Menjadi seorang Pramuka memiliki arti yang berbeda bagi setiap orang. Sebagian melihat dari sisi patriotisme dan nasionalisme, lainnya dari sisi hobi berkemah, ada pula yang melihat peluang organisasi dalam Pramuka, namun rasa-rasanya sedikit orang muda yang suka dan rela menjadi Pramuka dengan alasan keren, asik, bersahabat, dan gaul.Loh, Pramuka itu keren, asik, bersahabat, dan gaul kok! Banyak buktinya! Ya tentu saja, itu jawaban kita yang kenal dan telah suka dan rela serta tau tujuan kita menjadi Pramuka dari awal. Namun bagaimana dengan adik-adik yang baru menjadi Pramuka? Bagaimana dengan generasi kurikulum 2013 yang terkena wajib Pramuka? Apakah mereka merasakan hangatnya persaudaraan Praja Muda Karana sama dengan seperti yang kita rasakan? Walaupun tiada data dapat aku berikan soal ini, namun boleh dilihat terutama di Jakarta bagaimana minat orang muda terutama golongan penegak pada gerakan kita ini, kakak-kakak pun tahu jawabnya.Bagaimana ini bisa terjadi? Satu sisi kita menyukai gerakan ini dengan segala isinya, dan sisi lain kawan-kawan kita hanya datang pada latihan Pramuka dan pulang tanpa muncul sedikitpun rasa suka. Apakah ini karena Pramuka diwajibkan? Ataukah ini salah kurikulum 2013? Rasa-rasanya tidak, boleh jadi ini kesalahan kita yang mengaku Pramuka Sejati dan menganggap adik-adik kita tidak lebih sejati dari kita. Toh memang beberapa kali aku menjumpai soal semacam ini, kakak yang seakan selalu benar dan menganggap adiknya tak lebih baik dan tak tahu apa-apa.Sekali waktu aku bertemu dengan kakak-kakak penegak dari beberapa sekolah, muncul banyak cerita soal bagaimana mereka masuk dalam gerakan yang kita cintai ini, ada yang bercerita soal dikomentari dengan ketus soal kesalahan seragam, ada pula yang diremehkan karena tidak menguasai semafor dan tali temali. Kasus semacam ini kadang terjadi, ketika seorang adik datang penuh semangat untuk menjadi Pramuka Sejati justru kakak tidak menerimanya dengan tulus, tidak ing ngarso sungtulodo, ing madyo mangunkarso, dan tidak tut wuri handayani. Lalu bagaimana mungkin Gerakan Pramuka bisa eksis di kalangan orang muda kedepan? Ini bukan soal menyalahkan satu pihak, namun ini pertanyaan untuk aku dan kakak renungkan.Memang tidak banyak mereka yang merasa lebih Pramuka Sejati dibanding adiknya, banyak juga kakak-kakak yang justru merupakan contoh metode revitalisasi Gerakan Pramuka yang ideal. Kakak-kakak yang membuka tangannya bagi siapa saja yang hendak dibina menjadi Pramuka, kakak yang keluar dari zona nyaman dengan menyadarkan diri bahwa Pramuka telah masuk era baru, bukan lagi seperti cerita kakak-kakak kita tentang kejayaan Pramuka dimasa lalu. Sekarang ini kita jangan terlalu berbangga dengan bagaimana Pramuka dulu, namun, Kak, mari kita pikirkan mau dibawa kemana kejayaan itu sekarang ini? Semua sepatutnya dimulai dari kita, Kak, kita membuat Pramuka terbuka bagi siapa saja, latihan kita segarkan menjadi lebih menyenangkan, menarik, dan menantang.Hal-hal simbolik seperti soal kelengkapan dan tata aturan seragam kita tentu penting dan mengandung arti kiasan yang dalam, apalagi pengetahuan teknik Pramuka yang sangat berguna bagi kehidupan kita, namun mungkin bukan itu titik beratnya, seorang kakak pernah berkata Pramuka ini bukan cuma soal tali temali, morse, dan baris-berbaris! Pramuka sejati itu takwa terhadap Tuhan yang Maha Esa, cinta alam dan kasih sayang sesama manusia, patriot yang sopan dan kesatria, patuh dan suka bermusyawarah, rela menolong dan tabah, rajin, terampil, dan gembira, hemat, cermat, dan bersahaja, disiplin, berani, dan setia, bertanggung jawab dan dapat dipercaya, dan terakhir suci dalam pikiran, perkataan, dan perbuatan. Karakter yang ditempa, karakter yang dinilai, karakter yang dipandang, karakter yang mengindikasikan siapa sebenarnya Pramuka Sejati, karena Pramuka iniall in one.Rajin, terampil, dan gembira senantiasa Praja Muda Karana.. Sopan dan tak kenal rasa sombong, bersahaja, setia, suka menolong.. Ya ya ya itulah Pramuka, Pramuka sejati.. Sejati kata dan perilakunya..Mohon pembaca memaafkan catatan yang tidak sempurna dan penuh kekurangan dan kelancangan ini.Satukan hati, semangat revitalisasi!Salam Pramuka!

