Friday, December 5, 2014
Believe in Them
Sometimes kids just need to see how strongly you believe in them and their potential.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Another Poor Leadership Technique to Avoid
I have witnessed adult leaders that ignore followers that don't do what they want. Let me expand on that a bit.
This person did not clarify what they wanted sufficiently, leaving confusion in the follower. Perhaps this leader thought the person would read their mind. Later, when what was delivered was not what was desired, this particular leader avoided talking about the gap directly with the person, but started working through others instead. Ignoring people when they don't perform exactly as expected is a failing of the leader, not the follower. This leader's history is to gradually work around the person that did not hit the unclear mark until they are reassigned.
Leaders are paid in companies to clarify what they expect and to provide feedback to followers that miss their expectations. In organizations where pay is not relevant, it is still the leader's responsibility to clarify what is expected. It is a leadership responsibility to clearly articulate expectations and to ensure understanding. Of course, the level of follower modifies this somewhat. If the follower is a high level leader too, there is an expectation that not everything should be spelled out in great detail. This is a balance.
Some adults find providing direct face to face feedback difficult to do. Some perceive this leadership task as confrontational and avoid it altogether. This response is not effective leadership. This does not coach the person so they improve, making the organization stronger. It leaves followers wondering what is going on.
Don't do this with other adult followers, and especially don't do this with children. Children need direct and specific feedback when they miss the mark so they can learn how to improve. Children need encouragement. So do adult volunteers. Frankly, employees could use some too, but this is often not the case.
This person did not clarify what they wanted sufficiently, leaving confusion in the follower. Perhaps this leader thought the person would read their mind. Later, when what was delivered was not what was desired, this particular leader avoided talking about the gap directly with the person, but started working through others instead. Ignoring people when they don't perform exactly as expected is a failing of the leader, not the follower. This leader's history is to gradually work around the person that did not hit the unclear mark until they are reassigned.
Leaders are paid in companies to clarify what they expect and to provide feedback to followers that miss their expectations. In organizations where pay is not relevant, it is still the leader's responsibility to clarify what is expected. It is a leadership responsibility to clearly articulate expectations and to ensure understanding. Of course, the level of follower modifies this somewhat. If the follower is a high level leader too, there is an expectation that not everything should be spelled out in great detail. This is a balance.
Some adults find providing direct face to face feedback difficult to do. Some perceive this leadership task as confrontational and avoid it altogether. This response is not effective leadership. This does not coach the person so they improve, making the organization stronger. It leaves followers wondering what is going on.
Don't do this with other adult followers, and especially don't do this with children. Children need direct and specific feedback when they miss the mark so they can learn how to improve. Children need encouragement. So do adult volunteers. Frankly, employees could use some too, but this is often not the case.
Inputs to Leading Yourself
The inputs to leading yourself include the following:
- Motives
- Internal
- Needs hierarchy (Maslow, Alderfer)
- Seek to fulfill
- Desires->Priorities->Choices->Actions->Achieving->Becoming
- Values
- Direction
- Task motivation
- Relationship motivation
- External
- Stimuli
- Stress
- Conditions
- Expectancy
- Behaviors -> performance outcomes -> reward outcomes
- Positive
- Negative
- Feedback
- Consequences
- Positive - rewards
- Negative - punishments
- Resources
- Energy
- Cognition - Assimilation
- Perceptual clarity
- Attention - Focus
- Persistence (Grit)
- Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes
- Personality types
- D, I, S, C
- Red, Yellow, Blue, White
- Meyers-Briggs
- Or other systems
For Kids, Start with Leading Themselves
The United States Military Academy teaches leadership formally and used to address leadership in a couple of different categories.
Lead-Yourself Objectives for Kids
Build character
Read stories of strong character (provides examples in context)
Have adults surrounding the child model strong character
Develop sound judgement
Teach and model classical values (for example, Christians use biblical values)
Reason critically (teach critical thinking, problem solving, decision making skills)
Reason and Lead ethically (role play with kids)
Be aware of ethical and moral dilemmas and make right choices (role play with kids)
Questions facts and assumptions (role play with kids)
Apply Courage
Confidence to say "I don't know" and then find out
Orient to the best in us all
Build empathy for others
Accentuate the positive
Nurture abundance thinking patterns over scarcity patterns
Recognizes the worth of each individual
Be optimistic about people
Build confidence
Be confident enough to convince people that you can lead
Be humble enough to realize that you are often going to be wrong
Anticipate consequences to choices
Anticipate 2nd and 3rd order effects of actions and decisions
Take ownership / accountability
Avoid blaming
Develop a sense of responsibility
Influence peers more than you are influenced by them (hard for teens trying to fit in)
Grit
Keep pressing on despite setbacks or failures
Persistent in face of continuing obstacles
Understand the impact of own behavior on others
Develop and maintain emotional "fitness" or strength
Watch for kids with anger issues/fits (highlights emotional literacy improvements needed)
Improve emotional literacy
Self awareness
Perceive emotion, changing moods, decide to be aware
Monitor own emotions
Recognize their impact on others
Discriminate between different emotions
Label them appropriately
Vocabulary to name emotions (language of feelings)
Know the difference between "I need" and "I want"
Play emotional charades
Keep a feelings journal
Empathy
Consider other people's feelings when making decisions
Empathy is key to caring supportive relationships
Social Effectiveness
Use persuasion and influence
Recognize power dynamics
Use harmony and collaboration
Use non-verbal communication to connect emotionally with others
Use verbal communication to connect emotionally with others
Tone of voice
Timing and pace of the conversation
Avoid sarcasm, anger, name calling, and why questions
Use playful communication to relax
Stay focused in the present
Monitor other's emotions
Pick up on emotional cues
Subtle facial expressions
Regulate emotions
Control own emotions and behavior to avoid negative impact on others
Learn how to recognize and relieve stress
Adapting to changing circumstances
Accept personal responsibility for own reactions to change
Control or redirect impulsive feelings and behaviors
Chose to be a good, kind person and loving
Know hardest times (tired, hungry, lonely)
Decide not to be a victim
Listening does not mean I agree
It is not about winning
What you say about me says nothing about me. It only tells me about you.
