
fifty people. I think that's on the minimum side. Like
I was texting everybody and I got thirty six responses,
So I was really happy with that, really content. I
kept bothering people about it. I was probably kind of annoying.
But if you are someone who filled that out, thank
you so much. I really appreciate it. Even if you
only filled out a question or two, your advice is

(02:56):
invaluable and it's needed, so I'm really appreciative of that. Also,
I wanted to share with everyone that I have spent
and I'm not kidding you. Okay, I'm not joking. I'm
not blowing smoke. I have spent over fifteen hours preparing
these episodes. Fifteen hours at least. And that doesn't include

(03:18):
creating the Google form and sending that out and bothering people.
That includes looking at all of their responses, reading them,
organizing them, putting them into a Google doc, summarizing some
of them, finding similarities, writing down every person's name that
shared something. One of the questions in it was what's
your name, and then another question was may I use

(03:39):
your name in the podcast? And a few people said no,
thank you, so I had to make sure that I
left those people anonymous. And then everyone else that I
put if they said something word for word and I
wrote it down, I put their name by it so
I can be like this counselor said this. So yeah,
that took me over fifteen hours to do, and I
did it because, like I said, I'm really hoping these

(04:02):
episodes because there's going to be three of them. So
as I was editing this, I've actually recorded Part two
and I got through three of the seven or eight questions,
so there's actually be more than three parts, so that
part's actually incorrect. There's going to be more than three parts.
Can be a fantastic and super useful resource for counselors

(04:24):
going into the summer. And if you've already done FSY,
then I'm sure you have lots of experience already, but
I encourage you to give it a try at least
this episode or maybe part two or part three, because
there's different questions that I'm going to be addressing in
each part and they're going to be different. So as
you know, if you read the blurb today. For Part one,

(04:46):
I am going to start with these seven questions. The
reason that I put them very specifically in the blurb
is so that if you want to re listen to
an episode which only talks about one specific thing, it's
easier to find and you're not confused. So for Part one,
this is what I decided slash what Chatchee t helped
me decide because I came up with most of the

(05:07):
questions with a little bit of help from AI. I'm
not gonna lie. And then it helped me organize them
into episodes because I was like, there's no way I'm
gonna fit all twenty plus questions into one episode. That's
just not reasonable. So I decided to do three parts.
Like I said, my original plan three parts, that is
not what ended up happening. Anyway, chat helped me put

(05:27):
the questions together that kind of related to each other
so that there's a theme. So these are the questions
that I'm going to be going over today. Number one,
what inspired you to become an fs Y Counselor Number
two why should someone be an FSY Counselor Three what
was the most rewarding part of being an FSY counselor
for what advice would you give about preparing to go

(05:48):
to FSY spiritually, emotionally, and or physically. Five what advice
would you give about how to make the most of
the experience. Six What do you think was the most
important part of your job? How can future counselors ensure
they leave the lasting positive impact on the youth they
work with? And then, as chat said, thanks chat, It said,
the goal of this episode is to set the tone

(06:10):
and share inspiring and foundational insights that will motivate you
to want to learn more. I think I said motivate
listeners to want to learn more, and I changed it
to you. But I'm really excited for this. I'm really
excited to go through. Before I get started, I want
to kind of share something. So I have this idea
back in November. I started receiving responses at the very

(06:31):
end of November and into December, and I told people
that I was going to post these episodes by the
end of December or the beginning of January. It's April,
and here's why I was ready to go. I had
everything completed, everything ready to go. By the first week
of January. I could have recorded those episodes back in January.
They were ready to go, like these episodes were ready

(06:51):
to go. But I was terrified. And there's a few
different reasons why I was scared. One of them is
because I really want these to go well. I have
very high expectations for how they're going to turn out,
and because of that, I kept putting off recording them.
I was so nervous. One of the other things is
that I wasn't sure how I was going to record them.

(07:14):
And when you really care about something, you just put
it off because you're like, you know, if I don't
do it, then I can't mess it up. And the
reason that I'm sharing this with you, there's a very
specific reason, is because I was in the temple two
weeks ago. It wasn't last week because I was at
a research conference, but I was in the temple two
weeks ago. I'm an ordnance worker at the Temple in
Cedar City and I was on the third floor hall

(07:36):
just standing there thinking and pondering, and I thought about
these podcast episodes. They were in my mind and I
heard I heard the spirit tell me, like I felt
a buzz in my heart, and I heard in my
mind it's time, or Kira, it's time, and I was like,
oh my gosh. And then I started getting nervous, and
I started getting anxious, and I started thinking, oh no, no,
and then I heard very distinctly, it will be okay,

(07:59):
and I was like, oh no. So I was really
happy to receive that comfort and that affirmation that it's
time that I'm ready to post these episodes and record them.
But I'm still a little bit nervous. So I'm hoping
that these will still go well, that they'll be entertaining
and interesting, But that is the rundown of what these

(08:20):
episodes will be, how they're going to kind of turn out.
I hope that you give this one a try, and
if you like it, that you listen to part two
and part three. I'm telling you each one has a
different purpose and has different questions, so they're not going
to be the same. I also really really encourage you
to share this with someone who might be thinking about

(08:40):
being an FSY counselor or someone who's preparing to go
to FSY, because even though it's too late right now
to apply to be an FSY counselor, it doesn't mean
that someone can't apply this fall for the summer of
twenty twenty six, and if these episodes are still going
well in the future, then summer time twenty seven. Mainly,

(09:01):
I wanted to record these because sometimes people ask me, hey,
you've done FS. Why what advice do you have? And
like I said, I think I have valuable advice, but
I think it's really cool that I've gotten thirty six
responses plus mine, so thirty seven different opinions and different
pieces of advice that I can share. And so now
when people ask me, it can be like, yeah, I