The growing body of research on the advantages of having strongemotional intelligenceshows the benefits of being socially skilled. You may feel that youre just not one of those people who knows how best to act in social situations and are therefore doomed to a life ofawkwardness.But no matter how weak you think your social skills are, it takes most people only a few minor adjustments to strengthen and expand them.Being socially skilled buys you all kinds of advantages in life, from better relationships to more success at work.Knowingthat youknowhow to act in social situations also becomes a positive aspect of youridentity. You will feel less frightened by the prospect of interacting with strangers, for example, if you feel that you can rely on your communication abilities.As a topic in psychology, most of the research on social skillsfocuses on training people with psychological disorderssuch asautismorschizophreniato better interact with others. Beyond the training of these groups, theres a surprising gap in the literature. But one report by University of Wisconsin rehabilitation counselor and educator Brian Phillips and co-authors (2014), addressed social skills in the area of vocational rehabilitation, and it provides a basis forunderstandingsocial skill building more generally.According to Phillips et al, All work is social (p. 386). They interviewed vocational rehabilitation staff working in public agencies to find out their perceptions of the most important social skills that their clients needed to learn. The list that emerged from these interviews forms the basis for the following 6 tips, which can well apply to anyone who wants to get more comfortableor get ahead:1. Control yournonverbal behaviors. Being able to make eye contact, smile while exchanging pleasantries, and shake hands firmly (but not too firmly) help you to be perceived by others as self-confident, mature, and approachable. Phillips and histeamdistinguished between cold connecting, in which you seem uninterested or angry at others, and warm connecting, in which you seem likeable and at the same time help others feel at ease. You need to appear friendly if you want others to like you. Once they do, theyllwantto be around you, boosting your chances for relationship and work success.2. Monitor what you say. As important as nonverbal communication is for building your social skills, its equally critical to control your verbal output. Swearing at people or objects is not considered acceptable in most group settings; neither are angry outbursts at the people with whom you live or date. You may feel comfortable to say whatever comes into your head with your work buddies or roommates because you know youll be accepted. The problem is knowing when these behaviors are okay and when theyre not. Its easy to fall prey to the tendency to drop obscenities into your speech. However, you need to know when to draw the line. Just as you need to clean up your clothes when you step outside the house, you also need to clean up your language.3. Maintain your boundaries. This discussion of language in impression formation raises the more general issue, discussed by Phillips and his team, of maintaining the proper social distance between yourself and others. We all know how embarrassing it is to listen to an oversharer or to have someone invade our personal space. To the extent that you reveal too much about yourself to others, fail to attend to the line between you and a boss or distant relative, or just blab to anyone who will listen, youll be perceived as lacking maturity and judgment.4. Turn on your feeling-detectors.Although not discussed by Phillips and his team, having social skills also means that you are able to read the nonverbal communication of other people. Try to read theirbody languageas a way of finding out if theyre anxious, sad, or stressed on the one hand, or happy and relaxed on the other. Use these signals as data on which you can base what you say and do in their presence. You dont have to state verbally that you recognize their feelings. You can use the knowledge you gain about their inner states to communicate in a reciprocal manner. Good therapists use mirroring with their own body language to let their clients know they understand and empathize with their inner states.5. Manage your emotions. You also have to control your own feelings. You may get upset, feel snubbed, or have an irrepressible desire to giggle. However, if you want to be regarded positively by all but your closest family and associates, youll need to stifle those feelings. Some people have a natural poker face, meaning they dont allow emotions to affect their expressions, but most of us allow at least some of our feelings to leak onto our features. The better you are at disclosing only those feelings you want others to read, the more likely it is that youll be considered a solid friend, lover, or colleague.6. Try to build yourself-esteem.Phillips and his team point out that it doesnt help you to have social skills if you dontbelievein them. Feeling more confidence in your ability to communicate with others will help you straighten your shoulders and muster your self-composure. Looking as though you feel comfortable in your own skin is nine-tenths of the battle in actually feeling comfortable. As your social skills strengthen, youll in fact start to reap the benefits of improved self-esteem.