Stay cool under pressure
Quickly recover from difficult situations
Exemplify resilience
Hear difficult feedback (hard for kids, make sure they know you love them before this)
Use self awareness to monitor and adjust their actions
Demonstrate initiative
Is comfortable in unexpected situations
Take action without direction
Align efforts with higher level goals
Be proactive
Adapt
Scan the environment, identify conditions, and adjust
Apply plan-do-check-adapt pattern
Respond to situational changes and evolving trends
Learn the lessons of experience
Recognize when what others have done is not an effective solution and make new solutions
Take appropriate action
Personally apply teamwork
Begin with the end in mind (Covey content)
First things first
Mental creation before physical creation (plans before action)
Clarify objectives and intent
Make ethical choices
Discern right from wrong (role play with kids)
Use time effectively (hard for kids)
- Leadership at the Individual System Level
- Leadership at the Group System Level
- Leadership at the Organization System Level
Lead-Yourself Objectives for Kids
Build character
Read stories of strong character (provides examples in context)
Have adults surrounding the child model strong character
Develop sound judgement
Teach and model classical values (for example, Christians use biblical values)
Reason critically (teach critical thinking, problem solving, decision making skills)
Reason and Lead ethically (role play with kids)
Be aware of ethical and moral dilemmas and make right choices (role play with kids)
Questions facts and assumptions (role play with kids)
Apply Courage
Confidence to say "I don't know" and then find out
Orient to the best in us all
Build empathy for others
Accentuate the positive
Nurture abundance thinking patterns over scarcity patterns
Recognizes the worth of each individual
Be optimistic about people
Build confidence
Be confident enough to convince people that you can lead
Be humble enough to realize that you are often going to be wrong
Anticipate consequences to choices
Anticipate 2nd and 3rd order effects of actions and decisions
Take ownership / accountability
Avoid blaming
Develop a sense of responsibility
Influence peers more than you are influenced by them (hard for teens trying to fit in)
Grit
Keep pressing on despite setbacks or failures
Persistent in face of continuing obstacles
Understand the impact of own behavior on others
Develop and maintain emotional "fitness" or strength
Watch for kids with anger issues/fits (highlights emotional literacy improvements needed)
Improve emotional literacy
Self awareness
Perceive emotion, changing moods, decide to be aware
Monitor own emotions
Recognize their impact on others
Discriminate between different emotions
Label them appropriately
Vocabulary to name emotions (language of feelings)
Know the difference between "I need" and "I want"
Play emotional charades
Keep a feelings journal
Empathy
Consider other people's feelings when making decisions
Empathy is key to caring supportive relationships
Social Effectiveness
Use persuasion and influence
Recognize power dynamics
Use harmony and collaboration
Use non-verbal communication to connect emotionally with others
Use verbal communication to connect emotionally with others
Tone of voice
Timing and pace of the conversation
Avoid sarcasm, anger, name calling, and why questions
Use playful communication to relax
Stay focused in the present
Monitor other's emotions
Pick up on emotional cues
Subtle facial expressions
Regulate emotions
Control own emotions and behavior to avoid negative impact on others
Learn how to recognize and relieve stress
Adapting to changing circumstances
Accept personal responsibility for own reactions to change
Control or redirect impulsive feelings and behaviors
Chose to be a good, kind person and loving
Know hardest times (tired, hungry, lonely)
Decide not to be a victim
Listening does not mean I agree
It is not about winning
What you say about me says nothing about me. It only tells me about you.
Stay cool under pressure
Quickly recover from difficult situations
Exemplify resilience
Hear difficult feedback (hard for kids, make sure they know you love them before this)
Use self awareness to monitor and adjust their actions
Demonstrate initiative
Is comfortable in unexpected situations
Take action without direction
Align efforts with higher level goals
Be proactive
Adapt
Scan the environment, identify conditions, and adjust
Apply plan-do-check-adapt pattern
Respond to situational changes and evolving trends
Learn the lessons of experience
Recognize when what others have done is not an effective solution and make new solutions
Take appropriate action
Personally apply teamwork
Begin with the end in mind (Covey content)
First things first
Mental creation before physical creation (plans before action)
Clarify objectives and intent
Make ethical choices
Discern right from wrong (role play with kids)
Use time effectively (hard for kids)
Practicing Meeting Responsibilities with Animals
Animals make a great teaching device for following through on responsibilities. If one has to feed the chickens and another has to feed the dogs as an assignment and they "forget" as children often do, the animal shows the problem visibly to the child.
The dogs whine. The chickens make more noise. The rooster crows more often and more loudly. Goats break a hole in your fence and make their way to your back porch.
This is all good feedback to the child. There is no postponing. The animals protest if forgotten. It makes for a great teaching moment between the adult and the child.
The dogs whine. The chickens make more noise. The rooster crows more often and more loudly. Goats break a hole in your fence and make their way to your back porch.
This is all good feedback to the child. There is no postponing. The animals protest if forgotten. It makes for a great teaching moment between the adult and the child.
Example Counts in Teaching Goal Setting by Modeling It
Keller Williams Realty in the United States teaches their agents a cool idea called a 411 that can help children track their actions to achieve goals. What does this have to do with teaching leadership to kids, you may ask?
In my experience, most leadership positions that are formal organizationally sponsored positions require tracking of goal setting and attainment of employees and volunteers. In finding which applies most easily to children and teens, I looked for which was the least directive and allowed them to govern themselves.
Keller Williams aims to help their agents set goals and be successful with as little "management overhead" as possible. They don't have time to be "a boss" because they are busy selling too, so they set up this site to help their people help themselves when it comes to goal setting, tracking and attaining.
We are introducing it to our teens to help them have minimal structure for getting stuff done. The Kellar Williams site is called http://www.productivitywarriors.com. It explains it and has some templates in MS Word. Check it out so you can visualize what I'm talking about. Also instead of corporate-speak "performance goals", we are calling them "getting better goals" with the kids.
To make it feel less formal, we're just drawing the 411 on a sheet of school notebook paper by hand. Function over form for these initial efforts is okay in my book. The top "1" is annual goals, the next "1" is the month goals that are needed to achieve the annual goals, and the "4" is the four weeks actions needed to achieve the month goals. All visible with a single sheet of paper.
This alignment of tactical efforts to strategic aims is a crucial piece for leading and fully aligning organizations. For kids, no jargon is necessary. We just say, the annual goals need stuff to be done to meet them, so the monthly goals provide twelve iterations to get it done. Then the weekly goals help us do our weekly accountability session.
Again, Keller Williams has a very cool accountability session script. I like it because it helps focus on self governance, teaching the kids how to stay after their own goals without it sounding like some parental talking to (in a bad way). This business uses this for their adult agents, so why not use it for kids to help them realize they are the captains of their own ships? The accountability session script goes like this:
0. "Do you have your 411 with you?" (prerequisite for continuing)
1. "How did you do on your goals?"
2. "How do you feel about how you did?"
3. "What will you do differently during the next period of time?"
4. "What can I do to help you?"
This is the most gentle goals session script I have come across in all my life's travels that is still effective at helping both the coach and the goal planner (kid) remember who's accountability this really is.
For those of you that prefer computer stuff, check out Trello.com for a neat and free method of tracking to do actions from Joel Spolsky. I like Trello a lot.
After we walk them through the 411 and help them establish goals, we'll check back in with them to see how they are doing since early teens sometimes have a hard time with anything beyond today or this week.
Eventually we'll teach the teens the ideas in "Getting Things Done" or GTD by David Allen, combined with Kanban concepts for following Lean principles of visual management. Teams of people using Kanban tools (a whiteboard with sticky notes moving across columns) helps avoid micromanagement. But for now, the 411 is sufficient for their needs.
Do your own 411 to show them you're doing it too. Or make some fake entries, but teens tend to spot falseness very easily. Set follow ups with them on your own 411 form.
I tried mini-Kanban boards from Office Depot with the children a few months back, but realized I had not taught them the basics first after I observed that they put a bunch of sticky notes on their board and promptly forgot them after the excitement of the first night wore off.
So I am starting with Goal setting, tracking, and attaining first. Then I'll move to breaking a project down into its component tasks and putting those tasks on sticky notes on the Kanban board to keep progress visual.
