The Importance of Leadership and Teamwork - Essay Example

Joe Hickman Essay "C" I have heard that each of the astronauts who landed on the moon was an Eagle Scout. If this is true, it should be clear why one of the accomplishments of which I am most proud is becoming an Eagle Scout myself. My time leading up to this special achievement at Troop 642 provided me with the opportunity to learn skills that will be valuable to me throughought my college career and the rest of my life. These skills are summed up in the Scout Oath, which goes like this: On my honor, I will do my best To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; To help other people at all times; To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.

The values provided by the oath gives me confidence and strength, not only in my physical body, but in my mind as well. The most important effect of these values is good leadership, the core foundation of scouting, which has given me the knowledge and ability to lead my peers. Leadership is not just about telling people what to do, but about guiding teammates with positive attitudes, regardless of whether the situation is a sporting game or everyday life. I have already applied these leadership skills within my high school baseball teams and when working summer jobs.

The importance of leadership and teamwork were impressed on my from the beginning of my scouting days. Through hard work and dedication to my troop, I became one of the youngest Patrol leaders at age thirteen. This position came with many responsibilities. I experienced having to provide meals for an entire patrol and their dads at the monthly campouts. The tricky part about cooking in the wilderness is you do not have the same equipment you may find in a kitchen. Additionally, no processed meals are allowed at the campouts; everything is made from scratch.

The entire meal is a process, from finding firewood to preparing the uncooked food. In other words, cooking is a group endeavor. As patrol leader, I assigned younger and older scouts to do the various tasks, and ensured everyone worked together. I had to learn quickly how to lead, or my patrol would have failed and broken down. In 2009, I became an Assistant Scoutmaster, the last position a Scout must hold before he can transition from a Life Scout to an Eagle Scout. In this position, my leadership duties grew.

Instead of just one small patrol, I was put in charge of approximately two hundred people at a summer camp. I had to oversee various activities, not just cooking, and make sure everybody got along. One of the other great things Scouts taught me is the necessity and beauty of diversity. In this large number of people, there were boys of many different races and with many different religions. Learning how to successfully lead this mix of people was a true life lesson that taught me how to live and thrive in a multiculturally diverse environment.

In addition to my experiences in the Scout troop, I have worked as a youth camp councilor for the past four summers. I was responsible for eight- and nine-year-old boys, who sometimes proved to be extremely challenging. They were filled with energy, and had attention spans of two minutse on a good day. Although many of the camp councilors had difficulties within their groups, I was able to use the leadership and teamwork skills I learned from Scouts. Thanks to this, my group was not only very organized but had a lot of fun.

These experiences have made me resolve to go through life seeing with "scouting eyes," using what I learned to better myself constantly. Although it’s true that no single thing or accomplishment can make a person perfect, I am convinced that, with what I learned in boy scouts, I can lead a healthy and stimulating life, learning from and giving back to my community. Now that I am an Eagle Scout, I am eager to put my skills to good use at a University, where I hope to further my leadership abilities and help foster a joy of teamwork and diversity among my peers.