(09:22):
can answer a few questions right now, and then I
also have this awesome resource. As far as I know,
right now, there's not something that answers kind of these
different questions, so I'm hoping that this will be really great.
I realize I'm rambling a lot, but I have one
more thing to say, so I'm sorry. I can in
the blurball say skip to a minute eleven if you

(09:42):
just want to hear the questions, but I just wanted
to share really quickly. Last year in twenty twenty four,
I was telling a miracle story to my AC, which
is AC stands for assistant coordinator. If you didn't know
and my roommate. It was on Sunday night, and my
roommate jumped in the car to drive us back to
Healo and Hall's and she was like, I've heard this
story before. And I was like what how And she

(10:04):
was like, oh my goodness, do you have a podcast?
I said, yeah, I do, and she was like, I've
heard this miracle story before. My roommate in Provo, my
first week of FSY last year, had heard my podcast
and had heard the miracle story and she recognized it.
And I was like, that's crazy. So I'm hoping that

(10:25):
people just search up FSY and they can find this episode.
You didn't need to know any of that, but I
just thought it was fun, so I decided to tell you.
So let's actually get started, shall we? Like I said,
you can go into the blurb of each part and
find out what questions are in each episode. So here
we go. Let's start with question one? Shall we? What

(10:47):
inspired you to become an FSY counselor? So Taylor said,
My inspiration actually came from a lack of direction. I
was going to a small community college and in May
of twenty twenty two, I was going to graduate with
my associates degree. After that, I needed to go to
a bigger college, which is a whole other story, but
for the summer, I needed a job that wasn't working

(11:08):
for family. I also loved the church, but growing up
I never went to EFY, thinking it was major ly late.
So the November before I was trying to figure out
a summer job I could do while transitioning schools that
could help for my future career. Mind you, I have
switched major six times at this point and had zero
clue what I even wanted to do. When spending what
I see as an absurd amount of time praying about

(11:31):
what I should do, my aunt, who always said I
would love EFY growing up, sent me the Instagram post
of FSY hiring. At first, I kind of read through
it and ignored it for about two weeks, and then
suddenly I just had this prompting that I just needed
to kind of bite the bullet and apply. After that,
things kind of just started to get rolling and I
felt really good about the position. Apparently I crushed my

(11:51):
interview and it was great, and I became a counselor again.
The next year. I loved it so much I did
it again, so that's from Taylor, and Taylor kind of
shared her story. It's interesting as I was reading these,
a lot of them kind of have similar themes, and
then some of them are completely different from everyone else.
Andre is next, and he said, honestly, at first, I

(12:12):
was just looking for a job to do over the summer. However,
one day during Elderscorum, brother Brad Wilcox came to our
class to promote FSY because they needed more male counselors
for the summer twenty twenty three sessions. And I remember
a phrase he used that persuaded me to apply. If
you're looking for an opportunity to talk of Christ and
feel like you're back on your mission again, then this

(12:32):
is your chance. Don't do summer sales. It made me
chuckle because I was considering summer sales, but I was
missing my mission a bit at this time in my life,
and I felt confident that I could apply, even though
it was April. At this point. Most importantly, though, I
thought this would be a great chance for me to
deepen my relationship with Jesus Christ. I love those two answers,
and I think that each person's story is pretty unique.

(12:54):
I have found that the Young Men's General Presidency have
convinced a few people to do it, which I thought
was great. So I asked, I'm not gonna lie, I
asked chatchaby TEA sounds like I'm addicted to AI, and
I might be. I don't know, But I asked chatchaby
T how to keep it interesting? And it's said to
read some answers and summarize others. So a couple of

(13:15):
counselors talked about wanting to impact and influence the youth.
I didn't write down exactly what they said because it
was kind of the same. Several counselors talked about being
prompted to or guided by the spirit. Michelle, for example,
said it felt right. Jonathan said I felt drawn to it.
I felt like it was what God wanted me to do.
Several people said they were that FSY was recommended by

(13:38):
friends and mission companions, friends, family, things like that. A
few people talked about how it was good missionary prep
or a transition home from a mission. I'd actually heard
that a lot from people actually at fs Y, that
it was a perfect mission prep, life experience, or transition
home from a mission. Kiwi, for example, said I was

(13:58):
just coming off of my mission and desperately needed the
spiritual transition that Fisby offered. My mom suggested it, and
I immediately knew that I needed to do it. I
highlighted this next point read, which means that a lot
of people said it. The General young men Presidency slash
leaders of the church were promoting it. I know that
they were because as I was in Cedar City's Institute

(14:22):
Building President Stephen Jay Lund, who's currently the president of
the young Men's General Presidency but just barely got released
or is going to be released August first, twenty twenty five. Anyway,
he came around and was talking to people and trying
to convince people to do it. I think when he
did it, I had already signed up and I was
already hired, so or something like that. And then a

(14:43):
few people mentioned doing and enjoying ef Y as a youth.
Daniel said, this one's funny. It made me laugh. He said,
A general authority called me right after my friend married
his CO and told me I should do it. I
do know that romances workout. Why hasn't for me, but
I do know people that have married their CO or

(15:04):
married someone that they met from FSY, so that's kind
of fun. Haley, another counselor said, it compiles everything I love,
the gospel, laughter, music, and games, and it encourages learning
in a fun, interactive and community building way. So those
are all really solid answers. But yeah, I think that
each person kind of comes to the conclusion to serve

(15:24):
as an FSY counselor. I mean, I said, Sarah, you
get paid, it's a job, but each person comes to
the conclusion that they want to be an FSY council
in a different way. And for me, I won't share
my entire story because it's quite long, but I actually
ended up telling the whole story in episode ten of
my podcast called to Serve, So you really want to know,