This article on goal tracking is a follow up to a previous article on goal setting http://teachkidsleadership.blogspot.com/2011/11/teaching-goal-setting-to-kids-from-7-to.html
In my experience, most leadership positions that are formal organizationally sponsored positions require tracking of goal setting and attainment of employees and volunteers. In finding which applies most easily to children and teens, I looked for which was the least directive and allowed them to govern themselves.
Keller Williams aims to help their agents set goals and be successful with as little "management overhead" as possible. They don't have time to be "a boss" because they are busy selling too, so they set up this site to help their people help themselves when it comes to goal setting, tracking and attaining.
We are introducing it to our teens to help them have minimal structure for getting stuff done. The Kellar Williams site is called http://www.productivitywarriors.com. It explains it and has some templates in MS Word. Check it out so you can visualize what I'm talking about. Also instead of corporate-speak "performance goals", we are calling them "getting better goals" with the kids.
To make it feel less formal, we're just drawing the 411 on a sheet of school notebook paper by hand. Function over form for these initial efforts is okay in my book. The top "1" is annual goals, the next "1" is the month goals that are needed to achieve the annual goals, and the "4" is the four weeks actions needed to achieve the month goals. All visible with a single sheet of paper.
This alignment of tactical efforts to strategic aims is a crucial piece for leading and fully aligning organizations. For kids, no jargon is necessary. We just say, the annual goals need stuff to be done to meet them, so the monthly goals provide twelve iterations to get it done. Then the weekly goals help us do our weekly accountability session.
Again, Keller Williams has a very cool accountability session script. I like it because it helps focus on self governance, teaching the kids how to stay after their own goals without it sounding like some parental talking to (in a bad way). This business uses this for their adult agents, so why not use it for kids to help them realize they are the captains of their own ships? The accountability session script goes like this:
0. "Do you have your 411 with you?" (prerequisite for continuing)
1. "How did you do on your goals?"
2. "How do you feel about how you did?"
3. "What will you do differently during the next period of time?"
4. "What can I do to help you?"
This is the most gentle goals session script I have come across in all my life's travels that is still effective at helping both the coach and the goal planner (kid) remember who's accountability this really is.
For those of you that prefer computer stuff, check out Trello.com for a neat and free method of tracking to do actions from Joel Spolsky. I like Trello a lot.
After we walk them through the 411 and help them establish goals, we'll check back in with them to see how they are doing since early teens sometimes have a hard time with anything beyond today or this week.
Eventually we'll teach the teens the ideas in "Getting Things Done" or GTD by David Allen, combined with Kanban concepts for following Lean principles of visual management. Teams of people using Kanban tools (a whiteboard with sticky notes moving across columns) helps avoid micromanagement. But for now, the 411 is sufficient for their needs.
Do your own 411 to show them you're doing it too. Or make some fake entries, but teens tend to spot falseness very easily. Set follow ups with them on your own 411 form.
I tried mini-Kanban boards from Office Depot with the children a few months back, but realized I had not taught them the basics first after I observed that they put a bunch of sticky notes on their board and promptly forgot them after the excitement of the first night wore off.
So I am starting with Goal setting, tracking, and attaining first. Then I'll move to breaking a project down into its component tasks and putting those tasks on sticky notes on the Kanban board to keep progress visual.
This article on goal tracking is a follow up to a previous article on goal setting http://teachkidsleadership.blogspot.com/2011/11/teaching-goal-setting-to-kids-from-7-to.html
John McCain's book has captivated my 10-year old as we read character building stories
We got John McCain's book "Character is Destiny" and I have read one story a night to our 10-year old. He is way more interested than I thought he might be. He has asked questions as the stories intertwine with each other. It has provided great opportunities for discussions.
Character is the first key building block for children to grow into leadership. Leadership skills without strong character easily devolve into manipulation.
This book helps put character into context that is engaging for a 10-year old mind. I wholeheartedly recommend this book if you plan to read it to a child.
Character is the first key building block for children to grow into leadership. Leadership skills without strong character easily devolve into manipulation.
This book helps put character into context that is engaging for a 10-year old mind. I wholeheartedly recommend this book if you plan to read it to a child.
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Reflection as a teaching tool
Reflection is a powerful tool for helping pre teens and teens learn. It works with younger children too, but their pool of knowledge is smaller.
Recently I have had a chance to teach classes of 12- 14 year olds and other classes of 15-17 year olds using a method that is centered around questions to start discussions. This method uses lots of backup material in case the discussion doesn't pan out as expected, or in case they haven't considered this before. It also drops the idea of trying to teach it all, so if a discussion arises where they are engaged, you can keep it going and expand on that.
They seem more interested in opinions from their peers and listen when a peer speaks and tells of an experience where a particular principle applied in their life.
The questions are intentionally open ended, for example, "How can...?"
Pausing to let them think gives them time to formulate their thoughts.
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Stories and their power to pull kids in
While homeschooling some of our kids, my wife has been applying an educational system called the Thomas Jefferson education and another type called the Charlotte Mason method, that focuses much on reading stories to the children and then pausing to discuss story scenes that exemplify things we are trying to teach the children in multiple subjects. This method also has them dictate what they learned (for the under-10 crowd) or write what they learned (for 11 and up) as an assessment method that lets her know what they are getting and what needs remediation. And it offers a chance for the child to reflect on the learning.
The reason this method is so very interesting, is that the kids are emotionally engaged in a story with characters they care about. Especially for stories the children really enjoy. This excitement carries over into the discussion about what the character just did or didn't do to a degree that has surprised us both. There have been some really good discussions about the protagonist and their situation. They have paid attention in a way that I haven't seen them do for regular idea teaching. The story context also offers the many details needed for concrete examples.
It's been a fascinating journey watching the children get so into this.
Organizing leadership for kids
While writing professionally about complex scenarios aimed at teaching adults in a particular profession leadership skills using increasingly complex scenarios under high stress levels, I came across a European competency framework for leadership that appears to be usable as a framework for organizing and perhaps teaching children leadership if adjusted for their age level and abilities. Although in the Eurozone they split adult leadership competencies into levels, with kids I think we'd have to adjust for age capacities. My initial thoughts are as follows:
Children up to age 11
Focus on becoming. Teach attitudes, understanding, and values
Learn confidence in a martial art or sport or activity. Do something well. Set up or attend Camps with chances to lead their peers for a period of time, like Boy Scouts does.
Grow a garden to help the child learn that nurturing works for plants and people
Parent or guardian be a mentor and example the best you can
Help them learn the value of each person
Young people 12-17
Help them increase in confidence in formal leadership roles in youth organizations or sports teams
Any leadership role is practice
Progress from simple roles to more challenging and difficult roles
Help them influence leaders and peers as informal leaders in any organization
Look for opportunities to speak publicly
Find a mentor
The adult mentors need to help them see what was effective and ask how they felt that went and what could have gone better (based on the After Action Review method used to help US Army leaders at junior levels, mid levels, and even senior levels reflect, and reuse successfully used skills and attitudes.)
Young adults 18-21
Encourage them to lead student organizations
Join service organizations and offer to lead when needed
Influence peers positively, encourage, lift up
Find a mentor with higher capability
Progress to more complex challenges
Adults 21+
Look for employment or volunteer in organizational leadership roles
Adults 30+
Start organizations and lead them
Although we can imagine age relevant scenarios for kid leadership, they also need the experiential lessons gained from these types of real interactions with followers.
