What is yours to carry
Your job is the encouraging, musical, tone-setting kind of leadership this series describes: welcoming people, helping your section play well, setting a good example, passing on messages, noticing how people are doing. That is genuinely valuable, and it is enough.
What is not yours to carry
You are not responsible for supervising other children, and you are never a substitute for an adult being present. That means:
- You should not be left in sole charge of other members, and you are right to say so if that ever seems to be happening. A trained adult is always the one responsible for supervision and safety.
- You do not handle serious situations on your own, an injury, someone in distress, a safety worry, conflict that is getting out of hand, anything to do with someone being hurt or unsafe. Your job in those moments is to get an adult, not to solve it yourself.
- You are not expected to have the answers to big personal problems a friend might share. Caring for them means helping them reach a trusted adult, not carrying it alone.
Saying “that’s above my pay grade, let me get someone” is not failing at leadership. It is good leadership. A wise leader knows exactly where their responsibility ends.
A simple rule
What helps: if a situation involves someone’s safety, health, or wellbeing, or it just feels too big, hand it to an adult straight away. You will never be in trouble for doing that, and the next page shows you exactly how.
Part of Your Leadership Development Guide.