(15:45):
you can go look that one up. But don't judge
me too much because the audio quality is not as
good as it is now. I've changed over the last
two three years now two and a half years, and
I also started editing them, so in that one it's
not edited. I hope that doesn't turn you away, but
also if it's if it does turn you away, that's okay.
But yeah, I tell the whole story in that, but

(16:05):
just a brief rundown of why I decided to become
an FSY counselor. I was thinking about going on a
mission as preparing to start working on my papers. I
hadn't even done anything yet. I just was thinking about
it because it was kind of coming up before I
turned nineteen, and it was in the fall of twenty
twenty one, and I just thought about serving a mission

(16:26):
and it did not feel right, and I was super
anxious about it and really stressed about it, really overwhelmed.
And a friend told me, Hey, Kiro, why don't you
just play with the idea of not serving a mission.
Why don't you just pretend? Because I was like, I don't.
I know I need to serve so but I don't
want to pray about it and tell Heavenly Father that

(16:46):
I want to serve a mission because I don't. But
I can't tell them that I don't want to serve
a mission because that's just wrong. And I only say
it's just wrong because I felt like I had I
have talents and skills that would make me a good missionary,
like I'm comfortable talking to people and such, and so
I thought that it was selfish that I didn't want
to serve a mission because my whole life I did

(17:07):
I did want to serve a mission, but it just
started feeling weird. She's like, you don't have to decide
that you're not going to, just pretend that you're not
going to. And I was like, hmm, this is an
interesting idea. I can get her round. So I started
pretending with the idea, and suddenly there was so much
more peace and tranquility in my life and I was
able to sleep and eat again, and I stopped worrying.

(17:29):
So I was like, Okay, maybe this is it. So
I finally decided, okay, I'm not going to serve a mission,
at least not yet, and I knelt down and they
prayed about it and didn't really hear anything specific, but
just still felt good. And the very next day, I'm
not kidding you, the next day, the next day after

(17:49):
praying about it, I was in institute and they said, hey, guys,
FSHY is hiring. You should apply and become a counselor.
And I was like interesting. So I scanned the QR
code and applied to fis Y, and each time I
got an email back from them like, hey, we want
you to send a little video about your testimony. Hey,

(18:11):
we want to interview you. Hey, here's an email asking
for your I nine. Oh, here's an email asking for
your permission to do a background check. Every single time
I got another email, I was like, oh my gosh,
Oh my gosh. Okay, but part of me was so scared.
This isn't an answer to your prayer. This isn't an
answer to your prayer. Then the other part of me
is like, yes it is, Yes it is. I don't know.
And then when I was finally hired, I I started

(18:35):
crying and I was like, oh my goodness, okay, this
is my answer to my prayer. And then after I
did it in twenty twenty two, I just knew I
was doing it again. And then after twenty three, I
just knew I was doing it again. And in twenty
twenty four, I knew that it was my last year.
So I am not doing it again in twenty twenty five.
But I did do it twenty twenty two, twenty twenty three,
and til us in twenty four. So that's my story
in the brief version. The next question I'm going to

(18:57):
go through is why should someone be f this, Why
counselor I'm not kidding you when I tell you, so
many people, so many people, so so so many people
said something about helping the youth come onto Christ like
a ridiculously amount of people said that. I mean, thirty
six people filled out the form, but there were so

(19:17):
many people that said that, So, yeah, it's really cool.
My old co Keegan filled it out and he said,
because it's the coolest job there is. And he said,
it really is more of a calling than a job, though,
And then my friend Gabby Love, who I met in
twenty twenty two, said, because it's the most uplifting, beautiful, fun,

(19:38):
happy experience. If you let it be, the love for
God's children that you learn to feel is unmatched. You
really realize even more fully how much joy Heavenly Father
and Jesus Christ give each of us. And I love that.
Mason said. It's fun and it's just as spiritual of
an experience as a mission. I cried more at Fsy
than on my mission because of how strong Jesus Christ

(20:00):
works in these kids' lives. Also, you get to travel
and the pay is nice, and you meet lots of
new friends, and a lot of people are meeting their
eternal companions to fis why these days, and he wrote,
ha ha ha ha. It's true, though, a lot of
people are meeting their future companions, you know, not future companions,
they are meeting their future or eternal spouses. I'm not

(20:23):
kidding you. A lot of people are. But yeah, it
is a great opportunity to meet friends and meet people,
and the pay is nice now. It didn't used to be,
but it is now. Dan said it's one of the
best things you can do for your life. You will
gain new friends, a stronger testimony, and deeper faith. Totally true.
Kiwi said you should become an fs Y counselor to
become a better person, to prepare for your future, to

(20:45):
grow spiritually, to prepare to be a parent. I love
that answer so much. In fact, in my notes are oh,
I love this answer so much. It's so good, but
it's so so true. Yes, become an FSY counselor or
applied fis wide to be a counselor or ac or coordinator,
because you will become a better person, especially if you're
intentional about it. It also has great preparation for your future,

(21:07):
getting to work with people, getting to meet different people.
It's amazing you grow spiritually one hundred percent. And I
definitely think it's great preparation as a parent, just saying,
not that I'm a parent, because I'm not, but I'm
sure that it will be helpful. Several people said it's
a huge testimony builder and life changer, which is very true.

(21:28):
For example, Corey said, nothing has strengthened my testimony more
in a shorter period of time, or given me a
glimpse into how God loves us all so much individually
more than fs Y has. So Correy's basically saying nothing
in my life has strengthened my testimony more than fs Y.
I totally agree with that. McKenzie said, because it's the best.