Monday, November 14, 2011
One Teen actually said "If I don't plan it, I can't fail." Yikes!
For a youth group recently, the young men were trying to plan a fun event that would involve the girls too for the next Wednesday. The boys did not seem to want to do the work of planning. Craig and I told them that we are not going to plan this for you or do it for you. We are here to advise you and help you succeed.
The 17-year old asked to lead the group did not want to lead it. He kept trying to laugh it off and at one point actually said, "If I don't plan it, I can't fail." Well, Craig and I could not let that stand without some discussion. So we used that as a point for discussion and led them back to planning the event. We finally got to their plans, and they made assignments to individuals to bring the resources needed for the event.
Craig and I both wondered if they would pull it off or if it would turn out to be a disaster. These are young men from age 12 through age 17. The next Wed evening, we arrived to find them all there on time with all their materials ready for set up of the event in a gymnasium. It went off well and even the young women enjoyed the activity.
Their plans worked out almost as they had drawn it on the chalkboard a week earlier. I was proud of them.
The 17-year old asked to lead the group did not want to lead it. He kept trying to laugh it off and at one point actually said, "If I don't plan it, I can't fail." Well, Craig and I could not let that stand without some discussion. So we used that as a point for discussion and led them back to planning the event. We finally got to their plans, and they made assignments to individuals to bring the resources needed for the event.
Craig and I both wondered if they would pull it off or if it would turn out to be a disaster. These are young men from age 12 through age 17. The next Wed evening, we arrived to find them all there on time with all their materials ready for set up of the event in a gymnasium. It went off well and even the young women enjoyed the activity.
Their plans worked out almost as they had drawn it on the chalkboard a week earlier. I was proud of them.
Teaching Goal Setting to kids from 7 to 14
We did a goal setting discussion tonight with kids from 7 to 14 yrs of age.
Because we know these kids very well, we used examples they know about. For example an upcoming trip.
We used the following points on each of the three examples we used before we lost their attention span.
1. Decide what you want (end in mind)
2. Why do you want it?
3. Time frame or limit?
4. Identify obstacles
5. Identify knowledge needed
6. Identify people whose help is needed
7. Plan steps to get there
8. How will you know when you're done? (adults call this performance measures)
9. Celebrate
They participated and used the maps to see which states the trip will take us. The younger ones named the states, and the older ones told us the highways to take.
We associated this to goals some of them had set and achieved recently. They goofed around the entire time, so we hope some of it sinks in.
This is the type of thing that has to be repeated in various ways to get across.
Because we know these kids very well, we used examples they know about. For example an upcoming trip.
We used the following points on each of the three examples we used before we lost their attention span.
1. Decide what you want (end in mind)
2. Why do you want it?
3. Time frame or limit?
4. Identify obstacles
5. Identify knowledge needed
6. Identify people whose help is needed
7. Plan steps to get there
8. How will you know when you're done? (adults call this performance measures)
9. Celebrate
They participated and used the maps to see which states the trip will take us. The younger ones named the states, and the older ones told us the highways to take.
We associated this to goals some of them had set and achieved recently. They goofed around the entire time, so we hope some of it sinks in.
This is the type of thing that has to be repeated in various ways to get across.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Checklist for Child Character Development
Purpose/Objective: To develop a radiant and noble character
Measure:
___ Ongoing, daily effort.
___ Teach them they are the builders of their own character, that they have the responsibility to shape their own character.
___ Explain the ends of the continuum (upright character . . . . . . . . . base character). Opposites. Yen and Yang.
___ Adults (Parents, teachers, coaches) may guide, and may help with suggestions. The child chooses how they think and act.
___ Adults praise the times when the child gains control of their emotions rather than focusing too much on tantrums or pouting. Starve the baser attempts for attention and reward the better behaviors.
___ Help the child maintain good thoughts (critical task to the development of a good character because the intent that precedes the act leaves its indelible impression upon the character little by little).
___ Because an upright character is the result of continued effort and right thinking, the effect of long-cherished associations with upright thoughts, how good are their consistent associations?
___ Over time, the “little things” in our lives shape our character. How are the little things?
___ Teach by analogy the pattern of growth little-by-little.
___ Character is built by adherence to principles. This requires more than an occasional reference to one or another principle. There must be constant teaching, mostly by example.
___ Law of the harvest: We reap what we sow.
___ The adults encourage right choices.
___ The child rejects the self-absorbed life in favor of developing a character worthy of respect and true greatness through service to those around them.
___ Adults carry out their duty not to weaken the child's growing character by avoiding overbearing adult behaviors that delay the child's character development.
___ Adults encourage the children to build good habits of thought and model such good habits of thought.
___ The child can be trusted to do their best in age-appropriate assignments whether or not anyone is obviously watching.
___ The child decides how they feel more often than allowing a sibling or friend "make" them feel upset.
___ The child strives for personal integrity in every endeavor, regardless of how mundane or inconsequential it may seem.
___ The child does not scapegoat others. The child takes responsibility for the decisions they have made and the outcomes that follow.
___ Adults are the ethical standard bearer with the child.
___ The child holds to their ethical values even when peers push to abandon them.
___ The adult lets the child accompany and help in acts of service (taking dinner to a sick person, etc.)
___ The child describes the examples of adults around them.
Measure:
- We radiate what we are
- What the child thinks about determines what the child is
- Inner peace and serenity from knowing you are doing right
- Absence of guilt and anxiety that accompany lesser choices
___ Ongoing, daily effort.
___ Teach them they are the builders of their own character, that they have the responsibility to shape their own character.
___ Explain the ends of the continuum (upright character . . . . . . . . . base character). Opposites. Yen and Yang.
___ Adults (Parents, teachers, coaches) may guide, and may help with suggestions. The child chooses how they think and act.
___ Adults praise the times when the child gains control of their emotions rather than focusing too much on tantrums or pouting. Starve the baser attempts for attention and reward the better behaviors.
___ Help the child maintain good thoughts (critical task to the development of a good character because the intent that precedes the act leaves its indelible impression upon the character little by little).
___ Because an upright character is the result of continued effort and right thinking, the effect of long-cherished associations with upright thoughts, how good are their consistent associations?
___ Over time, the “little things” in our lives shape our character. How are the little things?
___ Teach by analogy the pattern of growth little-by-little.
- The grass grows slowly, not all at once, full grown, by eruption.
- The rain does not fall in one big splash, but in many drops
- The planets do not jump in their orbits, but meter by meter, they circle their orbits.
- Habits and intellect do not appear suddenly, but grow bit by bit.
- The child grows physically by eating regularly at intervals, by breathing fresh air constantly, by resting at stated intervals
- Likewise, character is built by little things, by daily contacts, by an influence here, a fact or truth there. We do not build our character in large leaps, but from little actions, little thoughts, little-by-little.
___ Character is built by adherence to principles. This requires more than an occasional reference to one or another principle. There must be constant teaching, mostly by example.
___ Law of the harvest: We reap what we sow.
- Effort, self-denial, and purposeful action are the stepping-stones of progress.
