Welcome to the Summer Camp Leadership blog. For those of us who lead summer camps, making a positive difference in the lives of young people is our passion. Turning that passion into a reality, however, takes more than the ability to lead songs, teach archery or plan craft projects. Creating camp experiences that truly transform lives takes leadership. Leadership that creates a vision for the future, leadership that inspires and engages others, leadership that remains focused and stays the course. My hope is through this blog you'll find ideas, inspiration and tools to help you be a great summer camp leader.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Habits of Disruptive Leader

There is a great deal of discussion these days about disruption. There is talk about disruptive technology, disruptive ideas and disruptive products. What is disruption? In the context of today's organizations, disruption is a concept or idea that fundamentally changes the status quo. They are ideas that not just challenge, but shatter long held assumptions.

Think about what Amazon did for selling books or what Uber has done for local transportation. Both companies completely changed the market by challenging the assumptions of how things are done.
Faisal Hoque author of Everything Connects: How to Transform and Lead in the Age of Creativity, Innovation and Sustainability suggests five attributes of organizations that disrupt the status quo.

1. They relentlessly pursue the truth
2. They guide others through chaos
3. They're decisive
4. They break the rules and write new ones - but always explain why
5. They thrive on uncertainty

What are some of the unwritten assumptions you and your organization hold to be true? Have you ever explored what would happen if they weren't true? Are there things you could do to challenge the status quo? Could you be disruptive?