(21:52):
I never felt like I was closer to God or
more in tune with the spirit than when I was
at fs Y. It was so rewarding to help the youth.
I made friends that will last a lifetime. And then
she said, plus I met my husband at FSY he
was in ac so keep your eyes open, y'all. That
made me laugh. I loved that last line. And then

(22:13):
my opinion is, why should someone be an FSY councer
because of everything everyone said, it will genuinely change your
life if you let it. My grandma said when I
came home from FSBY my first year, that she could
visibly see a difference in my countenance and I had
a lot more light than when I left. And she
didn't say that I didn't have light when I left,
but just that I had an abundance of light and

(22:33):
she could see it. And it's so true. You just
you really really learned, and it's a great spiritual opportunity.
So yeah, I totally recommend it. The next question is
what was the most rewarding part of being an FSY counselor.
First of all, I started off highlighting it with red
and it said eighteen out of thirty six people said

(22:57):
something about watching the youth grow, change or come to
the Savior. So many people said that what was the
most rewarding part watching the youth come to the Savior?
What was the most rewarding part watching a youth get
changed through the Savior? Like everyone was saying that, and
it's actually so true. For example, a couple examples, Mariah said,
having front row seats to God's miracles, they're still happening today.

(23:20):
The difference between Monday youth and Friday, youth will shock
you every time Christ change, Christ changes lives. I didn't
mean to get emotional there, but it's true. I cannot
even begin to tell you how true of a statement
that is. And it's amazing that you get to see
such a huge change in the youth in five days,

(23:42):
like it's wild, it's crazy. And then Ben said, the
most rewarding part is seeing how the youth change over
the course of the week and draw closer to God.
Words cannot describe the joy. That is very accurate. And
then several people said lifelong friends and strength and testimony.
There's not a ton of answers for that one because

(24:03):
so many people said watching the youth grow and come
closer to Christ. But yeah, it's so true. The most
rewarding part is definitely the youth. They are valiant souls
and God's elect and it's really amazing being around them,
getting to know them, teasing them, laughing with them, crying
with them, having spiritual experiences with them, helping them find

(24:25):
answers to prayers. It's really really a very, very rewarding job.
It's hard, don't get me rocket. It is a hard job,
but it is very rewarding. The next question is what
advice would you give about preparing to go to fs
Y spiritually, emotionally, and or physically. Taylor said physically, I

(24:46):
would start walking as much as you can consistently. On average,
as a counselor, you walk anywhere from eight to twelve
miles a day at least in my experience, even if
you're on a really small campus, you will still be
walking looking up to six miles a day, So start
walking as much as you can now. Another physical thing
I would say you need to do is start hydrating.

(25:07):
Start hydrating yourself now, and get used to wearing pants.
I thought that was funny. Yeah, so as an FSY counselor,
you're not allowed to wear shorts or krafurries or anything.
You have to wear pants. So I think it was
funny that she said get used to wearing pants. Several
people said I didn't write down how many people said this,
but several people said, good walking shoes, which is so true.

(25:28):
I actually got a stress fracture after my second year
at FSY, like my foot. I jumped off one of
the higher beds or something, and then I was just
on it all the time that it didn't heal until
I got a boot. So one of the things the
doctor told me, though, is that I needed shoes that
didn't just like bend in flip and stuff. So you
can wear tevas and chacos and things like that, but

(25:51):
there are definitely days that you should wear like good
shoes that are gonna protect your your feet, so ones
that don't like bend and are flimsy or whatever. Gabby said.
One of the biggest things that helped me was studying
the Book of Mormon each day and using and studying
the resources for the counselor handbook. This helped me to
know what activities we were doing, but also diving deep

(26:14):
into the activities allowed me to gain further understanding of
Jesus and his gospel, as well as to be prepared
to facilitate meaningful discussions and lessons with the youth. Emotionally,
I would pray each day for the youth who I
hadn't met yet. I asked for strength and comfort and
the ability to rely on the Lord in the good
and difficult times. Chris said, grow to love temple, worship, scripture, study, prayer,

(26:38):
come follow me, and the prophet's words. An anonymous counselor.
So someone said that. Someone who said they didn't want
me to share their name said, I would make sure
you have good habits, both spiritual and physical, reading the
scriptures every day, attending the temple, going to church, and
making the most out of Sabbath days, being on a
regular sleep schedule, eating healthy, walking, and exercising a lot.

(26:59):
I would also make sure you have strategies to cope
with stress, loneliness, anxiety, because sometimes being a counselor is
a lot. Have a friend or family member you can
call and talk to when you're feeling overwhelmed. I think
that's a great point. Several people said, lots of people
said I highlighted this one and read, which means lots
of people said this. Sleep well, go to the temple,

(27:19):
read the scriptures, read your handbook, strengthen your testimony, exercise,
and get ready to walk a lot. Jonathan said, don't
be afraid of the youth. Seek to see them through
a different perspective, ideally through the eyes of God. Don't
let the use behavior or lack of behavior, define your
own self worth as a counselor. I wrote, Amen, I

(27:41):
feel like that's especially true sometimes that you show up
and they may be acting inappropriately or they just don't care.
They never get out their handbook, they never study, and
you just kind of feel like as a failure as
a counselor, or you feel like you aren't doing a
very good job, that you haven't been able to lead
them to Christ. And at the end of the day,

(28:03):
each youth has their own choices and free agency and
they are gonna have to be accountable for that. So yes,
I definitely agree with Jonathan. Do not let the youth
behavior or lack of behavior define your own self worth
as a counselor, because your worth is not tied to
how your kids act. You know, that's probably good advice

(28:24):
for her parents too. I'm just saying, Okay, Taylee said
it's gonna be tough, but you're gonna love it. Spiritually,
I would just say, pray and read your scriptures, talk
to God about what he wants you to accomplish over
the summer and how he wants you to teach his youth.
Something I did physically to prepare for fs BY was
I would run or walk a mile every night. You

