I began a new job a few months ago, stepping into project and personnel management after five years as a worker bee. It's my second stint as a manager, so not unfamiliar territory. But after using some mental muscles that hadn't been exercised in a while, I've come to recently realized how many of those muscles were developed in Scouting.
>> From my time in the OA, I learned how to work with people much wiser and more experienced than I was, solicit their opinions and gain their wisdom. (And occasionally make decisions that they didn't like and stick to them in the face of opposition.)
>> As a lodge service vice-chief, I learned how to plan and execute projects simultaneously, make instant decisions and the importance of having a Plan C, D and E.
>> From my time on summer camp staff, I learned the value of good training and teaching and how to hold someone's interest on a boring-but-important topic.
>> As a camp area director, I learned the importance of setting the example - doing the grunt work alongside your staff, spending siestas in the area and practicing one's own skills daily.
>> I also learned to take care of oneself emotionally and physically. If you're behind on sleep and not eating well, your performance suffers.
>> From my time as a patrol leader, I learned how to estimate resources and budget properly. (If you have eight hungry boys, buying 10 hot dogs will create a near-mutiny.)
>> I also learned that you can't be everything to everyone. My first SM promised the parents of a Scout with serious developmental disabilities that he would be well taken care of in the troop. When he was placed in my patrol without any guidance given to me, I realized that the SM had grossly overestimated the troop's abilities in an attempt to try to make everyone happy. (I was 11, and the failure was apparent even then.)
I cringe every time I hear a suit from Irving talk about "building leadership." I don't think leadership is something that can be easily taught in a conventional educational sense. But there are some practical lessons you do pick up along the way. These are mine. What are yours?
>> From my time in the OA, I learned how to work with people much wiser and more experienced than I was, solicit their opinions and gain their wisdom. (And occasionally make decisions that they didn't like and stick to them in the face of opposition.)
>> As a lodge service vice-chief, I learned how to plan and execute projects simultaneously, make instant decisions and the importance of having a Plan C, D and E.
>> From my time on summer camp staff, I learned the value of good training and teaching and how to hold someone's interest on a boring-but-important topic.
>> As a camp area director, I learned the importance of setting the example - doing the grunt work alongside your staff, spending siestas in the area and practicing one's own skills daily.
>> I also learned to take care of oneself emotionally and physically. If you're behind on sleep and not eating well, your performance suffers.
>> From my time as a patrol leader, I learned how to estimate resources and budget properly. (If you have eight hungry boys, buying 10 hot dogs will create a near-mutiny.)
>> I also learned that you can't be everything to everyone. My first SM promised the parents of a Scout with serious developmental disabilities that he would be well taken care of in the troop. When he was placed in my patrol without any guidance given to me, I realized that the SM had grossly overestimated the troop's abilities in an attempt to try to make everyone happy. (I was 11, and the failure was apparent even then.)
I cringe every time I hear a suit from Irving talk about "building leadership." I don't think leadership is something that can be easily taught in a conventional educational sense. But there are some practical lessons you do pick up along the way. These are mine. What are yours?
Comment