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21 boys boarded a boat in Poole Harbor… … they had no way of knowing they were pioneering a movement for millions of young people around the world. Several lived well into old age to vividly recount their experiences decades later.   Scouting’s pathways are now worn by travel, but each new Scout today has a “Brownsea […]

Scouting needs gardeners more than managers or officers. Scouting isn’t the science of management or military discipline, it’s much more like a garden. Gardeners prepare the ground, plant the seed, keep the weeds away, make sure there is plenty of water and sunshine and step back.  Scouting is just like that. We know our Scouts need […]

Are Scoutmaster’s Conferences a retest? Can assistant Scoutmasters do them? This week we’ll catch up on listener email by answering these questions and more. When it comes to Scoutmaster conferences they are explained unambiguously in teh Guide to Advancement, so none of this is a matter of opinion or a difference in style, it is very clearly delineated […]

No 11-year-old boy joins Scouting to get his character developed… … and few boys join to attend troop meetings, wear the Scout uniform, or sit before boards of review. Instead, they sign up for fun and adventure. Last month Walter Underwood joined me on podcast 313  to review the first volume of the Troop Leader Guidebook.  We got […]

What is the ninth method of Scouting? Author Mark Ray begins the second volume of the Troop Leader Guidebook with these words; Back when you first attended Scout leader training, you learned that Boy Scouting has eight methods: adult association, advancement, ideals, leadership development, outdoors, patrol method, personal growth, and uniform. Now that you’re a seasoned leader, however, you realize […]

What has a Mesoamerican Step Pyramid got to do with this? Today I want to talk about leadership, but I want to see if I can get you to come along with me and really examine what this means in Scouting.  Leadership in Scouting is based on discovery. I have (what I hope is a great) analogy […]

I want to share a great source for developing your skills! Outdoor leadership is different. What works at a Troop meeting or in the boardroom does not always translate well on a week-long backpacking or canoeing trip. Scouting offers great administrative training and valuable supplemental training in outdoor skills and safety. What we don’t have is a comprehensive training […]

Lots of answers that you may find useful! It’s been a little while since I answered some email questions, so this is catch-up week. Listen as I talk about several different questions listeners have sent in over the past couple of moths, no doubt you have experienced something similar before, or may encounter these issues […]

Have you seen the first volume of the Troop Leader Guidebook? Join Walter Underwood and myself as we review the first volume of the Troop Leader Guidebook. Like Walter I accumulated a collection of Scoutmaster Handbooks. From the very first edition to the last they were uniformly mediocre at best. Both Walter and I agree that the most useful offical guide to […]

How about your Scouts? How about their parents? This podcast features advice for Scouters attending summer camp and parents who are staying home. I’ll discuss ten things that will make life at summer camp smooth sailing for you and your Scouts, and also share some things parents can do to prepare their Scouts and themselves for […]