Leadership Lessons from the Girl Scouts: The River

Leadership Lessons from the Girl Scouts: The River
By Fran Lyon-Dugin

To say we are in strange and unfamiliar territory is an understatement. Here in Minnesota, we are in the midst of an evolving series of social measures – stay-at-home orders to mandated business closures and other restrictions – designed to manage the spread of COVID-19. We are in a stunned state of making sense of new ways of living, working, and in some cases, even existing under unfamiliar and frightening conditions. We are turning both inward to find our own strengths, and outward toward community to support one another, trying to tout “we are in this together”, while also at times feeling quite alone. We are looking for information and answers on a daily basis, and we are looking for people who have the knowledge, qualities and, in terms that we at Ethical Leaders in Action use, Virtues, that will help us through this. In other words, we are looking for leadership.

There is a story from my teenage years that comes to mind. I was on a canoe trip with a small group of Girl Scouts. There were six of us in two canoes, making our way along the Wolf River in Wisconsin. There was a girl that we all looked up to as a very experienced Girl Scout. She had been to many camps, had many badges and skills, but was also rather boastful and obnoxious at times. Regardless of her demeanor, however, we were rather in awe of her experience and saw her as a leader. One day as we passed under a railroad bridge, one of the canoes got caught in a cross-current and was sucked right under the water. A boat full of gear and three girls, including the “experienced one”, went in all directions, and the canoe tossed and turned down the river. I was in the other boat and went into action, like the others, trying to calm and reassure the stunned girls, ensure their safety, and grab the gear as best we could, while also trying to wrestle the empty canoe. What I remember to this day is how the “experienced girl” we looked up to totally lost it! In this time of total turmoil, she could not rally her skills, see the way forward, or overcome her fears in order to get over the necessary hurdles facing her and her companions. All were safe in the end, and we only lost a few hats and sunglasses, as I recall. What I remember most vividly, however, is that I left that experience with more confidence in my own leadership abilities, and a realization that those we view as leaders don’t always measure up to the task – or our expectations – when the going gets rough.

A lot has been written about leadership in a crisis in these past few months. Educators, business consultants, psychologists, and others have weighed in on what good leadership during a crisis looks like. They have compared genders, styles, actions, outlooks, behaviors….all trying to pinpoint what will best result in a calm, skillful and guiding hand to the other side of the huge chasm we face. When I look at the ELA Virtues of Ethical Leadership, I think all are important, but three of the Virtues stand out as the ones most needed in a crisis: competence, clarity and courage. (You can find complete explanations of these virtues in the Resources section of our website, under Quick Reference Guides.)

If you listen to what people are saying these days, they are craving knowledge and judgment from leaders, and this is COMPETENCE. “Listen to the scientists”, they say. We want the truth about the disease, its transmission, and how the experts think we should manage it, as well as suggestions from them about how we can adjust our behavior to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe. We want those making policies and rules to respect those experts, to collaborate actively with them, and to incorporate their wisdom and advice.

Developing a vision and creating the road forward requires CLARITY, the ability to “see and share what is truly important”. The facts need to be examined hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and used to put together a path that can be understood and followed, even if it has to be regularly tweaked and refined with new information. That path also needs to reflect our individual and shared values as human beings, as citizens of a community, as members of a democratic society. It needs to reflect careful consideration of the balance between the forces of safety and economic realities.

Finally, COURAGE is needed to overcome fear and reassure an often-panicked public that we are going to get through this, together. That courage needs to be consistent, steady, humble and authentic; otherwise, it just comes across as boasting. People are choosing leaders to listen to on the news who may not even be in their home state or city, those who have garnered their trust with the qualities that they value in a leader. I’m guessing that if pressed to list those qualities, that competence, clarity and courage would be there.

We welcome your comments and thoughts on what leadership qualities you value, and how you see them shining through in our society right now.

We will get through this together. Stay safe and stay healthy.

At Ethical Leaders in Action we believe that most, if not all people, can develop themselves to play leadership roles in many different spheres both large and small. The foundation of this development process is a short but powerful list of virtues which can be developed and improved through conscious effort. For more information feel free to take the Virtues of Ethical Leadership Self Inventory (VELSI) which breaks these virtues down into features that can be individually developed. The results of the VELSI come with a quick reference guide to help you understand how the virtues and their individual features fit together. https://ethinact.com/velsi/

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