Running Proxmox Inside Hyper-V on Windows 11: Nested Virtualization Lab Setup

I have a good PC at home with an Intel i9 12th Gen processor, 96GB RAM, and 1TB of unused disk storage. It’s our family PC for everyday use, games, and media, but I decided to give it an additional role: homelab virtualization. Proxmox VE is a popular virtualization platform, but many of us hesitate to dedicate a full machine for it. I wanted to run Proxmox while still using my Windows 11 PC for everyday tasks, so I decided to run Proxmox nested under Hyper-V. This setup allows me to spin up VMs under Proxmox while still keeping Hyper-V for other experiments, and it also gives the kids at home a place to try new applications and learn without messing up the main PC.

Here’s how I set it up:

1. Enable Hyper-V on Windows 11

Start by enabling Hyper-V:

• Go to “Turn Windows features on or off.”
• Check Hyper-V and let it install.
• Reboot your machine if required.

2. Download Proxmox ISO

Head to the Proxmox downloads page and grab the latest Proxmox VE ISO installer.

3. Prepare a Dedicated Physical Disk for Proxmox

I wanted Proxmox to have the full 1TB disk directly for its use, so I prepared the disk for passthrough:

• Open PowerShell as Administrator.
• List your disks:

Get-Disk

• Identify your unused 1TB disk’s number.
• Set it offline for Hyper-V to take control:

Set-Disk -Number <disk number> -IsOffline $true

• Now Hyper-V can use this physical disk for the Proxmox VM.

4. Create the Proxmox VM in Hyper-V 

• Open Hyper-V Manager.
• Create a new virtual machine:
• Generation 1 is often easier for Proxmox in Hyper-V.
• Assign 20 Cores and 64GB RAM (adjust based on your needs).
• Attach the Proxmox ISO to the DVD drive.
• For the hard disk, use “Physical Hard Disk” and select the 1TB disk you set offline.
  
  

• Attach a Virtual Switch:
• I created an External Virtual Switch so Proxmox can access the internet and my LAN.
• Go to Advanced Features under the Network Adapter and enable:
• MAC address spoofing.
• This allows VMs inside Proxmox to get IP addresses correctly while nested under Hyper-V.

5. Install Proxmox

Start the VM and proceed with the Proxmox installation as you normally would, selecting the passthrough 1TB disk for installation.

6. Enable Nested Virtualization (if needed)

If you encounter errors with VMs inside Proxmox not starting, ensure your Hyper-V host supports and has nested virtualization enabled:

Set-VMProcessor -VMName "ProxmoxVMName" -ExposeVirtualizationExtensions $true

Replace "ProxmoxVMName" with your VM’s name. 

7. Access Proxmox Web UI

After installation, note the IP shown on the console screen, then access:

https://<Proxmox-IP>:8006

using your browser to start managing your nested Proxmox. 

8. Create VMs inside Proxmox

Now you can create VMs inside Proxmox as usual, using ISO images or cloud-init images for your tests.

With MAC address spoofing enabled and external networking set, your nested VMs will receive IP addresses and access the internet, making it a practical lab for homelab learning, CI/CD pipelines, and OS testing. 

Why This Setup?

• Utilize unused hardware while maintaining your main OS.
• Learn Proxmox without dedicating a physical machine.
• Prepare for certifications and experiments without risking your host system.
• Test homelab networking and nested virtualization.
• For just running VMs, you can simply run them with WSL, without the need for all of that.

Blessings of working on large real-world projects

Working on large real-world projects can offer numerous blessings and benefits, both professionally and personally. Here are some of the key advantages:

Professional Growth: Large projects often involve complex problems that require innovative solutions. This can lead to significant professional development as you learn new skills and technologies.

Teamwork and Collaboration: Big projects usually involve teams with diverse skill sets. Working in such environments can enhance your ability to collaborate effectively, communicate with others, and understand different perspectives.