(28:46):
walk so much, and doing that beforehand can help you
prepare just a little bit more. Great point. Okay, Kiwi
has a long answer, but it's good, so it's ready.
It's also kind of it's kind of real coat and things.
Here we go. Fisy is really hard. You are working
terrible hours and working way more than you are getting

(29:07):
paid for, but it is so worth it. It is
going to be really hard to put forth all of
your energy every week for the kids, So take care
of yourself. Get as much sleep as you can, and
start exercising a little bit every day because you are
going to be moving a lot. To get these kids hyped,
you need to dance your heart out and yell and
get excited spiritually. I would definitely study teaching in the

(29:28):
Savior's way. I wish I would have studied it more.
Really focus on listening to the kids and giving them
lots of opportunity to teach each other. Embrace the silence emotionally,
get ready for lots of stress and frustration. Sometimes find
a fun hobby you can do on breaks. Learn to
take naps. That was so true. Learn to take naps

(29:49):
every single break. I took a nap basically literally every break.
Ben said, sleep as much as possible. Study your scriptures
every day. Get in the habit of writing down spiritual
promptings slash inspiration. I highlighted that in blue because it
was really important, So listen up, I'm gonna read it
one more time. Get in the habit of writing down
spiritual promptings and inspiration. I totally agree. I think writing

(30:11):
down spiritual promptings is really important because sometimes you get
a prompting and then you forget about it because you
can't act in that moment. Maybe you're sitting in a
devotional and you can't follow that prompting rite in that
moment because it's like, maybe talk to I'm making this
name up. It's not actually a name of any youth,
but talk to Johnny and ask him how he's doing.
Maybe that's a prompting. But you can't write in the

(30:31):
middle of the devotional. So it's really important to write
down promptings so you don't forget them. So I love
that an anonymous counselor said, spiritually, go to the temple
as often as you can. Study your scriptures daily, connect
with God through prayer, live the Gospel faithfully, study charity
and God's love emotionally. Prepare things to do during your
breaks that give you emotional energy. Physically, prepare to walk

(30:55):
a lot and never get enough sleep. Haha, that's so true.
I'm just saying, Okay. Andre had a solid answer, so
listen up. He said, Spiritually develop a testimony of Jesus
Christ and have the desire to help the youth have
moments with him. Seek to develop christ Like attributes. Emotionally,

(31:15):
prepare to be enthusiastic when you're with the youth, even
if you're an introvert like me, just do it for
the youth. Physically, get your cardio in before FSY and
learn the dances. Take your knaps during off weeks. I
made sure to get a lot of rest, but I
also made sure to exercise to stay fit for fs Y. Intellectually,
I know this isn't part of the question, but become

(31:35):
familiar with the handbook. It is important to be led
by the spirit and go in another direction if prompted,
But it's also good to understand the lessons and procedures
because the people who made the handbook were also spiritually led.
Knowing the handbook creates a foundation for carrying out FSY
that you can fall back on when you fill out
a sync with your co or when you're not sure
where to go with a discussion, solid answer. I'm just

(31:56):
saying all of those things are so true. So yeah,
I would totally totally follow that advice. Hannah said, and
this is something I highlighted in blue because it's so good,
So listen, talk to as many people who have done
fs Y as possible. I totally agree with that. I
think that's so true. She continues by saying, the training
doesn't really prepare you for how draining it can be.

(32:16):
The training does prepare counselors for the good parts, but
it's important to accept the reality of how hard it
really is. Sometimes so perfect segue into what advice would
you give about how to make the most of the experience?
Hannah said, take your breaks. Okay, I did not do
that on purpose. I put Hannah's as talk to as

(32:38):
many people who have done fs Y as possible is
the last answer on what advice would you give about
preparing to go to fs Y, and I put her
first for what advice would you give about how to
make the most of the experience? I just realized, sorry
to backtrack, I just realized I didn't really answer that
question above. People just said such good things, So I
totally agree. I would say spiritually everything everyone said, I

(33:01):
know one hundred percent that each year I got better
as a counselor. And there's lots of reasons for that,
but I think one of them is that I was
spiritually a stronger disciple of Christ each year. I wasn't
a bad disciple of Christ in twenty twenty two, and
I wasn't a poor disciple of Christ. I mean, I
was definitely striving to live the Gospel, but my test

(33:22):
soony grew each year, and that made a difference that
really showed up each year. So I would say, don't
wait till Fsby starts to suddenly start reading your scriptures.
I'm not going to lie, like I'm going to be
straight up honest with you. My very first year in
twenty twenty two, I wasn't super consistent reading the Book
of Mormon every day, even at Fsoy, I'm like, guys,
read the Book of Mormon. It's so good every day,

(33:44):
And I wasn't doing it myself. And in twenty twenty
three and in twenty twenty four, specifically in twenty twenty four,
I was reading the Book of Mormon every single day.
Consistently every single day, and I was trying to make
it meaningful every single day and be intentional about every
single day, and it genuinely made a difference in my

(34:06):
life and in how I taught. It also led to
more spiritual promptings and to being more in tune with
the spirit. I would say I had promptings absolutely for
sure my first two years, but in twenty twenty four
it was like, I don't know, It's like I was
built different or something. And I only say that because
I worked so hard to spiritually prepare for f this

(34:28):
wy that I felt really spiritually in tune and following promptings.
And I totally one thousand percent recommend you to do
the same. Read the Book of Mormon every single day,
every single day, every day, every day, every day. And
if you don't read the Book of Mormon every day,
start today, and I'm genuinely not kidding, set an alarm.
Just somehow get yourself in the Book of Mormon every

(34:49):
day because it will it will make a difference. And
then do all the other things that you know to
spiritually strengthen yourself. I would say getting better at prayer
is really important as well, because you're going to really
lie on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ when you get
tough with Fine, it's good if you just already feel
comfortable talking to him in prayer and then emotionally, yeah,