- Indulgence and ethical/moral wrongs are vandals and destroyers of character. Only regret and remorse follow in their wake.
___ The adults encourage right choices.
___ The child rejects the self-absorbed life in favor of developing a character worthy of respect and true greatness through service to those around them.
___ Adults carry out their duty not to weaken the child's growing character by avoiding overbearing adult behaviors that delay the child's character development.
___ Adults encourage the children to build good habits of thought and model such good habits of thought.
___ The child can be trusted to do their best in age-appropriate assignments whether or not anyone is obviously watching.
___ The child decides how they feel more often than allowing a sibling or friend "make" them feel upset.
___ The child strives for personal integrity in every endeavor, regardless of how mundane or inconsequential it may seem.
___ The child does not scapegoat others. The child takes responsibility for the decisions they have made and the outcomes that follow.
___ Adults are the ethical standard bearer with the child.
___ The child holds to their ethical values even when peers push to abandon them.
___ The adult lets the child accompany and help in acts of service (taking dinner to a sick person, etc.)
___ The child describes the examples of adults around them.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Theory or Recipes?
When teaching children leadership, should we emphasize conceptual frameworks, theories, and principles or on rote lists, leadership formulas, or behavioral scripts, or some combination of both?
Procedures and other leadership 'recipes' work well enough in routine task environments and predictable situations while they are children, but they tend to limit effectiveness in new problem situations and in chaotic unpredictable environments as they grow older.
So because children thrive with a greater degree of order, perhaps we start with basic rules of thumb, but as they grow, we need to ensure an understanding of leadership principles and concepts to help them be more capable of creative and adaptive behavior.
As our world seems to accelerate, it seems a reasonable assumption that, in the kind of complex changing environment in which our children will become leaders, that they will need to be analytical, flexible, and creative. It may help to think of leadership as an adaptive capability. We teach them the theoretical foundations so they can achieve insight and predict human behavior to some degree. The decision cycle time for leaders is shrinking and the children will need to, as future adult leaders, come to the situation as they are. There is not the time to prepare when the moment of testing occurs.
Ornstein and Hunkins (1993, p. 184) indicated that a theory is a “device for interpreting, criticizing and unifying established laws, modifying them to fit data unanticipated in their formation, and guiding the enterprise of discovering new and more powerful generalisation.”
Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 3) states that "Theories imply a systematic ordering of ideas about the phenomena of our field of inquiry and are usually of two kinds. One is concerned with understanding, the other with explanation and prediction."
Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 4) states, "The Greek word theorein meant to look upon, to observe, to consider,to contemplate; and the noun theoría meant looking at, looking more closely, observation, consideration, insight and scientific contemplation. The goal of these activities was to ascertain truth. The basic meaning of the word is still valid and underpins most of our modern definition of theory."
So is using theory, causal models, behavioral analysis, and other systematic efforts to identify underlying regularities and patterns in leadership applicable with children? Some leadership practitioners I have spoken to object to focusing on theory with adults or children. They bring up a valid argument, that simply learning the principles of leadership and rules of thumb will not make someone a skilled leader. I have validated this in coaching other leaders. But leadership can be taught. I have both learned it, taught it, and helped others practice it better. Theory helps to leverage our understanding and predict to a useful degree.
As with all things with children, theory has to be introduced a little at a time, rather than all at once. The point is not to get it over with, but rather to help them see and do better. Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 6) go on to say, "At elementary levels the whole of a course can be – and in my view should be –developed as a conversation, preferably of a Socratic type, to help students reach their goals." This is sound advice for teaching leadership theory to children. Conversation and spending time with children, being present, helps them stay engaged for learning.
Leadership is a practical performing art, valued in many organizations because of its decisive effects in preparing people for, and getting them through, trying circumstances and achieving organizational goals and objectives in a repeatable way.
Leaders make use of everyday processes of relationship building and social influence to get things done. So, an understanding of these processes and insight into how they might be most appropriately applied can improve individual and collective performance.
This is why we should teach theory. Even to children in small bites with application. The recipes and heuristics are a good starting point, but can only take them so far.
(Sources:
This article is not my work. It is someone else's ideas applied in the context of teaching children leadership. Modified only slightly from the Leadership in the Canadian Forces, Conceptual Foundations Manual 2005
Ornstein, A., & Hunkins, F. (1993). Curriculum foundations, principles, and theory. Boston:
Allyn and Bacon.
Bernath, Ulrich and Vidal, Martine. (2006). “The Theories and the Theorists: Why Theory is Important for Research”)
Procedures and other leadership 'recipes' work well enough in routine task environments and predictable situations while they are children, but they tend to limit effectiveness in new problem situations and in chaotic unpredictable environments as they grow older.
So because children thrive with a greater degree of order, perhaps we start with basic rules of thumb, but as they grow, we need to ensure an understanding of leadership principles and concepts to help them be more capable of creative and adaptive behavior.
As our world seems to accelerate, it seems a reasonable assumption that, in the kind of complex changing environment in which our children will become leaders, that they will need to be analytical, flexible, and creative. It may help to think of leadership as an adaptive capability. We teach them the theoretical foundations so they can achieve insight and predict human behavior to some degree. The decision cycle time for leaders is shrinking and the children will need to, as future adult leaders, come to the situation as they are. There is not the time to prepare when the moment of testing occurs.
Ornstein and Hunkins (1993, p. 184) indicated that a theory is a “device for interpreting, criticizing and unifying established laws, modifying them to fit data unanticipated in their formation, and guiding the enterprise of discovering new and more powerful generalisation.”
Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 3) states that "Theories imply a systematic ordering of ideas about the phenomena of our field of inquiry and are usually of two kinds. One is concerned with understanding, the other with explanation and prediction."
Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 4) states, "The Greek word theorein meant to look upon, to observe, to consider,to contemplate; and the noun theoría meant looking at, looking more closely, observation, consideration, insight and scientific contemplation. The goal of these activities was to ascertain truth. The basic meaning of the word is still valid and underpins most of our modern definition of theory."
So is using theory, causal models, behavioral analysis, and other systematic efforts to identify underlying regularities and patterns in leadership applicable with children? Some leadership practitioners I have spoken to object to focusing on theory with adults or children. They bring up a valid argument, that simply learning the principles of leadership and rules of thumb will not make someone a skilled leader. I have validated this in coaching other leaders. But leadership can be taught. I have both learned it, taught it, and helped others practice it better. Theory helps to leverage our understanding and predict to a useful degree.
As with all things with children, theory has to be introduced a little at a time, rather than all at once. The point is not to get it over with, but rather to help them see and do better. Bernath and Vidal (2006, p 6) go on to say, "At elementary levels the whole of a course can be – and in my view should be –developed as a conversation, preferably of a Socratic type, to help students reach their goals." This is sound advice for teaching leadership theory to children. Conversation and spending time with children, being present, helps them stay engaged for learning.
Leadership is a practical performing art, valued in many organizations because of its decisive effects in preparing people for, and getting them through, trying circumstances and achieving organizational goals and objectives in a repeatable way.
Leaders make use of everyday processes of relationship building and social influence to get things done. So, an understanding of these processes and insight into how they might be most appropriately applied can improve individual and collective performance.
This is why we should teach theory. Even to children in small bites with application. The recipes and heuristics are a good starting point, but can only take them so far.
