Leadership noun the action of leading a group of people or an organization. “different styles of leadership” Accountability Noun the fact or condition of being accountable; responsibility My journey as a leader has not been a smooth ride. My journey ...
Read More »Johnny Come Lately
Johnny-come-lately noun John·ny-come-late·ly | \ ˈjä-nē-(ˌ)kəm-ˈlāt-lē \ plural Johnny-come-latelies or Johnnies-come-lately Definition of Johnny-come-lately 1: a late or recent arrival : NEWCOMER 2: UPSTARTestablished families tend to hold themselves above the Johnny-come-latelies— William Zeckendorf †1976 I have heard this phrase a lot lately especially when referencing “new” instructors, authors, opinion speakers in the ...
Read More »Teaching The Working Length
The working length of hose is critical when it comes to an engine companies ability to rapidly extinguish a fire. The working length is that first 50 feet of hose from the nozzle to the first coupling. It is the ...
Read More »Placards
Placards are used to help us identify what a vehicle is hauling. They usually have a corresponding number in the ERG to let us know what to do when we encounter the corresponding material. However would you be surprised to ...
Read More »Leadership Tunnel Vision
Webster’s Dictionary defines Tunnel Vision as: constriction of the visual field resulting in loss of peripheral vision extreme narrowness of viewpoint : narrow-mindedness; also : single-minded concentration on one objective In the Fire service, we often associate “tunnel vision” ...
Read More »Leading From The Middle
“You are trying to do the hardest thing possible, you are trying to lead from the middle” Chief Andrew Baxter *The above quote was told to me by Chief Baxter at a low point in my fire service career. I ...
Read More »Prioritize & Execute: A Tale Of A Fire
As we pulled out of the station and started up the hill, black smoke poured over the horizon. We have got a fire I spoke out loud to the engine driver. He was the only one to hear it, as ...
Read More »Technology…Effective Management or Leadership Failure
I fully understand the irony of this post as I sit here on my laptop, with my big screen TV, while checking my smart phone, and posting a blog… When I was a young volunteer officer the internet became a ...
Read More »What is on your book shelf?
I am a firm believer that “Leaders are Readers”. With the rapid pace the fire service takes these days, and its transition to more scientific research, and an emphasis on analytical data for decision making it is impossible to keep ...
Read More »Climbing Mountains & Eating Elephants
Two of the best pieces of advice I have ever been given while coming up in the fire service had to do with mountains and elephants. While this may seem weird please allow me to explain. Whenever I was struggling ...
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