JUGHEADS
Youth Juggling Company, LLC
5905 Concord Avenue
Edina, MN 55424
jugheads@comcast.net
or 952.926.0896

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March 2004

"Leadership Development"

Ooo-boy, leadership can be tough. Making decisions for one or 100 (or 1000..or one million...) people is probably the toughest aspect of leadership, yet that may be a leader’s defining characteristic. A leader makes decisions for his people, ideally after receiving counsel proportionate to the enormity of the decision, but he ends up deciding nonetheless. Fallout due to negative reactions to a leader’s decision is the risky reality. At times, especially when the morality or competence of the leader is in question, such fallout may be justified; other times, fallout is no more than rebellion, since followers would really rather lead than follow. Speaking plainly, recent issues of JH contention include: choosing club music for JJ6; the Code of Conduct for our Buffalo trip; not allowing non-Jugheads to perform in JJ6; and the Space Policy for H.S. Club jugglers. While I am sensitive to everyone’s opinions and input (and I do mean: everyone’s), I am learning more deeply about the nature of leadership through these disagreements. Fallout may occur, and kids may leave, but the followers who stay will stay out of deepened respect, trust, and team bonding. I am frankly amazed that a few Jugheads have thick enough skin to be developing leadership qualities right now among their peers: decision-making, choreography, officer roles, etc. As with actual juggling skills, I am happy to learn leadership skills alongside the kids, teaching and being taught, as this program, its members and its director continue developing.