(Sources:
This article is not my work. It is someone else's ideas applied in the context of teaching children leadership. Modified only slightly from the Leadership in the Canadian Forces, Conceptual Foundations Manual 2005
Ornstein, A., & Hunkins, F. (1993). Curriculum foundations, principles, and theory. Boston:
Allyn and Bacon.
Bernath, Ulrich and Vidal, Martine. (2006). “The Theories and the Theorists: Why Theory is Important for Research”)
A rose by any other name is still a rose
Here is a quote I saw that seems appropriate for teaching leadership to children.
“In anyArmy [organization/team/family], in any time, the purpose of ‘leadership’ is to get the job done. Competent military [organization/team/family] leaders develop trust, focus effort, clarify objectives, inspire confidence, build teams, set the example, keep hope alive, rationalize sacrifice. For this century or the next, there is little mystery about requisite leader competencies or behaviors. Desirable qualities and skills may vary a bit, but the basic formula for leader success has changed little in 2,000 years.”
~Lieutenant-General (ret’d) Walter F. Ulmer Jr., US Army
With the explosion of information on the internet, and the tendency of profit-seeking organizations to relabel a 2,000 year old leadership principle so they can sell their program or book, some may be overwhelmed with all the literature on leadership. The core principles have transferred to every organization and job I've had. I have watched coaches on all of our kids teams excel or not at these core principles and competencies. I have watched volunteer organizations succeed or not as they applied these principles. Leadership is simpler than many today would have you think.
Bill Cosby used to joke that only in the modern world do we seemingly have to buy books on how to have babies. People have been successfully having babies for thousands of years, but we need books to do it right. The crowd laughs.
Is it not similar with leadership. It has been practiced and passed on for thousands of years. Some organizations have spent more time observing and articulating its principles. Some people pay more attention to the historical record and the cumulative wisdom to-date to their advantage.
Become aware and apply what you learn. That is the basic improvement process. Form a hypothesis, conduct tests within your sphere of influence, objectively look at the results, share what you learn. It is the scientific method applied to leadership development. Instead of making many small course corrections as we go, many of us reflexively operate from our "scripting" programmed into our RAM memories by the regular examples of adults in our immediate childhood environment and simply replay our scripts without thinking through our methods or evaluating the degree of effectiveness. Would you want to fly on an airline whose pilots left it all to the autopilot without checking how they are doing? Do we want to leave our leadership effectiveness to our unevaluated scripting?
So we can test ideas on our own, but is this the best course? We can learn all the lessons on our own, or we can take advantage of those lessons learned from previous leaders, standing on the shoulders of giants, as Thomas Edison said.
If we apply the "we've evolved beyond them" thinking to human behavior lessons of the past, do we not miss out on vicarious learning and have to relearn lessons for ourselves? This is a method, but less effective. Human behaviors seem slow to change. Literature from ancient times contains examples of almost the same challenges with human behaviors then as we seem to have now. Hmmm.
Even if we call it XYZ today instead of ABC then, does the underlying principle still apply? Is it still relevant?
I have read countless articles that decry the "military style" of leadership, and yet when you get past stereotypes of yelling "go go go" and ordering people around and into the specifics of which leadership principles work effectively and which perform to some lessor degree, I think Walter Ulmer is correct. The core set hasn't changed much. Leadership practitioners have varying degrees of success with various styles in various circumstances, and yet often the value of principles over expediency is that they stand the test of time as reliable heuristics.
“In any
~Lieutenant-General (ret’d) Walter F. Ulmer Jr., US Army
With the explosion of information on the internet, and the tendency of profit-seeking organizations to relabel a 2,000 year old leadership principle so they can sell their program or book, some may be overwhelmed with all the literature on leadership. The core principles have transferred to every organization and job I've had. I have watched coaches on all of our kids teams excel or not at these core principles and competencies. I have watched volunteer organizations succeed or not as they applied these principles. Leadership is simpler than many today would have you think.
Bill Cosby used to joke that only in the modern world do we seemingly have to buy books on how to have babies. People have been successfully having babies for thousands of years, but we need books to do it right. The crowd laughs.
Is it not similar with leadership. It has been practiced and passed on for thousands of years. Some organizations have spent more time observing and articulating its principles. Some people pay more attention to the historical record and the cumulative wisdom to-date to their advantage.
Become aware and apply what you learn. That is the basic improvement process. Form a hypothesis, conduct tests within your sphere of influence, objectively look at the results, share what you learn. It is the scientific method applied to leadership development. Instead of making many small course corrections as we go, many of us reflexively operate from our "scripting" programmed into our RAM memories by the regular examples of adults in our immediate childhood environment and simply replay our scripts without thinking through our methods or evaluating the degree of effectiveness. Would you want to fly on an airline whose pilots left it all to the autopilot without checking how they are doing? Do we want to leave our leadership effectiveness to our unevaluated scripting?
So we can test ideas on our own, but is this the best course? We can learn all the lessons on our own, or we can take advantage of those lessons learned from previous leaders, standing on the shoulders of giants, as Thomas Edison said.
If we apply the "we've evolved beyond them" thinking to human behavior lessons of the past, do we not miss out on vicarious learning and have to relearn lessons for ourselves? This is a method, but less effective. Human behaviors seem slow to change. Literature from ancient times contains examples of almost the same challenges with human behaviors then as we seem to have now. Hmmm.
Even if we call it XYZ today instead of ABC then, does the underlying principle still apply? Is it still relevant?
I have read countless articles that decry the "military style" of leadership, and yet when you get past stereotypes of yelling "go go go" and ordering people around and into the specifics of which leadership principles work effectively and which perform to some lessor degree, I think Walter Ulmer is correct. The core set hasn't changed much. Leadership practitioners have varying degrees of success with various styles in various circumstances, and yet often the value of principles over expediency is that they stand the test of time as reliable heuristics.
The interpersonal domain
The interpersonal domain of one of the domains used in instructional design. The other three are cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
It seems that because leadership is interpersonal that this domain applies well.
It seems that because leadership is interpersonal that this domain applies well.
| Seeking or giving information | Asking for or giving explanations, facts, or other supplemental information from or to other individuals |
|---|---|
| Proposing | To formally put forward an idea |
| Building and Supporting | To further a project as a member of a team; to provide positive feedback; to assist another person toward accomplishing a collective goal |
| Shutting out or Bringing in | Excluding or involving members of a group or team in the exchange of ideas both verbal and written |
| Disagreeing | Having a contradictory opinion |
| Summarizing | To provide an abbreviated version of the original content |
Saturday, July 3, 2010
I just learned where the Woodbadge leadership principles came from
My Dad got his woodbadge award as a Scouting leader. As an adult I was flipping through his old materials and found the leadership principles taught at woodbadge.
I thought they were great.
* Getting and Giving Information
* Understanding Group Needs and Characteristics
* Knowing and Understanding Group Resources
* Controlling the Group
* Counseling
* Setting the Example
* Representing the Group
* Planning
* Evaluation
* Sharing Leadership
* Manager of Learning
Then this week I discovered that the BSA adopted them from www.whitestag.org. I was going through the white stag site and thought they had borrowed from the BSA. But on reading their history page
I thought they were great.