Networking Opportunities: Large projects often bring together professionals from various companies, industries, and even countries. This can be a great opportunity to build a professional network that can be valuable throughout your career.

Visibility and Recognition: Being part of a significant project can increase your visibility within your organization and your industry. Successful completion of such projects can lead to recognition and can be a strong addition to your resume.

Problem-Solving Skills: The complexity of large projects can help you hone your problem-solving skills. You'll often need to think critically and creatively to overcome challenges, which is a valuable skill in any career.

Project Management Experience: Large projects can provide experience in project management, including planning, execution, monitoring, and closing projects. This is a highly transferable skill set that is valued in many industries.

Sense of Accomplishment: Completing a large project can give you a strong sense of accomplishment. Knowing that you contributed to something significant can be very satisfying and can boost your confidence.

Impact: Large projects often have a substantial impact on the company, industry, or even society. Being part of something that makes a difference can be very rewarding.

Financial Rewards: Working on large projects can sometimes lead to financial bonuses or higher compensation due to the value they bring to the organization.

Learning from Failure: Large projects can also be challenging and sometimes fail. Working on such projects can teach you valuable lessons about what doesn't work, resilience, and the importance of risk management.

Diversity of Work: Large projects may involve various aspects such as research, design, implementation, and testing. This diversity can keep the work interesting and engaging.

Mentorship Opportunities: You may have the chance to be mentored by more experienced professionals or to mentor others, which can be a fulfilling way to give back and grow.

Resource Management: You'll likely deal with budgeting, scheduling, and resource allocation, which can improve your ability to manage resources effectively.

Adaptability: Large projects can change scope or direction, requiring you to be adaptable and flexible. This can improve your ability to cope with change in any area of life.

Cultural Exposure: If the project is international, you might work with people from different cultures, which can broaden your worldview and intercultural communication skills.

While working on large real-world projects can be demanding and sometimes stressful, the experience and skills gained are often invaluable and can significantly enhance your career and personal development. While revisiting some of my old notes, I stumbled upon a list I had compiled during a past project. It's fascinating to reflect on the myriad of elements that were part of this single endeavor. Below is a snapshot of that list, though I've had to omit a few items. This compilation serves as a reminder of the myriad blessings that come with engaging in large-scale, real-world projects.

Programmable logic controller (PLC) - Or programmable controller is an industrial computer that has been ruggedized and adapted for the control of manufacturing processes, such as assembly lines, machines, robotic devices, or any activity that requires high reliability, ease of programming, and process fault diagnosis.

Real-time system - Any information processing system with hardware and software components that perform real-time application functions and can respond to events within predictable and specific time constraints.

Codesys - An integrated development environment for programming controller applications according to the international industrial standard IEC 61131-3.

Human Machine Interface (HMI) - A user interface or dashboard that connects a person to a machine, system, or device.

Telegraf - Plugin-driven server agent for collecting and reporting metrics.

InfluxDB - Time series database.

PostgreSQL - Also known as Postgres, is a free and open-source relational database management system emphasizing extensibility and SQL compliance.

Go - Statically typed, compiled programming language designed at Google.

Edge Software Provisioner (ESP) - Enables ODMs, System Integrators and Developers to automate the installation of a complete operating system and software stack (defined by a Profile) on bare-metal or virtual machines using a "Just-in-Time" provisiong process.

FIDO Device Onboard (FDO) - Provisioning with the FIDO Device Onboard protocol enables industrial Internet of Things devices to leverage public key cryptography to help simply and securely onboard IoT devices to any cloud or on-premises management platform without the need for human intervention.

Fast Identity Online (FIDO) - FIDO Alliance is focused on providing open and free authentication standards to help reduce the world's reliance on passwords, using UAF, U2F and FIDO2

Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) - A standardized client–server environment that boots a software assembly, retrieved from a network, on PXE-enabled clients.

FusionAuth - Provides authentication, authorization, and user management.

