Burning out

[RMcCown]

 

Howdy folks

I'd like to start a discussion on how to avoid burning out when you don't have enough volunteers to do much of the heavy lifting.

 

First, my own history and where our Troop is. We have about 65 registered/45 active scouts. I'm the SM, I have 3 ASMs, and one of them is also TC Chair. We have about 3 or 4 trip honchos that help out once in a while, and maybe half a dozen parents that go on trips occasionally. We have a treasurer, MB coordinator, and a permitting/training coordinator. Our advancement chair works 'once in a while' (translation, maybe once a month).

 

Thats all for positions we've been able to fill. I've tried for two years to get a fundraising chair, an Outing chair, and an Equipment chair, to no avail. The heavy lifting for this falls on myself, my ASM/TC Chair, and the other two ASMs. Consequently, its not getting done like it should. I just spent a bunch of time with the QM going over gear, trying to figure out what we need.

 

Our troop is boy-led (it wasn't, but we turned that battleship around over about 3 years!) so we don't have interference, more the contrary, we don't have enough volunteers to get stuff done.

 

Currently, I'm honcho for our Philmont Trip, and for 4 of the training hikes coming up. I'm also coordinating the Eagle COH we're having in a couple of weeks. I'm also in charge of Troopmaster, and I'm the Webmaster for our site. I've been working with the town's Natural resources commission for various projects around town. All this combined with the normal SM stuff of mentoring, guiding, etc etc.

 

In a nutshell, we're drowning. One of my ASMs is being deployed in the fall, so Ill lose him. I've asked a couple of involved parents (dads and a moms) if they'd be interested in being an ASM, or on the TC, but all have said that they're too busy. We've put out a general cry for help a number of times in the last year, and only managed to get a honcho or two for a trip. No long term committment.

 

What does the Great Scouter.com Brain Trust have for advice?

 

YIS

Bob McCown

Scoutmaster, Troop 132, Concord MA

[FScouter]

My comment is that you don't need any more volunteers. The troop already has a Scoutmaster, a fundraising person, an outings person, an equipment person, and a webmaster. Why fill positions that are already filled?

 

If those positions were not already filled, I'd go to the troop committee chairman and insist that he select and recruit individuals to fill those positions, which is his most important function.

[RMcCown]

FScouter: Maybe my message isn't clear enough, I did ramble a bit. We DONT have a fundraising chair, an outing chair, an equipment chair, or a webmaster. All of this has been falling on myself and the ASMs. The TC chair and I have TRIED to recruit people, but nobody is interested. That's our problem.

[Venividi]

RM,

 

I think that FScouters point is that all those positions are filled - by you. As long as the job is getting done, it is unlikely that anyone else will volunteer. My advice is to stop doing them.

You may be able to force the issue by:

not having any fundraisers (hits the parents in the pocketbook)

cancelled campouts (no one made reservations)

Move the equipment responsibility to the (scout) quartermaster. If the scout is not getting needed support from an equipment chair, a few campouts without the proper equipment is a learning experience.

 

note: I had been in a similar situation, and finally approached it in this manner (i.e., I no longer did those other jobs). It was rough for a few months, but the troop became stronger as a result.

 

good luck , and hang in there. this is a situation calling for tough love, and you will have to resist doing everyone elses job.

[Beavah]

Yah, other option is just to continue da move to youth leadership, eh?

 

Empower your QM. Give him keys, give him a budget, give him the power to purchase gear on his own.

 

Empower your SPL and PLs. Make a boy "honcho" for each trip.

 

Empower your PLC. Have them designate a JASM-level boy as fundraising/service guy.

 

Empower your PLs and Scribe. Have them do all the paperwork for advancement and give out the awards.

 

Takes a lot of work to get the boys up and runnin' in that way, eh? But then it takes a lot of work to get adults up and runnin', too! Thing is, the boys are more likely to really be invested.

 

My experience over the years is that adults perform poorly in outings-related tasks unless they're ASMs and participatin' regularly on outings. Adult Equipment, Outings, etc. folks all fall into that category. They just aren't invested in it the way ASMs and kids are.

 

Beavah

 

[ASM59]

Hello,

 

Like FScouter and Venividi pointed out; as long as you are doing it, you're not likely to get someone to do it if you are doing it yourself. This is very hard, because I'm sure you care about the boys and helping to deliver the program that they have put together to them.

