1. Who Are These People? 1

2. Food for Thought
“If a fisherman baits his hook with the kind of food that he likes himself, he will not catch many, certainly not the shy, game kind of fish. He therefore uses as bait the kind of food that the fish like.”
Tell participants: Smart man. He certainly knew what boys of his time liked. And his legacy, that of discovering what boys like and building it into the program, has lasted until today. You have all seen the changes in policy, requirements, Youth Protection, etc., that keep the program current.
And if it is good for the boys, then it is good for the adults. Times change, people change, and so training changes.
—Lord Baden-Powell 2

3. “People develop values and outlook based on their world and their experiences from birth to about age 10.”
Tell participants: People, as groups or generations, change because of this premise.
Morris Massey and other psychologists and sociologists like him believe this—and in Scouting we do, too. Look at how teaching ethics has been woven into the Cub Scout program over the last several years.
Compared to our parents, we have a different outlook, a different set of values. That’s because the world was different when we were born than it was when our parents were born. The truth is, we are much more like our grandparents or great-grandparents than we are like our parents.
That’s because the way the world was 80 to 100 years ago when they were born was much like the way the world was when we were born.
Sounds shocking. You might be reminded of the old saying, “history repeats itself.” And while history doesn’t repeat itself in particular, it does repeat itself in its rhythms. Its climate. Its mood. And those rhythms create an atmosphere where similar events tend to happen.
And what’s more, there are four specific rhythms—or what are called “turnings”—that occur. And they occur in the same order, time after time.
These four turnings last about the length of a long human lifespan—that is, 80 to 100 years—and make up what we call a generation.
—Morris Massey 3

4. Generation: A group of people born within a 20-year period with enough similar experiences that they develop a group persona.
Tell participants: And it is predictable what the different generations will be like based on which point in the cycle they are born.
Ridiculous? Researchers have been studying this theory for years. Take America for example. Americans have been traced back to King Arthur. Some researchers say that our lineage has had 24 generations. The first six were English. The next four were colonial. It wasn’t until the 11th generation (born in 1701 to 1723) that we became truly “American” and significantly different from our English counterparts.
That’s a lot of years and a lot of generations, and yet the personas of those generations repeat themselves over and over again.
Massey and his group call the four rhythms that comprise a generation “turnings.” 4

5. Turnings High Awakening Unraveling Crisis 5
Note to presenter: You may choose to eliminate this material. There are references for this material at the end of the slide show.
Tell participants: These are the four turnings, and they are really in a circle. Once we are through the Crisis turning, we will then enter the High turning.
The rhythm of life during those turnings goes like this:
High—things are smooth, keep the status quo, high integrity—you remember the time in America from V-Day to the early ’60s.
Awakening—becoming aware that there is more to life, more we ought to be doing. You remember the Consciousness Revolution from JFK’s assassination through the early ’80s.
Unraveling—testing everything, long booms, and culture wars. That was going strong here in America—perhaps 9/11 signaled the close of that era.
Crisis—tremendous amount of change, no clear standard of morals, anything goes. 5

6. Personas Civic Adaptive Idealistic Reactive G.I. Millennial Silent
Outer-driven
Morally complacent
Institutionalizes
Education
Achievers
Conformists
Sensitive
Risk-adverse
Civil rights
Moralistic
Midlife principles
Narcissistic
Visionary seniors
Alienated
Amoral
Risk takers
Diversity
Pragmatic
G.I.
(80-100)
Millennial
(1-22)
Silent
(62-79)
Boomers
(44-61)
Gen-Xers
(23-43)
Tell participants: Depending on which turning a person is born into, typical personas develop. The personas are called civic, adaptive, idealistic, and reactive.
Anybody have a guess as to which is which?
Let’s look at some characteristics of each one.
You can see by looking at these characteristics that the content of a Wood Badge course would need to change in order to appeal to the clientele and to give them what they need. Two years ago, the average age of the participants was 42. So you can see that the Gen-Xers are beginning to be the majority of our population at Wood Badge, particularly as we recruit from Cub Scouting.
This course was written for Gen-Xers. That being the case, let’s take a closer look at them. 6

7. Gen-Xers Considered irresponsible Latchkey kids Grew up too fast
Information overload
Don’t know what is right or how to succeed
Drug addiction, AIDS, sex, education, violence
Inherited world and environment problems
Tell participants: Others think this generation:
• Is irresponsible
• Is concerned only with themselves
• Were on their own too soon
• Grew up too fast
• Have too much information to deal with
Some of the problems they face include:
• Everything is politically correct—they don’t know what is right or how to succeed.
• Drugs, AIDS, sex, education, and violence are all big problems.
• Gen-Xers feel like they inherited world and environmental problems from their parents. 7

8. One Gen-Xer said:
“Who are we to look to? Every generation is supposed to have role models. Where are ours? Madonna? Michael Jackson? People wonder why we are so confused. Wouldn’t you be?” 8

9. OOOOH, Let’s stop here..... I gotta pick up a card for my half-sister’s biological father’s stepson’s kindergarten graduation. 9

10. “I feel more than a trace of bitterness listening to Boomers with the same education as me complaining that they won’t be able to install their home theater—while I’m refilling their iced tea.”
Tell participants: Gen-Xers have had a harder time getting a job. Often you will find that they are loyal to their profession—but not their employer. If they don’t like their situation, they change jobs. They don’t seem to be interested in “paying their dues” like their parents did. 10

11. Wood Badge staff are predominately Boomers
Wood Badge staff are predominately Boomers. Wood Badge participants are predominately Gen-Xers. To ensure a successful course, boomer staff members must change their generational tendencies and fully understand the Gen-Xer participants’ needs. 11

12. How Do We Reach Them? When recruiting, answer their questions:
What’s in it for me, personally?
How will it help my child get an edge?
How good is it, really?
Is it more important than other things I could be doing?
Why is it important for me to take this training?
Tell participants: The answers to their questions could include:
—What’s in it for me?
Networking
Skills to use in their careers
—How will it help my child get an edge?
They will have better leaders and better role models.
—Is it worth my time?
Other courses cost $1,000 or more. 12

13. How Do We Communicate? Explain EVERYTHING:
Early, often, complete, what’s next
Via
Utilize course Web page/photos
In the Gilwell Gazette
Above all: Eschew obfuscation 13

14. How Do We Treat Them? Give them information up front. Don’t patronize.
Appreciate them.
Be organized, prepared, and purposeful.
Don’t waste their time.
Staff are facilitators and advisers–not top brass. 14

15. What Do They Like? New ideas Fun and creativity
Give opinions, not answer questions
To be included
Anything high-tech
Diversity 15

16. How Do We Train Them? Interactive Electronic Diversity of techniques
Ask opinions—no lecture or Q&A
Self-discovery
Team-oriented 16

17. For younger leaders, you may be the Boy Scouts of America.
To Summarize
For younger leaders, you may be the
Boy Scouts of America.
Your Wood Badge course may be
a very important factor in whether
they make a long-term commitment to
Scouting. 17

18. References
Neil Howe and William Strauss, Generations: The History of America's Future (Morrow, 1991).
Neil Howe and William Strauss, The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy (1997).
Neil Howe and William Strauss, Millennials Rising: The Next Generation. 18

19. Additional References
Jeffery B. Cafaude, Cultivating New Leadership, (Association Management, 2000).
Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., The Cycles of American History.
Ted Goertzel, “The World Trade Center Bombing as a Fourth Generational Turning Point,” Rutgers University.
Based on presentations by Jim Denny, QuikTrip Corporation, and Steve Elwart, Ergon Corporation. 19