Kubernetes - open-source container orchestration system for automating software deployment, scaling, and management. Originally designed by Google

Kubespray - Powerful open source tool for deploying and managing Kubernetes clusters.

Flask - A micro web framework written in Python.

Docker - A set of platform as a service products that use OS-level virtualization to deliver software in packages called containers.

KubeVirt - Virtual machine management add-on for Kubernetes. The aim is to provide a common ground for virtualization solutions on top of Kubernetes.

Kubelet - The primary "node agent" that runs on each node. 

Guacamole - Cross-platform Remote Desktop Gateway, allows a user to take control of a remote computer or virtual machine via a web browser.

ASP.NET - A framework for building web apps and services with .NET and C#, Supported on Linux, Windows, and macOS.

Lightbits - Delivers high-performance shared storage across servers while providing high availability and read-and-write management designed to maximize the value of flash-based storage.

Nginx - A web server that can also be used as a reverse proxy, load balancer, mail proxy and HTTP cache. 

React - Front-end JavaScript library for building user interfaces based on UI components.

Node.js - Cross-platform, back-end JavaScript runtime environment that runs on a JavaScript Engine and executes JavaScript code outside a web browser, which was designed to build scalable network applications.

Next.js - Web development framework enabling React-based web applications with server-side rendering and generating static websites.

Debian - Also known as Debian GNU/Linux, is a Linux distribution composed of free and open-source software.

Ubuntu - A Linux distribution based on Debian and composed mostly of free and open-source software.

CentOS - A Linux distribution that provides a free and open-source community-supported computing platform, functionally compatible with its upstream source, Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Windows - A group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft.

Virtual Machine - Is the virtualization/emulation of a computer system. Virtual machines are based on computer architectures and provide functionality of a physical computer.

Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) - is a virtualization module in the Linux kernel that allows the kernel to function as a hypervisor.

DNS - The Domain Name System protocol is an important part of the web's infrastructure, serving as the Internet's phone book: every time you visit a website, your computer performs a DNS lookup.

DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is a client/server protocol that automatically provides an Internet Protocol (IP) host with its IP address and other related configuration information such as the subnet mask and default gateway.

Balsamiq -  low-fidelity wireframing tool for product managers, founders, devs, & UX teams worldwide. It's the fast, focused way to design

Figma: A collaborative web application for interface design, with additional offline features enabled by desktop applications for macOS and Windows.

How to Install and Use RTSP Simple Server

 
How to Install and Use RTSP Simple Server
 
1. Create a folder to store the app

mkdir /etc/rtsp-server
cd /etc/rtsp-server
 
2. Download the latest release. On a Linux command line, you might use a command like:

wget https://github.com/aler9/rtsp-simple-server/releases/download/v0.17.11/rtsp-simple-server_v0.17.11_linux_amd64.tar.gz

Please replace v0.17.11 with the latest version.

3.  Extract the downloaded file:

tar -xzf rtsp-simple-server_v0.17.11_linux_amd64.tar.gz
 
4. This will create a rtsp-simple-server file in your current directory. This is the server executable.
 
5.  To keep the rtsp-simple-server running as a service on a Linux-based system, you can create a systemd service.

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/rtsp-simple-server.service
 
Then, add the following content to the file:

[Unit]
Description=RTSP Simple Server
After=network.target
 
[Service]
ExecStart=/etc/rtsp-server/rtsp-simple-server /etc/rtsp-server/rtsp-simple-server.yml
 
Restart=always
RestartSec=3
User=yourusername
Group=yourgroupname
 
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
 
Replace yourusername and yourgroupname with your username and group name respectively. 

Save the file and exit the editor.