 

I was in a similar situation a couple of years back. I was having to do just about everything, up to and including having my wife come with us on campouts when we didn't have adequate leadership (wife was not a registered leader). I was an ASM with an inactive SM and only two part-time ASM's helping. I finally gave 5 months notice that after summer camp I was going to take a step back from all that I had been doing. I asked that the Troop find someone else to do all that I'd been doing. I said that I would be there to help and advise, but I would not do it all any more. Well, by November, my Son and I had moved to a neighboring Troop because the adults of the old Troop didn't step-up or find someone to step-up. Our July, August, and September outings were cancelled due to lack of Adult's to drive and stay at the campouts. The PLC gave up and didn't even plan October or November outings. I was blamed for killing the Troop by Adults on the committee! We had 20 boys in the Troop and a total of 7 moved to the neighboring Troop with us, where I am working as an ASM still and enjoying myself.

 

Now, I'm not telling you to quit your existing Troop, but you really must find a way to make the other Adults (including registered leaders and parents who are not registered) understand that it is not healthy for the Troop, for you, or your family for you to bear all the responsibility yourself. Seek help from beyond immediate family. For example; maybe one of your Scouts has an Uncle, Aunt, or Grandparents who could get involved. I know of a Troop that has two Grandfathers involved in the Troop. One or both attend most every outing and there is hardly a Troop meeting that you'll not find both of them there.

 

ASM59

[allangr1024]

We have a small troop, that used to be a big troop. We have former adult leaders who came and went with their sons. Some of these dads will come help us on a temporary basis. One guy who said he was done will come back for one campout, or one recruiting event, or one fundraising event.

 

I bet you could find an parent or former parent who is in IT and could do the web site, and come to a committee meeting a month. Of course, as has been suggested, a bright teenager could do this just as well. (never let an adult do what a boy can do). Lots could be done temporarily or on a limited basis.

 

This is a Committee Chairman problem, though. I think you need to have a heart to heart talk with him, and tell him you cannot do these things any more. He needs to do adult recruiting.

 

 

[Stosh]

I'm going with Beavah on this one. What one defines as "boy led" really isn't when one doesn't have enough "adult" leaders to run the show. Somehow that logic simply doesn't hold much water. If the boys are really running the show, there shouldn't be any great need for adults than what are already mentioned. There isn't anything in the rules that says adults have to run the fund raisers. The only thing that is required is two adults at activities. With oneself and 3 ASM, there are twice the required number already.

 

Teach the boys to run the show. They are already there, ready to go. One doesn't need to recruit an adult to do what the boys should be doing.

 

Stosh(This message has been edited by Jblake47)

[ASM59]

Don't forget that you also need at least two adults at each meeting. You also need more than two adults for outings if you count the number of adults needed to drive. Most vehicles hold 5 or 6, so if you have 35 boys going on an outing, you need at least 6 vehicles and drivers.

 

Also, you cannot turn over all adult functions to the boys. For example, you'll not be able to have a boy make reservations at campgrounds or set-up fundraisers. You may even be able to make a case that your youth QM may have a difficult time doing the job by himself without the help of an adult. Unless your QM has a drivers license, he will not be able to get to the store to purchase replacement items and do things like renew the tags on the trailer. Just keeping up with advancements and sign-offs with 45 active boys would be too much for one adult. Again, this is another function that needs to at least have adult supervision for the sign-offs and needs an adult to complete the paperwork and get it to council. I don't think it is realistic to think that you don't need adults; even in a truely boy led Troop. The program is supposed to be "boy led", but is supported by adults.

 

It is hard to turn a Troop that is not boy led into one that is and I give much credit to RMcCown for having worked to do so. Yes it should be boy led because that's how the program is supposed to be. It is also supposed to have adults in certain roles to support the boys, just look at the BSA literature.

 

ASM59

[AnneinMpls]

Good morning!

No one has yet mentioned another resource you have: the fabled and mythical Unit Commissioner!

If you do not know who your UC is, ask at your next roundtable. Having someone from the District come out to talk to your Troop Committee or even your parents can help lend credence to your position that these are critical functions. You, as the SM are a familiar face - and are being taken for granted. Afterall, it's all getting done, right? There's no pain for anyone else. But losing good people is a very real possibility aqnd your UC can help - in fact they want to help long before the situation becomes critical. Get them involved sooner rather than later

Anne in Mpls

[Beavah]

Also, you cannot turn over all adult functions to the boys.

 

Yah, this is true, eh? But I think there's room here, and we have to be careful not to discount the lads too much. I'm not meanin' to pick on ASM59, but I think he gives a bunch of examples of what we often assume boys can't do, but where our assumptions may benefit from reconsideration.

 

For example, I'm not sure why a boy can't make a reservation at a campground. I've known quite a few troops where adults never make campground reservations.

