The best way to predict your future is to create it. It has been proven over and over again that we move in the direction of our most dominate thoughts. If those thoughts are of pessimism and failure, we will behave in pessimistic ways and drift in the direction of failure. Our mental voice compels our actions.
Conversely, if our thoughts are of optimism and success, we will behave in optimistic ways and be compelled in the direction of success.
Think about the inner voice that is driving your thoughts… and actions. Like it or not, you have become exactly what you tell yourself you are. I doubt many successful people see themselves as failures. Likewise, there probably aren’t very many failures who see themselves as successful. If you don’t like where you are in life you can change it. Start with your mental programming.
An excellent first step is to develop a personal mission statement – a testimonial of who you are. Or perhaps better stated, the ideal self you want to be. State it in the presence tense and focus entirely on the positive aspects of who you are. Here’s an example:
I am a highly respected and successful ___________ (fill in the blank). I am well-respected by my peers and professional associates. I am a loving partner and parent who respects the individuality of my family members and support them wholeheartedly.
You get the idea. There’s no limit to the size of the statement. The number of elements should relate to the most important aspects of your life: Spirituality, family, vocation, health, interests, etc. It’s not necessary to put the items in priority order so long as you capture all of them. Some aspects of your personal mission statement may not represent who you are today. It’s more likely going to represent who you want to become. Some parts of it may represent who you are today, so long as that is who you want to be.
As you do this, write it down, print it out and post it in prominent places – on your refrigerator, on your bathroom mirror, on the dashboard of your car, on your computer terminal. While you should memorize your personal mission statement, you should also write it and read it out loud over and over again. This stimulates multiple senses. Writing it is tactile stimulation. Reading it is visual stimulation. Reading out loud is auditory stimulation. The more senses you stimulate the deeper the message will be seated into your subconscious memory.
Your positive self-talk will lead you in the direction of doing things that achieve your personal mission statement and, best of all, toward becoming the person you really want to become. The best way to predict your future is to create it and that starts with a personal mission statement that drives your actions.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Executive Director
Center for the Advancement of Situational Awareness & Decision Making
Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Seek first to understand...
Seek first to understand…
Here’s an exercise you can do at an officer’s meeting to help your supervisors improve their coaching skills. Give them the following scenario:
“You have a subordinate who is misbehaving. In one sentence, write how you would handle it.”
Then have each of the officers report out on what they would do. As each tells how they would handle it, keep score by putting a hash mark beside one of the following three categories (though don’t share the categories with them until all the answers have been given).
Tell-Inform-Instruct-Advise
Ask-Understand-Discuss-Learn
Unsure
All of the responses will fall into one of the three categories above and if your session is like most I facilitate in my leadership develop programs, you’ll see that most of the responses fall into the first category.
If that happens, you will have a teachable moment. The best officers/supervisors are those who seek first to understand, then to be understood (from Steven Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People).
All too often an officer wants to jump right into the solution to the problem… telling… informing… instructing… and advising… usually with a healthy dose of threatened disciplinary action for non-compliance to the officer’s demands. Talk about the set-up for a bad coaching session.
The best officers seek to understand why the behavior is happening and then try to work with the subordinate to develop an action plan to improve the performance to meet the acceptable standards of the organization. That, my friends, is the set-up for success!
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Executive Director
Center for the Advancement of Situational Awareness & Decision Making
www.RichGasaway.com
Here’s an exercise you can do at an officer’s meeting to help your supervisors improve their coaching skills. Give them the following scenario:
“You have a subordinate who is misbehaving. In one sentence, write how you would handle it.”
Then have each of the officers report out on what they would do. As each tells how they would handle it, keep score by putting a hash mark beside one of the following three categories (though don’t share the categories with them until all the answers have been given).
Tell-Inform-Instruct-Advise
Ask-Understand-Discuss-Learn
Unsure
All of the responses will fall into one of the three categories above and if your session is like most I facilitate in my leadership develop programs, you’ll see that most of the responses fall into the first category.