Now reload the systemd manager configuration:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
 
To start the service immediately, use:

sudo systemctl start rtsp-simple-server
 
To enable the service to start on boot, use:

sudo systemctl enable rtsp-simple-server
 
You can check the status of the service with:

sudo systemctl status rtsp-simple-server
 
6. To stream an MP4 file using RTSP (Real Time Streaming Protocol):

ffmpeg -re -i input.mp4 -c copy -f rtsp rtsp://localhost:8554/stream
 
To continuously loop the video and stream it, you can use the -stream_loop -1 option with FFmpeg, which tells FFmpeg to loop the input indefinitely.

ffmpeg -stream_loop -1 -re -i input.mp4 -c copy -f rtsp rtsp://localhost:8554/stream
 

 
7. Test the stream (replace localhost by the server IP if testing from another machine)
 

Scrum Master

I got these two certificates with one year apart, Al Hamd Lellah.

Mainly the same thing from two different organizations. Good information, but if you haven't before, please check my post about Scrum, Scouting and Micro Financing https://omourad.blogspot.com/2025/07/scrum-scouting-and-micro-financing.html

Scrum, Scouting and Micro Financing

I was learning about Scrum to get ready for the Professional Scrum Master exam, I found myself already familiar with most of the how to, as we were practicing it for years, but studying to be prepared for an exam or to give a presentation makes you focus more on the details.

I am a scouter (adult boy scout) who started as a Cub Scout back in Egypt, played several roles, as scout, Patrol Leader, Junior Assistant Scoutmaster, then Senior Patrol Leader for our Rovers team where we won the first prize at the capital level for the first time and for several years after. I then earned my Wood Badge as Assistant Team Leader, then again from the US while rebuilding a cub scout unit as Cubmaster, then joined the Wood Badge staff twice. Wood Badge is the highest and most advanced training course offered to scout leaders by the Boy Scouts of America and many other countries.

I found a great relation between Scrum and what we already have in scouting. But I was surprised when Jeff Sutherland, the co-creator of Scrum, mentioned that he was inspired by the micro financing and Grameen banking founded by Professor Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh. After finishing “The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time” by Jeff Sutherland, I started the “Banker of the Poor” by Muhammad Yunus, where I found relation again between his way of fighting poverty and what we do in software development and in scouting.

The common points between Scrum, Scouting and Micro Financing are many, but the main ones as I understand, can be summarized in:

1.   Teams and Groups

They all depend on small groups as building blocks, without it you have nothing. Grameen group of 5, Scrum Development Team from 3 to 9, Boy Scout Patrol 6 to 8. “The patrol method isn’t one way to run a troop. It’s the only way” Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of the scout movement. These groups work together as one entity with common goal, to succeed as a team to reach their destination. If one individual has a problem, everyone in his team rushes to guide, help and support.

In Grameen no one tells the borrowers what businesses they have to do, they are trusted to use the loan in the best way to save themselves from poverty, their team members though have the responsibility of approving the loans. In Scrum, the development team plan their sprint, and it is the responsibility of them all to achieve the sprint goal. The Patrol Leaders Council in the boy scout troop plan their annual activities, they are elected by their patrols and trusted to put the most fun and exciting program. When it is time to put their camp down, they say “Everyone is a Quartermaster!”, which is very similar to the cross functional teams in Scrum.

2.   Values and principles

Without Courage, Commitment, Focus, Openness and Respect there is no Scrum Team. Grameen groups must follow these four principles: Discipline, Unity, Courage and Hard work. While the Scout Law states that the Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent.

The individuals within the team do their best to follow these values and principals, they also work together on enhancing their understanding and practicing of them while in the process. This was actually the first thing that grabbed my attention to the similarity between Scouting and Scrum, and then Grameen, they not just focus on the values as a way to succeed, they all have methods to instill these values into the members over time, in Scrum this is part of the adaptation.

3.   Servant Leadership

The leaders supporting and guiding the teams are not there to manage, they are there to coach, mentor and remove impediments. Servant leaders focus on the team and individuals, beside their own vision to how success may looks like for a team, they help each individual be successful in his tasks and duties, and may also help him build his own vision, help him move through the "Shu Ha Ri" stages.