 

I'm not sure why a small group of boys can't set up a fundraiser? Seen plenty of lads and young ladies in crews do it just fine.

 

If the QM can't drive and he needs a car for some reason, I reckon most lads are capable of askin' a friend or a relative. They do it for all da other errands and social engagements, eh?

 

I'm not sure why one adult would be doin' all the signoffs? A lot of units use PL's or older scout instructors to sign T-2-1 at least. Even fillin' out an Advancement Report Form and droppin' it in the mail doesn't seem beyond the abilities of a scout of average intelligence. And I bet the lads would do better at online advancement than most of da adults!

 

Just a different perspective, I guess.

 

B

 

 

 

[Venividi]

Beavah,

I think that depends in part on the age ranges in the troop. A troop composed of 6th and 7th graders will not be as likely to pick up those functions as a troop that has scouts of high school age. I am with you on having a vision of a troop where the scouts do all those things. Next step is identifying the steps to get there - to teach and condition the scouts to take on that responsibility. As an aside from other threads, that is probably harder to do in troops where advancement is given because it is assumed that if a scout didnt fulfill their duties, it is an adult that is at fault.

[ASM59]

Beavah,

 

Yes, I was coming from the perspective of mostly a younger Troop; mostly Jr. High aged boys with a couple of younger High School aged boys. Still, I've seen many cases where a credit card was required for reservations, and if you don't have a driver's license and need to get an adult; well there you go, you've got an adult volunteer... :-)

 

Fundraisers;

In our community, you need permits for almost anything and the city offices will not accept forms from a minor. Not to mention, that most adults don't have enough trust in youth operating without adult supervision.

 

And advancements; I mention only that you should have an adult overseeing sign-offs and you definiately need to have certain "Adult" signatures on the forms to make them legit.

 

In a more perfect world, I'd agree totally with you and would prefer to see all Troop acting more like you say. The truth is that the world around us expects adult supervision and oversight and in fact the BSA program is set up to run with that adult support.

 

ASM59

[Stosh]

Nope, I'm still sticking with my over-adulted units are not good.

 

Getting a parent to sign a fundraiser paperwork isn't going to burn anyone out.

 

Getting a parent to give their kid a ride down to the store to buy something for a troop because their son is QM isn't going to burn anyone out.

 

One of the MAJOR learning dynamics of leadership is problem-solving. If a 14 year-old can figure out how to get to the mall to buy the latest X-Box game, I'm sure they are resourceful enough to demonstrate some leadership in the troop.

 

What I am hearing is all the reasons why boy-led, patrol-method doesn't work. It's a game adults play to keep tabs on the troops. This thread is on burn out because a handful of adults can't run a troop as effectively as hundreds of scouts. This is why troops stay small and why adults burn out.

 

Unless I'm going to sit around all day signing legit paperwork from dawn to dusk, I'm not going to even bat an eye when a boy shows up with the filled in fund-raiser request, the calendar updated, and crews to work the project all in line and all I have to do is sign a piece of paper to authenticate it. Where's the burn out in that process?

 

"I'd like to start a discussion on how to avoid burning out when you don't have enough volunteers to do much of the heavy lifting." Ahhh, that's what the boys are for!!!! One has a ton of them hanging around watching the adults burn out, maybe they ought to help out!

 

One of my boys came to me the other day and said they needed two $25 deposits for a bratwurst/hot dog stand that the local grocery store has for groups to fund raise. They had been speaking with the store mangager as we waited for the other scouts to show up because we were meeting at the store and were shopping for an outing. I stared back at the boy until he asked if we could put the $50 on the shopping tab. I said "Yep, sounds good to me." and with that the heavy lifting was accomplished. I came close to burning out, but I managed to hang on. :^)

 

Stosh

 

[Beavah]

Yes, I was coming from the perspective of mostly a younger Troop; mostly Jr. High aged boys with a couple of younger High School aged boys.

 

Yah, I agree with you and VeniVidi, eh? One of the fun and interestin' challenges of Boy Scouting is to set our level of adult support appropriately. When we have capable kids, we should focus on trainin' the kids and lettin' 'em fly. When they all graduate and go off to jobs and college, or when we have started a new troop, we've got to provide additional support. That's fine, as long as we remember to fade that support out over time.

 

Credit cards are convenient. But I reckon most campgrounds would also take a troop check.

I honestly can't think of very many things the QM would need a car for. There are bikes and buses, eh? And mail order!

And I think it's a fine instructional endeavor for a boy to fill out a city solicitation permit. the SM can sign, he can take it in or mail it or fax it.

Same with tour permits and such.

 

B