In August 1907, the first scout camp in history took place, which was organized by the founder of this youth movement, the soldier and writer Robert Baden-Powell. It was in a beautiful place on the island of Brownsea, in the United Kingdom, where 20 children were organized into patrols of different colors to live together for a week. The daily routine consisted of getting up early, practicing physical exercise, cooking one's own food, going on nature excursions, playing brain games, building rustic constructions, and learning survival techniques. Furthermore, it was common to say goodbye to each day around a sparkling bonfire, trying to sing some languid choral song or reading short traditional stories that briefly induced reflection.
More than 115 years have passed since then. And those 20 scouts have become one of the largest non-formal education projects in the world, since it currently brings together more than 50 million people, with a presence in 172 different countries. However, despite the time that has passed and the exponential growth of the organization, it is curious to observe how the daily activities of that first Baden-Powell camp have remained practically intact. And the spirit of the movement remains the same: to educate in values through action.
The scout method is based on the famous 10-20-70 philosophy, according to which the true learning process is made up of 10% theory, 20% knowledge exchange and 70% putting it into practice. Translating this equation to values, scouts know that the best way to radiate and preserve them is through actions, not words.
Because it is by climbing 3,000 meter mountains that the culture of effort is internalized. It is by sharing the scarce water of a canteen that companionship is understood. It is by touring the forests and rivers that you learn to respect the environment. It is by doing community service that humility is exercised. It is by playing in a gymkhana that the benefits of diversity are perceived. And it is by bathing in very cold water that you really appreciate the hot water.
We are in a context in which companies are increasingly interested in providing themselves with values that guide their action towards certain social commitments. And it's good news. But it is also worth remembering that values are not activated simply by expressing them with pristine rhetoric in a section of the website. In fact, according to a study carried out by iHire in 2020, 16% of employees say that their organization has defined corporate values that it does not respect. And values are treasured (or not) by human beings, so the most effective way to build a company with principles is to nourish it with people with principles.
The problem is that personal values are not usually reflected in the noble lines of a resume, nor can they be captured in a brief selection interview. Normally you have to look for them in the small differentiating details, like in those first summer jobs, which become a true antidote to falling rings. Or like the fact of having been part of the scout movement, since it probably means that we are dealing with a person who knows and shares one of Baden-Powell's best-known mottos: “Try to leave the world a little better than you found it.” .