* Getting and Giving Information
* Understanding Group Needs and Characteristics
* Knowing and Understanding Group Resources
* Controlling the Group
* Counseling
* Setting the Example
* Representing the Group
* Planning
* Evaluation
* Sharing Leadership
* Manager of Learning
Then this week I discovered that the BSA adopted them from www.whitestag.org. I was going through the white stag site and thought they had borrowed from the BSA. But on reading their history page
Natural Consequences Versus Coaching and Correcting
The scouts are preparing for a 50-mile hike. We went on a practice hike this week with them. The scoutmaster has gotten caught up in the economic downturn and can't spend as much time as he otherwise would. So the adults that can take the week off to go on this 50-mile hike went with the kids on this practice hike. They seem to lean more to natural consequences rather than coaching and correcting. Don't get me wrong, they will inspect the kids gear a few days before the trip, they will bring backup first aid gear, etc. They just see this as an opportunity for these young men to learn.
Although this may scare some in our litigious society, consider that native American tribes often sent boys this age into the woods for their rites of passage or test of manhood. Ages 12-17 are good ages for high adventure.
The troop I was in as a scout had 40 boys and 5 assistant scout masters. That troop gave out packing lists, then had a back pack inspection to be sure each person had all they needed. Then we went. That troop erred on the side of too much coaching and correcting, perhaps, but we still had one boy forget the food he was supposed to bring and another forget the cooking utensils he was supposed to bring. I don't remember being too worried about any of the logistics until we all discovered the utensils missing. Then we carved some sticks and used those instead. It was more about the adventure of it all, as I recall. One kid fell into a stream and got his clothing soaked. A fire dried his stuff out with only a few hours delay.
This troop has about 12 scouts going on the trip with two adult leaders on the hike and 2 more meeting them at two places on the route. They tend more towards natural consequences than my boyhood troop did.
So as the boys, as typical boys, seem to not pay attention to the packing list during the practice hike the consequences were minor because it was in town. One boy had a pack that was half his body weight. Another had hardly anything in it. No worries, because they were home in a few hours that night. However, when they leave on the 50-miler, they will drive multiple hours away and be gone for a week.
So is it better to let them learn by natural consequences should they forget things? Well, there seems to be some degree of learning by natural consequences no matter how much you try to help prepare them. The scout motto, Be Prepared, is sometimes thought through more than other times. Also part of scouting is to learn some of these things by your own experience. My own experiences in Scouting taught me much by mistakes, both in stuff to take and in leadership gaffes. We can then apply those lessons for the remainder of our lives.
So I think the boundary to allowing natural consequence is the boy's safety. They seem safe so far. They are buying the food today and will split it up Wed night at the scout meeting. It is mostly dry and dehydrated foods for such a long hike. They have been told repeatedly to not bring just cotton socks, but some of them may learn by the blisters they get about that choice. The leaders will have a first aid kit with moleskin inside to aid those painful blisters. Some blisters are inevitable on a hike this long anyway. It is a great personal learning opportunity for each young man. They get to develop their own experiences and live with the consequences of their own choices.
They will be at 6,000 to 8,000 feet in elevation, so cold could be a problem, but it is July. It only drops down to 34 degrees F (1 deg C) at night where they are going. This morning, in early July it was 44 degrees F (6 deg C) and we live about 40 minutes drive from the mountains.
Some of what we learn best in life is by the mistakes we make. For me it was easier to take the consequence to an action than to hear a well-intentioned adult tell me "I told you so." I think learning by mistakes is the purpose of the U.S. Army's National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California too. They want the mistakes to be made in a "safe" environment so lessons are learned without injury of loss of life and less mistakes are made in real operations. So for these boys, there are safety backups with the adults, but the prevailing philosophy in Scouting's guided learning is to let the boys lead and coach as needed. Natural consequences are excellent teachers and not soon forgotten.
So when tempted to over-correct and to "ensure a perfect trip" consider how that approach could lead to less engagement and less opportunity for people to learn for themselves. If there is significant danger, then a firmer approach may be warranted. Give the benefit of the doubt to letting the natural consequences do the teaching where possible. Quietly have backup, first aid, or other reserve resources as necessary or prudent. This generation needs to learn some of these lessons too. We adults developed our own heuristics or rules of thumb for succeeding at various endeavors. Our job as leaders is not to ensure they get the activity 100% correct, but rather to set up opportunities for learning and discussion of those lessons (reflection). When they learn for themselves, they build a portfolio of experiences that allows them to get to the next level of success at their next, more challenging endeavor. Allowing natural consequences gives them space to make significant choices and live with the impact.
Although this may scare some in our litigious society, consider that native American tribes often sent boys this age into the woods for their rites of passage or test of manhood. Ages 12-17 are good ages for high adventure.
The troop I was in as a scout had 40 boys and 5 assistant scout masters. That troop gave out packing lists, then had a back pack inspection to be sure each person had all they needed. Then we went. That troop erred on the side of too much coaching and correcting, perhaps, but we still had one boy forget the food he was supposed to bring and another forget the cooking utensils he was supposed to bring. I don't remember being too worried about any of the logistics until we all discovered the utensils missing. Then we carved some sticks and used those instead. It was more about the adventure of it all, as I recall. One kid fell into a stream and got his clothing soaked. A fire dried his stuff out with only a few hours delay.
This troop has about 12 scouts going on the trip with two adult leaders on the hike and 2 more meeting them at two places on the route. They tend more towards natural consequences than my boyhood troop did.
So as the boys, as typical boys, seem to not pay attention to the packing list during the practice hike the consequences were minor because it was in town. One boy had a pack that was half his body weight. Another had hardly anything in it. No worries, because they were home in a few hours that night. However, when they leave on the 50-miler, they will drive multiple hours away and be gone for a week.
So is it better to let them learn by natural consequences should they forget things? Well, there seems to be some degree of learning by natural consequences no matter how much you try to help prepare them. The scout motto, Be Prepared, is sometimes thought through more than other times. Also part of scouting is to learn some of these things by your own experience. My own experiences in Scouting taught me much by mistakes, both in stuff to take and in leadership gaffes. We can then apply those lessons for the remainder of our lives.
So I think the boundary to allowing natural consequence is the boy's safety. They seem safe so far. They are buying the food today and will split it up Wed night at the scout meeting. It is mostly dry and dehydrated foods for such a long hike. They have been told repeatedly to not bring just cotton socks, but some of them may learn by the blisters they get about that choice. The leaders will have a first aid kit with moleskin inside to aid those painful blisters. Some blisters are inevitable on a hike this long anyway. It is a great personal learning opportunity for each young man. They get to develop their own experiences and live with the consequences of their own choices.
They will be at 6,000 to 8,000 feet in elevation, so cold could be a problem, but it is July. It only drops down to 34 degrees F (1 deg C) at night where they are going. This morning, in early July it was 44 degrees F (6 deg C) and we live about 40 minutes drive from the mountains.
Some of what we learn best in life is by the mistakes we make. For me it was easier to take the consequence to an action than to hear a well-intentioned adult tell me "I told you so." I think learning by mistakes is the purpose of the U.S. Army's National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California too. They want the mistakes to be made in a "safe" environment so lessons are learned without injury of loss of life and less mistakes are made in real operations. So for these boys, there are safety backups with the adults, but the prevailing philosophy in Scouting's guided learning is to let the boys lead and coach as needed. Natural consequences are excellent teachers and not soon forgotten.