(35:09):
that's hard. I would say, find good coping mechanisms, whether
that's journaling or calling your parents or calling a friend.
You need someone to kind of talk to things about,
or you need some kind of outlet. And I think
journaling is really good. And if you're not a journaler,
or find something else. But yeah, definitely, physically, I would

(35:30):
say shoes are really important. You are definitely going to
be walking a lot. I would say get good nutrition beforehand,
because the nutrition fs Y is not always fantastic. Depending
on the campus is just different. But yeah, and then
on your off weeks, sleep and rest as much as
you possibly can. Now moving on, Sorry I didn't, I'm
kind of backtracked, But moving on, Hannah said, And she

(35:53):
put us in all caps with periods in between, so
she said, take period, your period breaks. Period, she said,
take your breaks, and then in normal capitalization, knock all caps.
She said. As an ac this is what I told
my counselors most often. By the way, Hannah was a
counselor her first year and an ac her second year.

(36:14):
She said, when I was a counselor, I didn't really
get it, but I could see my counselor struggling with
their endurance or connection with their youth or the savior.
The most common denominator was not taking their breaks and
making sure they were actually breaks. That's so true. Take
your bricks, Take your bricks, Michelle said, have her prayer
in your heart. Look for answers to your questions. I

(36:34):
think that's great too. As an FSY counselor, you get
the opportunity to go to devotionals and classes and you
can totally receive personal revelation just like the youth can.
And you're get to have the opportunity to go to
a whole bunch of classes over your summer and listen
to a whole bunch of devotionals. So really make the
most about Really make the most of it, and be intentional. Okay,
all of these next ones are highlighted and read, so

(36:57):
that means several people said it. So several people said,
prioritize Jesus Christ, give it your all, put your whole
heart into it, go all in. I kind of took
little bits from different people, So go all in, give
it your all, give your whole heart, my mind and strength. Right.
Several people said, focus on the youth. I put times
one hundred because everyone said that, So how would you

(37:18):
what advice would you give about making the most of
the experience Focus on the youth. Several people said, think positively,
don't dwell on the negative, be optimistic. Lots of people
said pray, pray, pray so true. Then going back into
individual answers, Meghan said, it's the best job you will
ever have, so soak it all up and live in

(37:38):
the moment. It's a taxing job and it can be
really hard, but it's hands down the best job I
have ever had and will ever have. Mariah said, as
much as I love other counselors and ace's remember it's
not about them or your friendship with others, but about
the youth. Focus on them and you'll have an unforgettable experience.

(37:58):
Gabby said, present that was all caps. By the way,
Sometimes it can be hard to be in the moment
because of how tired you are, maybe a youth is
bothering you, or you just feel alone. But when you
focus on Jesus Christ and the youth intentionally every day.
Everything is so much better than all caps remember, and
then she goes back to normal. You are there for

(38:20):
the youth. It is about them and the wonderful opportunity
that they have to grow closer to Heavenly Father and
Jesus Christ. Ashton said, take so many pictures, Sit by
your kids at lunch and soak up all the time
you have with them. Journal when funny, amazing, uplifting experiences
happen in your notes out Totally agree with that, Journal, Journal, Journal,

(38:40):
Haley said. Personal study. Kiwi said, be in the moment.
There are going to be times that you're going to
be so tired and you want to go home so bad.
Don't throw a pity party. You are going to miss
it so much. Do your job sad, do it stressed,
do it when you're exhausted. It is so worth it.
I love Kiwi's honesty. It is true. Benjamin said, don't

(39:02):
check out of the spiritual things, even though you've heard
them a million times. We hear the sacrament prayers a
million times in our lives, but we have something to
learn every time. Spiritual over temporal. Yeah, totally agree. There's
so many different conferences our devotionals and classes that you
can go to, and you might get bored of them.
But every teacher is going to address every institute teacher

(39:25):
or session advisor is going to address topics in a
little bit of a different way. So see what you
can pick up, see what you can learn, and the
Spirit's going to talk to you differently based on what's
happening that week or what you might need to hear.
So definitely pay attention and grow spiritually too, and then
definitely make connections and relationships with people and enjoy the experience. Really. Okay,

(39:48):
we have two more questions left, but at least one
of the questions has a lot of answers, so buckle in.
The next question is what do you think was the
most important part of your job? Taylor said, and I
highlighted a few of these things in blue because they
are really important. So Taylor said, truthfully, I think the
most important part about this job is that you are

(40:09):
there for the youth and you are their example. A
lot of these youth are either the oldest sibling or
they don't really have role models in their lives, and
you are fulfilling that role for them. Model someone who
is strong in spirit, to whatever degree that is. You
may also be the only person they've ever met who's
gone to college or graduated high school. You don't know
what impact your example could lead to them doing so.

(40:31):
Your whole goal is to be an example to them
and guide them and help them learn the best way
that they can allow them to have that spiritual experience.
You're there to show them that they can receive revelation
and have a relationship with God. Be there for them
in whatever capacity that's necessary. But the biggest role is
probably to be an example. I think that's very true.

