During my
time in Scouting, I have kept one thing centered in my mind, these young boys
can grow to be great men. I really
believe the old thinking that you can be anything you want to be. I recently heard a commentator say that
studies show a growing number of adults today do not believe their children
will have the same advantages as they had.
That may be true, however, there will always be those who rise to the
top and change the world as it is.
Always has been; always will be.
I also know that it is what we
help our young people to believe that will shape their future, not what we give
them or do for them. Scouting teaching the young person to care
for themselves and to be prepared for life. It is not a group that hides,
protects and shelters young people. Our goal is to help them be all they can be
and to learn to make the life they choose, and not to expect it to be handed to
them. We need to help young people to
learn three main principles in becoming success-minded people.
“Some men dream of worthy accomplishments, while others stay awake and
do them.”
– Unknown
1) Learn all you can learn
Adults,
as well as children, have concluded that all education comes from
school. If they are going to learn, they
must learn it in school and the more school somehow equals more education. That is not how learning happens. Our "education"
should begin in early childhood and end
at the grave. As Albert Einstein said,
"Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease at
death." We learn from every
experience we have, every person we meet, every book we read.
When we teach people that all
education comes from school, we limit them in their experience and stop their
ability to learn. I believe in education
and support schools and higher education, however, they are only a part of
learning - a small part. The person who
learns how to learn can achieve anything they want to in life. As actor and
Eagle Scout, Mike Rowe said, “We must change how we define, a good education.”
2) Do all you can do
When learning is stopped or
limited, so is a person's ability to grow and become what they dream to
be. If you are taught that your
education stops when you are out of school, you will find your education very
short indeed. Sadly, many people believe this and settle in
life for far less than they can
achieve. We must help young people to
understand that they were born to be extraordinary and to do extraordinary
things. Scouting offers an endless ability to learn new and wonderful things.
The only limits to a Scouts learning are the ones they place on themselves.
Excellence does not happen by
accident. It must be a habit that a
person chooses to have in their life.
Aristotle said, " We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence,
therefore, is not an act, but a habit."
This habit comes from learning never to settle for the mediocre or just right. One of the most damaging things we have
taught our children is that there are no winners. This forces everyone to the lowest point, not
the highest. There are winners and it is
up to us to teach our children to be a winner.
To do that we must follow the advice of author Zig Ziglar who said,
"You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to
win, and expect to win."
3) Be all you can be
It all leads back to the old
teaching, you can be anything you want to be.
Tell this to our young, believe it of our young and help them see it in us as well. Never think you are too old to set the
example of success. Children learn their
habits from us, so let's set good habits for them to learn. Be a person of good character who does not
just talk about the Scout Law but who live the Scout Law. Be a person who works hard and takes care of
themselves rather than depending on the government or the kindness of
others. Be a person of faith and show
the reality of Christ in your life.
Our young people will be the
leaders of tomorrow. Not maybe our leaders WILL
BE our leaders. If we want a better
tomorrow we need to give them a better today.
Help them be all they can be and teach them to care for others more than
themselves. It is a simple, but profound
truth, to quote Zig Ziglar once more, "You
can have anything in life you want, as long as you help other people to get
what they want."
You matter! You matter to the
world and to yourself. Remember to be
your best, love God, have good manners, achieve the unknown and change your
world.
Scouting Out of Uniform is a personal
blog based on the lessons learned from Scouting that relate to personal
development and success principles and is not an official site of The Boy
Scouts of America. John Patrick Hickey does not represent or speak for the
Scouting program; however, he does completely support and encourages Scouting
for both young and old. John Patrick Hickey is an author, speaker, Personal
Development Coach, and proud Scouter. To
read more from John Patrick Hickey or to get his books, training and book him
to speak to your church, business or group, visit our website at www.johnpatrickhickey.com. © 2019 John Patrick Hickey
No comments:
Post a Comment