While it is human nature, people like to tell others what to do than to be told what to do, servant leaders made the choice to lead by giving more than they receive. Scouts practice servant leadership in their everyday activities, they learn how to delegate and work together as a team, they learn how to guide and lead while giving everyone the chance to have the feeling that they find the way themselves, a Leave No Trace in another way.

The money lender feels proud after lifting a poor person from poverty, as a servant leader he knows what it means to that borrower to feel proud of himself by doing all he can do himself once given the opportunity.

One way to describe a Scrum master is that he is NOT a manager, there is no managing people in scrum, only mentoring, encouraging, empowering and enabling. In scouting this is summarized in the EDGE method as Explain, Demonstrate, Guide and Enable.

4.   Learn by Doing

In scouting, it is a boy lead program, it may be the only program that allows youth to fail to learn from their failure themselves, in many cases things look very messy and discourages parents, but servant leaders understand that this is the way to build future leaders.

In Scrum, the empirical process is a key, learning by doing and testing, through transparency, inspection and adaptation. Plans are created based on what we tried to do and what we learned while doing it.

With micro finance, credit is given into small amounts, as much as needed to take a step, the borrower adjusts his future financing plans based on what was accomplished. This is the opposite of the mega projects that usually organizations do for rural areas, and then discovering that this project is not what this area really needs.

5.   The Methods

Eight methods in scouting help in achieving the goals, outdoor programs, uniform and leadership development are just examples. “Do a Good Turn Daily”, the scout slogan, is an important part of the Personal Growth method, it is not the same as doing a big service project monthly, or weekly, it is a small daily act of kindness to refresh the commitment and to participate in the incremental added value to our life. Scoutmaster conferences are about 10 minutes long and Board of Reviews about 15 to 20 minutes long are also an opportunity for transparency and inspection that leads to adaptation. After each event the scouts should do a Start-Stop-Continue exercise.

When Grameen and micro financial started in the beginning, the borrower was asked to do a daily payment to settle their loan, later it was changed to weekly payments as a team, the team meet and discuss the progress, make payments and agree on future financial plans. This small incremental progress and meeting with the team is a key to the program, even if you can not make the full payment, you still need to meet and discuss and seek guidance.

In Scrum similar methods are named events, like the sprint planning, sprint review, sprint retrospective and the daily Scrum meeting. The daily Scrum meeting is a 15 minutes long meeting, where the team members mention what they accomplished, what they are planning to work on next, and if they have any impediments. The retrospective meeting is similar to the Start-Stop-Continue exercise in scouting. The same as the Scoutmaster conference, the Scrum master does a one to one meeting with each team member which is a coaching opportunity, but also a two-way feedback.

In scouting “Feedback is a gift, it’s truly is!”, the leaders including youth, learn how to give feedback, learn about the “I Language/Message”, learn about the Tuckman’s stages of group development, effective listening and how to manage conflicts.

6.   Definition of Success

Not talking here about the definition of done in Scrum, which is really important. But the definition of success as the ability of a team to deliver incremental completed “done” value to the market or the user. The end product delivered may vary completely from the initial idea, but the success at the end is to deliver what is really needed by the end user. For financial or any other organizational problems, teams may be stopped from delivering the end product, but having a team that is able to deliver, is a success.

Most financial institutions in the loan market focus on how much interest will be collected. In Micro Financing, ending poverty in a certain area is great, but building the individual who knows how to be a team member, knows how to come out of poverty and help others, is the main success. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Moses ben Maimon.

Scouting is the same, it is not about the destination, but the journey. People usually get confused between the scouting methods, like the scouting activities and advancements, and scouting aims like character development, citizenship training, leadership, and mental and physical fitness. So, success in scouting is not measured by how many scouts reached Eagle rank, but their ability to help themselves, their families and serve their community and their country heartfully.

