Keep Your Patrol Moving
A real patrol is a busy patrol. Each member wants to do things with the patrol because it's his patrol. You work together, camp together, hike together, and if you're not careful you'll find yourself trying to fill every spare moment with some sort of patrol activity. Hey, that's what we want, because a real patrol sticks together.
So, it's your job to keep your patrol moving. You want to keep them moving in advancement, obviously, but you also want to keep them moving in other ways as well. When you're at a troop meeting, you'll want to keep them interested in the program, learning the skills, and doing their best in whatever is planned. That's one way to keep them moving. When you're not at a troop meeting, though, you'll still want to keep them moving. You want them to always be thinking about things the patrol can do, planning the next great adventure.
Keeping the patrol moving will keep the members interested in the patrol, and in Scouting. It will keep the group together and the patrol alive. Now, that doesn't mean you've got to keep them busy with Scouting stuff every weekend. You just want to keep them busy enough that they'll have fun with the patrol, and keep thinking of bigger and bigger adventures for the patrol to go on. Keeping them moving keeps them thinking about the patrol, and working toward the goal of becoming the best patrol. Keeping them advancing keeps them experiencing new things, and learning new skills, which will help the patrol grow.
And that's the real key to success. Keep them moving. Keep them happy. The two go hand-in-hand. If you're together as a patrol, planning and doing things as a patrol, you'll have fun. That leads to being happy. If the patrol is happy, they'll want to do more and more as a patrol. If they're not happy, they probably won't want to do anything at all.