(40:53):
I think being a positive Christ like example is amazing.
And sure explaining how to study the script or what
works for you is helpful or whatever, But I think
being a disciple of Christ is the best teacher. Be
someone who loves Christ and has a relationship with Him yourself,

(41:14):
and then youth pick up on that. They're smart. They're
very smart. They will learn. They will realize that you
care about Christ, and if they care about you, they'll
learn that they can care about Him too. Kiwi said,
bring the spirit into the week. Most of these kids
have been surrounded by the spirit their whole lives and
are still unsure what it feels like. I have had

(41:35):
some of the most impactful weeks of my life during
FSY because I could see and feel these kids figuring
it out. This is a little boost right in the
middle of their summer to get them to start doing
those little things to come closer to Christ. Reading some
of these answers makes me emotional because I just think
about all of the youth I've met that there is
such a light and such an excitement and joy in

(41:58):
their countenance and they finally figure something out when you
teach them a principle and they find an answer to
their own question. Oh, it's so amazing, so wonderful. Gabby said,
there are so many important aspects of being an FSY counselor,
but the most important part for me is to be
prepared and working on building my relationship with Jesus Christ

(42:20):
while helping the youth with the same. As a counselor,
it is my job to encourage the youth to take
advantage of the opportunities they have to build their faith
in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Mariah said, everything you
do as a counselor is for the youth. It's tempting
to stay up laid and chat with other staff members,
but it's equally important for you to get rest. Even

(42:40):
if it's your sixth week working, this is the youth's
only week of the summer FSY, So bring the energy
and take it seriously. The youth should be the focus.
I highlighted that in blue. The youth should be the focus.
So true, Andre such a smart guy. He said, strengthen

(43:03):
the youth and young adult's faith in Jesus Christ and
his restored gospel, feel an increased sense of belonging, and
be empowered to continue having spiritual experiences at home. F
s Y objective. He straight up found word for word
what the fs Y objective is. Then he said, in
other words, the most important part of my job was

(43:23):
fulfilling the fs Y objective, said preach brother. So True.
An anonymous counselor said, I think the most important thing
we do at fs Y is create an environment where
the spirit can dwell. I love that. Then she goes
on to say, we can't force youth to feel the
spirit or have a good time, but we can act
in a way that invites the spirit so that they

(43:44):
can hopefully feel it. Oh so true. I totally agree
with that. Create a safe space where the spirit can dwell.
Megan said, love the youth and lead by example. The
youth come thinking we are the coolest think that is
true in most cases, not every case. She did say that.
I said that the youth come thinking we are the
coolest thing. Show them that living the gospel is what

(44:06):
the cool kids do. If we show them how happy
we are because we live the Gospel, they will see
that happiness really does come from following God. Ooh, fire
won't read that one in entirety. That was so good.
Oh my gosh. Okay TV said keep those kids safe
and in an environment where they are safe to feel
the spirit and have fun. That means enforcing the rules

(44:28):
that are laid out. Even if they don't see you
as the fun counselor at the beginning, they will be
able to have a fun time because you kept them safe.
Corey said, loving your kid's hands down. There are other responsibilities,
but if your kids do not feel they are genuinely
loved and known by you, they will not have the
same experience and will be harder for them to feel

(44:49):
the spirit. Mackenzie said, make sure FSY is a safe
place for the kiddos. As I mentioned before, there were
a lot of kids coming from difficult home lives. Always
fall the rules, of course, but make sure those kids
know that they are safe and loved. An anonymous counselor said,
take care of yourself spiritually. You're nothing to nobody unless

(45:10):
you study for yourself and not just for the youth. Prayer,
Pray with your eyes opened, actively looking for youth and
what they need. Daniel said, strengthen Zion. The impact that
you have on these kids literally changes their lives. The
amount of kids who hate the Gospel that come into
fs Y and leave wanting to serve a mission is

(45:31):
seriously amazing. That's so true. I had a young man
that went up to bear his testimony, and he said,
I was convinced before I came to tess Why that
I was not going to get a testimony though no
matter what I did, I wasn't going to get a testimony.
And then he shares a little bit more than he says,
and then he starts crying a little bit, and he goes,
but I know the Heavenly Father loves me and knows me. Anyway,

(45:53):
it was so good, so good, so true, though, Ashton said,
take the time to make your kids feel special and loved,
write them notes, send a message in your group me
telling them they're amazing. Also give them the space an
opportunity to fill the spirit. I think it's a great
point giving them space and the opportunity to fill the spirit.
Don't be stressed to fill the silence. It's okay. If
they're silence, that means a lot of times that they're pondering.

(46:16):
Dan said, trust in the Lord as primary as that sounds.
Pray for you, your co the youth, your leadership, and
the campus staff that God will bless and guide your efforts.
An anonymous counselor said, be there for the youth, Be
there for the youth who you have. I feel that
the chosen groups and counselors are special and that I
was really able to help some of my youth in

(46:38):
a unique way. Ben said, the people the program works.
God leads the camp. Focus on the people and you
will find the greatest joy. Tayley said, testifying of Christ.
Nothing else matters if you aren't testifying of the Savior
every chance you get. Keaton said, helping the kids learn
that Christ is real and so is God. This is

(47:00):
not just a random church, It's real. I had a
young one last year said that she had doubts and
was thinking that the church might be a hoax or
not real. So I love that answer by Keaton. It's
not some random church, it's real. An anonymous counselor said,
besides safety and legal things, create an environment where they
can feel God's love for them. Melanie said, creating spaces

(47:23):
where the youth can feel the spirit and heavenly Father's
love for them. And then several people just said, see
the youth, help the youth be safe, testify of Christ,
love the youth, be humble, help the youth come to Christ.
Love the youth love others like God would. Being an example.
Someone said helping youth recognize the spirit and keeping them safe.
Someone else said inviting others to come unto Christ. Okay,

(47:46):
we finally made it to the last question. Are you ready?
The last question is how can future counselors ensure they
leave a lasting impact on the youth they work with.
Taylor said, the best thing you can do is become
their profession friend. You're there to be their friend, but
you're also there to guide them and teach them and
help them along this windy road. And if you want

(48:07):
to leave a lasting impression, you will show them that
you can be fun while following the rules. You need
to show them that you understand how they feel and
what they're going through, even if you don't have the
same life experiences. My biggest recommendation is don't become one
with the youth. Become one with your team and become
friends with the youth. An anonymous counselor said, this is
a hard one because maybe you won't. It's not about

(48:29):
our relationship with the youth or anything specific we do.
I think it's more like we are placing a small
spark of experience with the spirit and feeling like they
have a testimony that they can lean on in the future.
Maybe all they remember is that they felt good at
fs Y and someday they will try and discover what
it was that made them feel good. And another anonymous
counselor said, love them, pray to feel God's love for them.