Export Online SharePoint Term Store Data to CSV Files

#Set the variables
$siteCollectionUrl = "https://TENANT.sharepoint.com/sites/SITE_COLECTION"
$folderPath = "D:\Terms\Export\"
$termGroupName = "GROUP_NAME"

# Check if you have the Online SharePoint Powershell and 
# SharePoint PnP PowerShell Online modules installed or not
Get-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell -ListAvailable | Select Name,Version
Get-Module -Name SharePointPnPPowerShellOnline -ListAvailable | Select Name,Version

# Uncomment these lines if not installed already
#Install-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell
#Install-Module SharePointPnPPowerShellOnline

# Connect to your site (I am using the WebLogin for the two-factor authentication):
Connect-PnPOnline -Url $siteCollectionUrl -UseWebLogin

# Get the group you want to export its term sets
$termGroup = Get-PnPTermGroup -GroupName $termGroupName -Includes TermSets

# Loop over the Term Sets
foreach ($termSetItem in $termgroup.TermSets)
{    
    write-host "Working on Term Set:"$termSetItem.Name "[" $termSetItem.Id "]"

    # The Collection that will hold the Terms in this Term Set
    $collection = @()

    # Load the Term Set
    $termSet = Get-PnPTermSet -TermGroup $termGroup -Identity $termSetItem.Id -Includes Terms

    # Create the object and add it to the collection
    $termData = new-object PSObject
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Name" -Value $termSet.Name
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Description" -Value $termSet.Description
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "LCID" -Value ""
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Available for Tagging" -Value "TRUE"
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 1 Term" -Value ""
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 2 Term" -Value ""
    $termData | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 3 Term" -Value ""
    $collection += $TermData    

    # Loop over the Terms Level 1
    foreach ($termItem1 in $termSet.Terms)
    {
        # Load the Level 1 Term
        $term1 = Get-PnPTerm -TermGroup $termGroup -TermSet $termSetItem.Id -Identity $termItem1.Id -Includes Terms        
        
        # Create the object and add it to the collection
        $term1Data = new-object PSObject
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Name" -Value ""
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Description" -Value ""
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "LCID" -Value ""
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Available for Tagging" -Value "TRUE"
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 1 Term" -Value $term1.Name
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 2 Term" -Value ""
        $term1Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 3 Term" -Value ""
        $collection += $term1Data

        # Loop over the Terms Level 2
        foreach ($termItem2 in $term1.Terms)
        {
            # Load the Level 2 Term
            $term2 = Get-PnPTerm -TermGroup $termGroup -TermSet $termSetItem.Id -Identity $termItem2.Id -Includes Terms        
        
            # Create the object and add it to the collection
            $term2Data = new-object PSObject
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Name" -Value ""
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Description" -Value ""
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "LCID" -Value ""
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Available for Tagging" -Value "TRUE"
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 1 Term" -Value $term1.Name
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 2 Term" -Value ""
            $term2Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 3 Term" -Value ""
            $collection += $term2Data

            # Loop over the Terms Level 3
            foreach ($termItem3 in $term2.Terms)
            {
                # Load the Level 3 Term
                $term3 = Get-PnPTerm -TermGroup $termGroup -TermSet $termSetItem.Id -Identity $termItem3.Id -Includes Terms        
        
                # Create the object and add it to the collection
                $term3Data = new-object PSObject
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Name" -Value ""
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Term Set Description" -Value ""
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "LCID" -Value ""
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Available for Tagging" -Value "TRUE"
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 1 Term" -Value $term1.Name
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 2 Term" -Value $term2.Name
                $term3Data | Add-member -membertype NoteProperty -name "Level 3 Term" -Value $term3.Name
                $collection += $term3Data
            }
        }
    }

    # Build the file path, I am using the Term Set name as the filename
    $filePath = $folderPath + $termSet.Name + ".csv"

    # Write to the file
    $collection | Export-csv $filePath -notypeinformation
}

Wood Badge

Received The Wood Badge for the second time yesterday. The first time was from Egypt 2002. I am also honored to be invited to join the staff for next course this spring.