So when tempted to over-correct and to "ensure a perfect trip" consider how that approach could lead to less engagement and less opportunity for people to learn for themselves. If there is significant danger, then a firmer approach may be warranted. Give the benefit of the doubt to letting the natural consequences do the teaching where possible. Quietly have backup, first aid, or other reserve resources as necessary or prudent. This generation needs to learn some of these lessons too. We adults developed our own heuristics or rules of thumb for succeeding at various endeavors. Our job as leaders is not to ensure they get the activity 100% correct, but rather to set up opportunities for learning and discussion of those lessons (reflection). When they learn for themselves, they build a portfolio of experiences that allows them to get to the next level of success at their next, more challenging endeavor. Allowing natural consequences gives them space to make significant choices and live with the impact.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Personal experiences distilled into nuggets versus large-scale studies and citations
Some authors make their case for evidence-based advice and sound research. I appreciate it where I can find it. I also submit that personal experience is an additional form of evidence.
Some replies to my posts have asked for citations about me adding my opinions. My life experiences have informed my current way of thinking and it continues to change. I am not in the business of doing academic studies at this stage of life. I am living it and trying to teach my own kids to do it too.
Those that find a ring of truth in what I say are welcome to use it. Those that think I am way off base, are free to ignore what I say and follow their own opinions. I am open and constantly looking for what works in life, whether it is researched and cited or just off the top of someone's head.
I often form a hypothesis about a particular leadership idea, test it and let the results I observe inform whether that idea or method goes into my leadership toolbox or not. My results are within my own sphere of influence and are necessarily limited. I have conducted many such 'experiments' in the 'laboratories' of organizations whether volunteers or paid. I have been in organizational leadership roles for years and have tested much. Leadership is a big subject and has many situational variances, so not all ideas apply in all situations, but as I have searched for truths that transfer across specific situational boundaries and applied the knowledge I have found some things more effective than other things. This is what I hope to share over time. Some of my posts will be less useful than others, I'm sure.
Documenting fully with statistically valid sample data sets is for others to do. The children are growing too quickly for that full process right now. For now, I am time constrained. So I'm not opposed to the research of others, I just don't have the time to be as rigorous in my own experiments.
Some replies to my posts have asked for citations about me adding my opinions. My life experiences have informed my current way of thinking and it continues to change. I am not in the business of doing academic studies at this stage of life. I am living it and trying to teach my own kids to do it too.
Those that find a ring of truth in what I say are welcome to use it. Those that think I am way off base, are free to ignore what I say and follow their own opinions. I am open and constantly looking for what works in life, whether it is researched and cited or just off the top of someone's head.
I often form a hypothesis about a particular leadership idea, test it and let the results I observe inform whether that idea or method goes into my leadership toolbox or not. My results are within my own sphere of influence and are necessarily limited. I have conducted many such 'experiments' in the 'laboratories' of organizations whether volunteers or paid. I have been in organizational leadership roles for years and have tested much. Leadership is a big subject and has many situational variances, so not all ideas apply in all situations, but as I have searched for truths that transfer across specific situational boundaries and applied the knowledge I have found some things more effective than other things. This is what I hope to share over time. Some of my posts will be less useful than others, I'm sure.
Documenting fully with statistically valid sample data sets is for others to do. The children are growing too quickly for that full process right now. For now, I am time constrained. So I'm not opposed to the research of others, I just don't have the time to be as rigorous in my own experiments.
12 ways of leader thinking - does this apply to kids? Some of it.
There was an interesting post in the Harvard Business Review called 12 Things Good Bosses Believe.
It lists 12 ways of leader thinking that are in addition to skill and knowledge.
To try to put it in terms older children may better understand, I will modify his 12 a bit. Most kids leadership is not based on organizational position, and even when it is, it is more strongly affected by interpersonal influence.
1. I have a flawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to be led or influenced by me.
2. My success — and that of followers — depends largely on being the master of obvious and mundane things, not on magical, obscure, or breakthrough ideas or methods.
3. Having ambitious and well-defined goals is important, but don't focus so much on them that you forget to encourage small wins that help people to make a little progress every day. This is how you get to the goal together.
4. One of the most important, and most difficult, parts of my leader role is to strike the delicate balance between being too assertive and not assertive enough. This takes time to get right.
5. Sometimes I have to keep my followers focused when other things distract or affect them.
6. I strive to be confident enough to convince people that I can lead, but humble enough to realize that I am often going to be wrong.
7. I may need to convince others I am right, and also listen as if I am wrong. As I get better at leadership, I teach followers to do the same thing.
8. One of the best tests of my leadership — and my group — is "what happens after people make a mistake?"
9. Part of my role is to encourage followers to generate and test all kinds of new ideas. Then I help to winnow the many down to the few we can or should do. This means dropping the bad ideas and most of the good ideas, too.
10. It is important to eliminate the negative and to accentuate the positive.
11. How I do things is as important as what I do.
12. Because I lead, I am at great risk of acting like an insensitive jerk — and not realizing it.
With kids, it may be more feasible to ask them to watch for manifestations of these beliefs in leaders within their sphere of influence such as teachers, coaches, youth group leaders, parents, friends parents, and so on. Then after letting them share what they have noticed, ask what they plan to do when they lead or influence. This is more sowing stage than reaping stage with children, in my opinion.
It lists 12 ways of leader thinking that are in addition to skill and knowledge.
To try to put it in terms older children may better understand, I will modify his 12 a bit. Most kids leadership is not based on organizational position, and even when it is, it is more strongly affected by interpersonal influence.
1. I have a flawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to be led or influenced by me.
2. My success — and that of followers — depends largely on being the master of obvious and mundane things, not on magical, obscure, or breakthrough ideas or methods.
3. Having ambitious and well-defined goals is important, but don't focus so much on them that you forget to encourage small wins that help people to make a little progress every day. This is how you get to the goal together.
4. One of the most important, and most difficult, parts of my leader role is to strike the delicate balance between being too assertive and not assertive enough. This takes time to get right.
5. Sometimes I have to keep my followers focused when other things distract or affect them.
6. I strive to be confident enough to convince people that I can lead, but humble enough to realize that I am often going to be wrong.
7. I may need to convince others I am right, and also listen as if I am wrong. As I get better at leadership, I teach followers to do the same thing.
8. One of the best tests of my leadership — and my group — is "what happens after people make a mistake?"
9. Part of my role is to encourage followers to generate and test all kinds of new ideas. Then I help to winnow the many down to the few we can or should do. This means dropping the bad ideas and most of the good ideas, too.
10. It is important to eliminate the negative and to accentuate the positive.
11. How I do things is as important as what I do.
12. Because I lead, I am at great risk of acting like an insensitive jerk — and not realizing it.
With kids, it may be more feasible to ask them to watch for manifestations of these beliefs in leaders within their sphere of influence such as teachers, coaches, youth group leaders, parents, friends parents, and so on. Then after letting them share what they have noticed, ask what they plan to do when they lead or influence. This is more sowing stage than reaping stage with children, in my opinion.
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