Program - NYLT 4

4. Toolbox of Leadership Skills

Each skill is summarized on the memory tips card as follows: 

1. Vision—Goals—Planning: Creating Future Success

The participants learn the process of creating a powerful vision, and then building goals and plans to accomplish that vision.

2. SMART Goals—Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely

This method of setting goals keeps them tight and focused, and thus ensures that the goals can be accomplished by the youth and the patrol. 

3. Planning and Problem Solving Tool—What, How, When, Who

Setting priorities, assigning tasks, deciding how to actually carry out a plan are simplified for the youth with this easy-to-follow planning guide. 

4. Assessment Tool—SSC—Start, Stop, Continue

SSC provides a nonthreatening and highly effective tool to assess progress of a team and/or an individual. By looking for new things to try, stopping actions that are not effective, and ending on a "what are we doing well" note, this tool keeps projects (and behavior) on track. 

5. Teaching EDGE(TM)—Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable

The Teaching EDGE(TM) tool is a simple four-step process used for teaching any skill.

·    Explain—The trainer explains how something is done.

·    Demonstrate—The trainer demonstrates while explaining again.

·    Guide—The learner tries the skill while the trainer guides him through it.

·     Enable—The learner works on his own under the eye of the trainer.

6. Leading EDGE(TM)—Matching the leader's behavior is to the team's stage

As described above, all teams (and individuals) go through stages when facing any new task or project. The Scouts learn to diagnose the stage that their team is in and then use the most effective leadership style for that stage. 

Leadership behavior depends on the group:

• EXPLAIN when the group is in the FORMING phase.
• DEMONSTRATE when the group is in the STORMING phase.
• GUIDE when the group is in the NORMING phase.
• ENABLE when the group is in the PERFORMING phase. 

7. Valuing People—ROPE—Reach out, Organize, Practice, Experience

Recognizing diversity allows the youth to learn to appreciate the differences and leverage the strengths of all of the team's members. 

8. Conflict Resolution Tool—EAR—Express, Address, Resolve

No one likes conflict, and yet all of us face conflict at some point in our lives. Learning to effectively resolve conflict is a lifelong skill that many people are not very good at. NYLT teaches youths how to listen to all sides, address each party's concerns, and then work to effectively resolve the conflict. 

9. Ethical Decisions—Right vs. Wrong, Right vs. Right, Trivial

We face ethical decisions every day. Some are easy to resolve, clearly right or wrong. The NYLT course goes a step further, teaching the participants how to use the Scout Oath and Law to make ethical decisions in situations where there seem to be multiple right answers. 

10. Communication—MaSeR—Message, Sender, Receiver

Communication is essential to all, yet so often we fail at it. Why? We teach the participants the steps of effective two-way communication so that misunderstandings are avoided and real communication occurs. As with all of the other tools, this is a skill that will provide lifelong value.