For those who don't know what the Wood Badge is, check the below brief:

Wood Badge is the highest and most advanced training course offered by the Boy Scouts of America. While it is rich in scouting history and tradition, participants will spend 6 full days and nights learning modern leadership theories from contemporary scholars such as Ken Blanchard (author of the One Minute Manager series of books), Stephen R. Covey (author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and Principle-Centered Leadership), and Spencer Johnson (author of Who Moved My Cheese). A complete set of references can be found at the end of this document.

Wood Badge has five Central Themes that encapsulate the course content. These are:

• Living the Values
• Values, mission, and vision
• Aims and methods

• Bringing the Vision to Life
• Listening to learn
• Communicating
• Giving and receiving feedback
• Valuing people and leveraging diversity
• Coaching and mentoring

• Models for Success
• High Performance Teams
• Team Development Model
• Team Leadership Model
• Situational Leadership

• Tools of the Trade
• Project planning
• Problem solving and decision making
• Managing conflict
• Assessing team performance
• Self-Assessment
• Managing change
• Celebrating team success

• Leading to Make a Difference
• Leaving a legacy
• The greatest leadership secret

These workshops are taught through lecture, group discussion, hands on exercises, and through the creation of goals that apply the leadership training received. At the conclusion of the course, attendees will have created at least 5 goals. A counselor will be assigned to work with each attendee for 18 months to ensure application of the training they received and the completion of the 5 goals.

Dr. Blanchard’s courses and workshops, offered through The Ken Blanchard Companies, run $500 per day ($3000 for 6 days). The Boy Scouts of America have negotiated royalty fees and intellectual property rights which allows them to offer the entire 6-day course for just under $230. 

Leaders at many companies (such as IBM, Motorola, and Intel) have recognized the value this training is to their employees. As such, many agree to pay the course fees and/or give time off as part of their employee’s professional development and training plan. Individual company policies vary, however. If you would like additional information, please feel free to contact the Boy Scouts of America, Atlanta Area Council at (770) 989-8820. Or, visit http://www.atlantabsa.org/training/wood-badge/6412.