(48:53):
Be an example of being yourself and not worrying about
what others think about you. Be an example of knowing
who and whose you are. Be an example of living
the gospel in every aspect of your life. Pray to
know how you are meant to impact them. Gabby said,
be you pray for guidance. Pray for each youth by
name every day all caps. Love them unconditionally. Love them unconditionally.

(49:19):
Some youth are going to be harder than others to
live and connect with. Remember they are all God's children,
and pray for love and charity. Make sure they know
how much you love them. Ben said, be you seeing
in you see a common theme. He said, forget cool.
The youth already think you're the coolest person on the planet.
Be yourself unabashedly direct them to the Savior as much

(49:41):
as possible. Be an example of what it means to
be a true disciple of Christ. Show them you can
have fun and follow God's laws. Mackenzie said, remember you
aren't there to teach them. You're there to help them
learn from the Spirit. It sounds backwards because of course
you'll teach lessons and such, but just trust the Spirit.
Let him teach through you. Be a tool in Christ's hands.

(50:02):
Alison said, counsel with your co be a unified team.
The weeks where I was unified with my COEs or
some of my favorite weeks. It really has a big
impact on the youth. Love them and tell them that often,
pray and eat meals together as a company. Hailey said,
point everything to the Savior, any joy, knowledge and experience
to take away. They need to know that it's Jesus

(50:23):
Christ and his Spirit that provided it, not you, and
they can continue to fill it for the rest of
their life. Jaden said, share testsny often and powerfully tell
them about the personal and infinite sacrifice of the Master.
Share with them how and why you know that. Then
let them feel the Spirit on their own in natural
and powerful ways. Dan said, a lot of times you

(50:45):
can't ensure it. The most important thing is to testify
of Christ in every opportunity. Treat them as He would
and model christ Like positive attitude, and your youth are
more likely to remember that. Mason said, help them recognize
the spirit. It's better they having a relationship with Christ
than with you. However, I think if you just become
friends with the youth and respect them, they'll remember you forever.

(51:07):
I love in that answer that he said to help
them recognize the spirit, and I totally agree with that.
If they can recognize the spirit then their life will
be changed forever. I also agree that if they have
a relationship with Jesus Christ, that's what's most important. Mariah said,
focus on them, don't gossip or encourage gossip with them.
If you make meal times just as meaningful as the discussions,

(51:29):
they will know how much you love them and care
for them. I totally agree with that, and I also
experience that in meal times. I think if you ask
them questions about themselves, and sometimes you can share insights
on a more personal setting. If you're like with a
few youth during a meal, that's just like how it
ends up being. I think meal times can be really
good and really important. So then I'm just gonna kind

(51:51):
of read some of these. I stopped putting names on
them because these are really short answers. So someone it
wasn't necessarily anonymous, but someone said, always turn everything back
to Christ and his love for them. Future counselors can
sure they leave a lasting positive impact on the youth
they work with by striving to fulfill the fs why objective.
Someone said, realize it isn't about you as a counselor,

(52:11):
It's about the Savior. This is how you will impact them.
The most. Someone said, it's not about the counselors, it's Christ.
How can you help them have a lasting impact with Christ?
Someone said, care for them and pray for them, be
there for them, cherity, test money with them. Someone said,
bring the spirit, help them recognize the spirit. Counselors need
to be a positive role model of a disciple of

(52:32):
Jesus Christ. Be yourself, but also be in tune with
the spirit. Lots and lots and lots and lots and
lots and lots and lots of people said, love them,
love them, love them, love them, And then of course
lots of people said, turn it back to the Savior,
bear testimony of him as much as you can, and
be like the Savior. So in conclusion, I hope this
episode has encouraged you to think a little bit deeper

(52:55):
about FSY and about being a counselor. I hope if
you're already hired, your getting super excited and really stoked
about it. It really is the best job I've ever had,
and it has changed my life multiple times. I know
I would not be the person that I am today
without the lessons and the experiences that I had at
fs Y, And it's because I got to know the

(53:17):
Savior in a deeply personal and intimate way. I also
encourage you to pray about doing fs Y if you
haven't applied and are thinking about it, if it's too
late to apply now, if by the time this is
coming out, it's too late, I'm assuming, But if it's
too late now, whenever you're listening to this, because I
don't know, you might be listening to this in twenty
twenty seven. I don't know. But whatever this time period is,

(53:40):
you can always put it in your calendar. I think
it's in the end of October, or you can look
it up when applications open and then you can apply
right when applications open. So yeah, pray about doing fs
Y because it really is incredible. I also invite you
to listen to part two in part three to share
with friends and family and specifically share with people that

(54:00):
you think could benefit from these episodes from this episode
or these episodes. And also, if you don't get hired
the first time, I know it's like hard confidence wise,
you're like, well, when I get hired the first time,
why would I try again? But if you really feel
prompted about it, apply again and see what happens because
maybe it just wasn't the right timing the first year.

(54:21):
So that's what I have to say. I know with
all of my heart that fs Y is something that
God approves of and loves because we have the opportunity
to introduce Heavenly Father to the youth, because a lot
of them have heard about him their whole lives, but
have never created a real honest connection with him. And

(54:43):
you can help introduce the youth to Jesus Christ, teach
them who he is, and that will change their lives forever.
And I know that's true. And I say these things
in the name of my son Jesus Christ. Amen, thank
you so much for listening. Don't forget to embrace imperfection,
meaning satisfaction and joy from the journey. I'm Kira and
this is imperfectly broken. The podcast