Boy Scout Troop 325
Scoutmaster Minute
Bristlecone Closing Excerpts
August 8, 2003
George Denise, Scoutmaster

You have all almost completed Bristlecone Junior Leader Training. During the week, you have listened to presentations, worked together in patrols to further develop some of these ideas, and hopefully have had some fun just being here, spending time building relationships with new friends and old, and enjoying these beautiful surroundings that were so graciously donated to our council by Paul and Nessie Chesebrough.

During this course, we have focused on eleven leadership skills: knowing and using the resources of the group, communicating, understanding the needs and characteristics of the group, representing the group, effective teaching, evaluating, counseling, sharing leadership, planning, controlling the group performance, and setting the example. These represent an excellent breakdown of what leadership consists of. They will serve you well.

Other students of leadership have tried to define them in other ways.

Stephen Covey wrote a book called "The Seven Characteristics of Effective Leaders" in which he defined them a little differently.

Tom Peters wrote a book entitled: "In Search of Excellence" in which he defined the "eight leadership characteristics in successful companies" in other ways.

Robert Townsend wrote: "Up the Organization" in which he defined them in his own way.

Dale Carnegie wrote a book called "How To Win Friends and Influence People" in which he defined leadership characteristics in still other ways.

All of these books were on the Best Sellers lists for many years, each in their turn. When you study them, they all have certain similarities, as you might well expect. Leadership is very important to the functioning of society and to the advancement of civilization.

Pretty much everything that is accomplished in society is accomplished by groups of people working together in teams.

A leader's job is to facilitate the smooth functioning of the team, speeding it to the successful completion of its goal.

We sometimes hear people talk about "natural born leaders". There is no such thing as a natural born leader.

You can't learn leadership skills in a one-week course, either. Leadership skills are developed over time, through a combination of experience, reflection, formal study, and the testing of new ideas.

Most of you, by the very fact that you are here, will continue to find yourself in positions of leadership all of your life. You will continue to hold positions of leadership. You will take other leadership training courses. You will try things that work, and you will make mistakes. All the while you will continue to learn and you will improve.

As a leader, there are certain other skills you need to put into practice. A leader's job is to see that the goal is achieved, not to achieve it himself. You can't lead if you are doing; similarly, you can't do if you are leading. At the same time, you have to set the example. Never ask someone to do a job you wouldn't do yourself. If your team needs help, be prepared to step in and help. If they are not sure how to do something and you know how, step in and show them. If you don't know how, then get them the help they need. Robert Townsend said: "A good leader carries water for his people so they can get on with the job."

Above all else, if you are going to succeed as a leader, you must have the respect of the people you are to lead. To gain that respect, you must first show that you respect them, and that you truly care about them. In the final analysis, they are the ones who determine if you succeed or fail.

Finally, if your team succeeds, give them the credit. If your team fails, stand up and accept the blame. In both cases, they will respect you for it and work that much harder for you the next time. Tom Peters said, "When the team of a good leader completes a job successfully, they say: 'We did it ourselves!'"

This course is just a beginning. Now go back to your troops and put into effect the personal development goals you set for yourself. Complete those goals over the next three months and we will see you at graduation in December.

Now go out and become great leaders!