Wood Badge Training Resources

• Learning to Lead: A Workbook on Becoming a Leader
• by Warren Bennis,‎ Joan Goldsmith
• https://www.amazon.com/Learning-Lead-Workbook-Becoming-Leader/dp/0465018866
• Managing People is Like Herding Cats
• by Warren Bennis
• https://www.amazon.com/Managing-People-Like-Herding-Cats/dp/189000961X
• Old Dogs, New Tricks: On Creativity and Collaboration
• by Warren Bennis
• https://www.amazon.com/Old-Dogs-New-Tricks-CollaborationBennis/dp/1890009342
• On Becoming a Leader
• by Warren Bennis
• https://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Leader-Warren-Bennis/dp/0465014089
• Why Leaders Can't Lead: The Unconscious Conspiracy Continues
• by Warren Bennis
• https://www.amazon.com/Why-Leaders-Cant-Lead-Unconscious-ebook/dp/B00ZDS94K6
• Leadership by the Book: Tools to Transform Your Workplace
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ Bill Hybels,‎ Phil Hodges
• https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Book-Tools-Transform-Workplace/dp/0688172393
• Empowerment Takes More than a Minute
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ John P. Carlos,‎ Alan Randolph
• https://www.amazon.com/Empowerment-Takes-More-Than-Minute/dp/1576751538
• The 3 Keys to Empowerment: Release the Power Within People for Astonishing Results
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ John P. Carlos,‎ Alan Randolph
• https://www.amazon.com/Keys-Empowerment-Release-Astonishing-Results/dp/1576750604
• High Five! The Magic of Working Together
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ Sheldon Bowles
• https://www.amazon.com/High-Five-Magic-Working-Together/dp/0688170366
• The Power of Ethical Management
• by Norman V Peale,‎ Ken Blanchard
• https://www.amazon.com/Power-Ethical-Management-Norman-Peale/dp/0688070620
• The One Minute Manager Builds High Performing Teams
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ Eunice Parisi-Carew,‎ Donald Carew
• https://www.amazon.com/Minute-Manager-Builds-Performing-Teams/dp/0061741205
• Leadership and the One Minute Manager - Increasing Effectiveness Through Situational Leadership
• by Ken Blanchard,‎ Patricia Zigarmi,‎ Drea Zigarmi
• https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Minute-Manager-Updated-Effectiveness/dp/0062309447
• Principle-Centered Leadership
• by Stephen R. Covey
• https://www.amazon.com/Principle-Centered-Leadership-Stephen-R-Covey-ebook/dp/B0068SVE9E
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
• by Stephen R. Covey
• https://www.amazon.com/Habits-Highly-Effective-People-Powerful-ebook/dp/B01069X4H0
• First Things First
• by Stephen R. Covey,‎ A. Roger Merrill,‎ Rebecca R. Merrill
• https://www.amazon.com/First-Things-Stephen-R-Covey/dp/0684802031
• Leadership Is an Art
• by Max Depree
• https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Art-Max-Depree/dp/B0077EEPTO
• Leadership Jazz
• by Max Depree
• https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Jazz-Revised-Essential-Elements/dp/038552630X
• Leading Without Power: Finding Hope in Serving Community
• by Max Depree
• https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Without-Power-Community-Paperback/dp/0787967432
• The Team Coach
• by Donna Deeprose
• https://www.amazon.com/Team-Coach-Supervisors-Managers-Environment/dp/081447859X
• Best Practices in Leadership Development Handbook
• By David Giber, Samuel M. Lam,‎ Marshall Goldsmith
• https://www.amazon.com/Linkage-Practices-Leadership-Development-Handbook/dp/0470195673
• Generation We
• by Eric H. Greenberg,‎ Karl Weber
• https://www.amazon.com/Generation-We-Millennial-America-Changing/dp/0982093101
• Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness
• by Robert K. Greenleaf
• https://www.amazon.com/Servant-Leadership-Legitimate-Greatness-Anniversary/dp/0809105543
• Co-Leaders: The Power of Great Partnerships
• https://www.amazon.com/Co-Leaders-Power-Partnerships-David-Heenan/dp/0471316350
• by David A. Heenan,‎ Warren Bennis
• Management of Organizational Behavior: Leading Human Resources
• by Paul Hersey,‎ Kenneth H. Blanchard,‎ Dewey E. Johnson
• https://www.amazon.com/Management-Organizational-Behavior-Leading-Resources/dp/0130175986
• Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation
• by Neil Howe,‎ William Strauss
• https://www.amazon.com/Millennials-Rising-Next-Great-Generation/dp/0375707190
• Generations: The History of America's Future
• by Neil Howe,‎ William Strauss
• https://www.amazon.com/Generations-History-Americas-Future-1584/dp/0688119123
• Who Moved My Cheese?
• Spencer Johnson
• https://www.amazon.com/Moved-Cheese-Amazing-Deal-Change/dp/B000FQFSTM
• Leading Change
• by John P. Kotter
• https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Change-LEADING-CHANGE-Hardcover/dp/B003YK9OB4
• The Power Principle: Influence with Honor
• by Blaine Lee
• https://www.amazon.com/Power-Principle-INFLUENCE-HONOR/dp/0684810581
• Leadership Handbook of Leadership Development
• by Ellen Van Velsor,‎ Cynthia D. McCauley,‎ Marian N. Ruderman
• https://www.amazon.com/Center-Creative-Leadership-Handbook-Development/dp/0470387394
• Managers As Facilitators: A Practical Guide to Getting Work Done in a Changing Workplace
• by Richard G. Weaver,‎ John D. Farrell
• https://www.amazon.com/Managers-As-Facilitators-Practical-Workplace/dp/157675054X