Board of Review - Not Yet
| Category: | Advancement |
|---|---|
| Notes: | For a Scout whose board of review doesn't approve the rank this time, or for any Scout who's had a setback in advancement. Best delivered one-on-one, or to the whole troop as a general minute about setbacks without naming anyone. Part of a series - see also board-of-review-a-conversation, board-of-review-what-were-listening-for, and scoutmaster-conference-more-than-a-signature. |
Not every board of review ends with a handshake and a new rank. Sometimes the board says, "Not yet."
If that happens to you, it's going to sting. You worked hard, you walked in hoping, and you walked out without what you came for. It's fine to be disappointed. Anybody would be.
But listen to the words carefully. They didn't say "no." They said "not yet." The board should tell you exactly what they need to see, and you'll get the chance to come back and show them. That's not a door closing. That's a map.
Here's something worth knowing: some of the strongest Scouts I've seen had a moment like this. The Scout who hears "not yet," takes a breath, asks what to work on, and comes back ready has learned something that no rank requirement can teach. They've learned how to take a setback and keep going. That's a skill you'll use for the rest of your life, long after you've forgotten which rank it happened on.
So be disappointed tonight if you need to. Then tomorrow, look at what they asked you to work on, and get started. I'll help. So will your patrol.
"Not yet" is just the middle of the story.