Boy Scout Badges and Corner Offices

Like many Baby Boomer boys I joined Boy Scouts when I became of age. For me it was all about doing fun things with my friends. Camping trips were my favorite. One of the many good things that boy scouts does is teach useful, practical skills.

Learning skills was fun: fire making, knot tying, swimming -and all those other skills that one could earn badges for. I was very eager to learn things that interested me, but I was terrible when it came down to earning badges for their own sake. Let's just say I never made Eagle Scout.

Some people are really motivated by those badges. I'm not criticizing them. It's just something that never worked for me. Scouts who did pursue those goals usually did quite well in life. A young man who can fulfill the Eagle Scout requirements is capable of achieving many other things. He can set goals for himself, figure out what's needed to succeed and then make it happen.

If I was going to hire someone I'd hire someone who was an Eagle Scout. He'd keep his word and get the job done. When I was on jury duty one of my fellow jurors was an Eagle Scout. We made him Jury Foreman and he rose to the challenge. It's no wonder that so many Eagle Scouts do well in the business world and end up in the corner office.

Then there are folks who are more internally driven. The only “badges” we need are the ones we award ourselves. Nobody can see those. Perks like rank, money and the corner office are poor motivators. That's not to say some of us don't achieve those things, but they are not what motivated us to succeed. When our internal compass swings to another direction, the badges of rank and status are easily left behind.

-Sixbears