Who “owns” the pack, troop or crew? Scouting Charters are held by a chartering organization owns all of the assets of a Scout unit. As for whether or not they will dictate how the money is spent; the chartered organization is responsible to make sure finances are administered properly. In practice most chartered organizations do […]
The Scoutmaster Podcast
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Scoutmaster Podcast 349 – Scout Contracts?
Should we ask Scouts to sign “leadership contracts”? A couple of decades ago I tried Scout contracts, it was a mistake. I guess at the time that I would teach my Scouts a thing or two and demand that that sign a Scout contract before they took on a role of responsibility. Of course they signed […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 348 – Who Leads Scout Leaders?
If the Scouts are leading themselves who is leading the Scout leaders? This week I’ll field a couple of email questions that ask the question “who leads the Scout leaders?” Scouting is a team sport, while we all work to build consensus it’s not a democracy. It is, as BP said, “a jolly game” that depends […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 347 – Scouting is an Iterative Process
You’ve used an iterative process before … … whether you know it or not. Iteration means trying something out in a slightly or wholly different way if it does not succeed when first tried. I have some email questions to answer this week and one got me thinking about iteration. Scouting is an iterative process, […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 346 – On The Appalachian Trail Again
Another visit with our favorite through hikers … … from a third of the way through their quest to complete the 2000 mile Appalachian Trail. Wade “Nutshoe” Bastain, Bucky “No Name, Buckminster” Kellorg, and their fellow Eagle Scout and hiking companion “Bear” join us from southern Virginia to relate their latest adventures along the Appalachian trail. […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 345- Active Scouts and Scouters
We encourage active Scouts a number of ways … … but at the heart of the matter there’s only two things that make a difference, and I’ll discuss those two key points in this week’s podcast. The same things that make active Scouts can help us increase activity at roundtables and other functions like courts of honor. […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 344 – Patrols and Schedules
Personal schedules are just one of the things that affect a Scout patrol … … and we can’t do things as if it were 10 years ago, much less 100. One of our challenges as Scouters (and human beings) is adapting to change while maintaining our goals and principles. It’s not impossible, but it can be hard […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 343 – Scout Advancement Questions
Scout advancement questions are often easy to answer … … if you simply take things at face value. It’s actually all pretty easy to understand. Problems arise when Scouters don’t challenge their own assumptions after they have read the requirements or directions and policies in the Guide to Advancement. This week I’ll answer three Scout advancement questions you’ve emailed […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 342 – Recruiting Scouts
There are two ways of recruiting Scouts that actually work … … and I’ve have tried just about everything, special meetings, special trips, flyers, etc. None of those things has ever netted us one single new Scout. Over the years I have found two simple, relatively easy and effective methods for recruiting Scouts – listen in to find […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 341 – Leadership, Asking, and Telling
Telling has limited usefulness in developing youth leadership … … asking is what really gets things moving along. This week I’ll explain how to ask questions in exchange for offering advice or telling Scouts how to do things. This is a powerful tool to get them doing the kind of thinking that fosters leadership development. If you are looking […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 340 – On the Appalachian Trail Again
Another visit with two Eagle Scouts on the Appalachian Trail … We visit, once again, with Bucky Kellorg and Wade Bastian as they make their way north along the Appalachian Trail. We’ll see how things are going , talk about gear, and see if they have trail names yet. The picture above, Wade on the left […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 339 – Service Rank Requirements
Service Rank Requirements are one thing… .. but helping other people at all times is a key concept we hope to build into our Scouts lives. To make that happen we have to look beyond the requirements. Scouts discovering what service means, and the service they perform, are both vitally important building blocks in the […]
Eagles on the Appalachian Trail – Podcast 338
This should be fun! This week there’s no deep dive into policies, no procedural advice or philosophizing, just a conversation with two of my old Eagle Scouts who headed out for a hike last week. Bucky Kellorg and Wade Bastian join me from their “zero day” about fifty miles into a 2000 mile quest to reach the […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 337 – Scouts and Money
We ended up drawing a kind of dividing line … … between adult and Scout responsibilities, and it has a lot to do with Scouts and money. In this podcast, in answer to a listener’s question, I’ll discuss how we decided who would be responsible for Scouts and money. I do think there’s some return in […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 336 | One Sentence Scouter Job Description
I am often asked … “How do I get my troop’s adult volunteers to use the patrol method?” I’ll answer that question with a one sentence Scouter job description. Over the past decade of writing the blog at Scoutmastercg.com I’ve been looking for a one sentence definition of Scouting. Something we can tell ourselves that focuses us […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 335 | The Opportunity Business
I have had plenty of Scouts seize the opportunity to be cold, wet, and miserable… … but that usually only happens once or twice, then they learn not to be cold and miserable. When it’s raining they have the opportunity to take your word for it and be prepared, or to learn by experience. I do tell parents that […]
Podcast 334 – Do Parents Understand Scouting?
How well do Parents understand Scouting? Should we expect them to? Most of us didn’t understand it either for our first two or three laps around the track. There’s an understanding that comes with having things explained, and an understanding that comes from experience – two entirely different things. This week I’ll discuss how authentic Scouting provides […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 332 – Shared Expectations
It is our responsibility to assure there’s a shared expectation… … and our Scouts understand them. Scout aged children are not going to interpret gentle reminders, they’d prefer to have to have things clearly spelled out. They are literalists, they don’t take hints. You can be direct without being unpleasant. There has to be continual engagement and […]
Rules and Scouting Ideals – Podcast 331
We aren’t working to control the conduct of young people. We have a greater challenge; to form their character as defined in the Scout oath and law. Are the Scouting ideals in the Scout oath and law a code of conduct? Is it an ideology? Is it a religious text? No, it is none of these things. […]
Podcast 330 – A Scoutmaster is not…
A Scoutmaster is not… … the boss of a company and youth leadership are not employees we discipline or hire and fire. A Scoutmaster is not a commanding officer and Scouts are not soldiers who can be disciplined for “conduct unbecoming” a Scout, so let’s get that foolish idea out of our heads as well. In this podcast […]
Podcast 329 – Merit Badges
There’s always more questions about merit badges… … then I have useful answers because the vast majority of problems with merit badges are structural rather than procedural. But I hate missing an opportunity for a good, old fashioned rant. Listen in while I climb on my soapbox and opine about what I think the problem […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 328 – Carts and Horses
If things aren’t moving along the problem may be obvious… .. like our understanding of the relationship between the program, advancement, and positions of responsibility. The Scouting program is there, ready to go, but it can’t go on it’s own can it? It’s all words in books, it does not have muscles or lungs, or a […]
Scoutmaster Podcast 327- Scouts on probation?
Thank you for your patience and support… … over the past several weeks I’ve been away. I’ll explain the situation in the introduction to this week’s podcast. In addition I’ll spend some time addressing two major questions raised by a recent email question, can Scouters discipline Scouts for incidents outside of Scouting? Can Scouters hold Scouts […]
Podcast 326 – Advice for the Senior Patrol Leader
My son was frustrated, decided to change troops, and was elected senior patrol leader in his new troop. The Scoutmaster is a man of good intentions but with a commanding presence. Over time he has taken to leading himself because it’s easier and less messy. The Scouts in this troop would like to have more say, and implement the patrol method […]