If that happens, you will have a teachable moment. The best officers/supervisors are those who seek first to understand, then to be understood (from Steven Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People).
All too often an officer wants to jump right into the solution to the problem… telling… informing… instructing… and advising… usually with a healthy dose of threatened disciplinary action for non-compliance to the officer’s demands. Talk about the set-up for a bad coaching session.
The best officers seek to understand why the behavior is happening and then try to work with the subordinate to develop an action plan to improve the performance to meet the acceptable standards of the organization. That, my friends, is the set-up for success!
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Executive Director
Center for the Advancement of Situational Awareness & Decision Making
www.RichGasaway.com
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Control your reactions
Many times throughout my career I have been in a position to promote (or not promote) firefighters into positions of leadership. Sometimes the decision was hard because I was blessed with a number of highly qualified candidates. Other times the decision was easy because I had one candidate who stood out among their peers.
In communicating the decision to the candidates who were not selected, I have noticed the bad news presents an opportunity for a reaction on their part. How they react to the bad news is what I want to address.
Some of the candidates reacted in a way that was so positive and professional that it actually made me regret that I did not promote them. I saw a level of maturity that was absolutely impressive. When I have witnessed this, I have gone out of my way to give this candidate personal time and attention to help ensure the next time I have an officer position open up, they will be the leading candidate. In the bad news I saw their potential shine.
Some candidates, on the other hand, reacted in a way that was so negative and so unprofessional that it confirmed to me that I had made the right decision. I saw a level of maturity that was very unimpressive. When I have witnessed this, I have assured myself that the right decision was made not to promote this person and affirmed this person will likely never be promoted to a position of leadership. A little bit of bad news caused them to self-destruct. That’s not the kind of leader I want on my team.
If things don’t go your way, maintain your professionalism and fashion a positive, supportive response, even if you have to fake it. Being a loser hurts but you should invest great effort in ensuring you use your pain to compel you to address your shortcomings and to become a better qualified leader. If you take that pain and decide someone needs to pay a price for the injustice you faced, your behavior will only affirm to the boss the right decision was made. You may not control what happens to you, but you are in complete control of how you react to what happens to you.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Executive Director, Center for the Advancement of Situational Awareness & Decision Making
www.RichGasaway.com
In communicating the decision to the candidates who were not selected, I have noticed the bad news presents an opportunity for a reaction on their part. How they react to the bad news is what I want to address.
Some of the candidates reacted in a way that was so positive and professional that it actually made me regret that I did not promote them. I saw a level of maturity that was absolutely impressive. When I have witnessed this, I have gone out of my way to give this candidate personal time and attention to help ensure the next time I have an officer position open up, they will be the leading candidate. In the bad news I saw their potential shine.
Some candidates, on the other hand, reacted in a way that was so negative and so unprofessional that it confirmed to me that I had made the right decision. I saw a level of maturity that was very unimpressive. When I have witnessed this, I have assured myself that the right decision was made not to promote this person and affirmed this person will likely never be promoted to a position of leadership. A little bit of bad news caused them to self-destruct. That’s not the kind of leader I want on my team.
If things don’t go your way, maintain your professionalism and fashion a positive, supportive response, even if you have to fake it. Being a loser hurts but you should invest great effort in ensuring you use your pain to compel you to address your shortcomings and to become a better qualified leader. If you take that pain and decide someone needs to pay a price for the injustice you faced, your behavior will only affirm to the boss the right decision was made. You may not control what happens to you, but you are in complete control of how you react to what happens to you.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Executive Director, Center for the Advancement of Situational Awareness & Decision Making
www.RichGasaway.com
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Managing up the chain of command
Anyone, in any capacity in any organization can display the qualities of leadership. To be a leader is to influence others to see things in a different way or to use influence to compel change.
One of the best ways to influence change in an organization is to bump the ideas up the chain of command. How you do this will have a significant correlation to your success. Many bosses don't like their underlings telling them what they should be doing or what direction they should be leading the organization. So, best to avoid being so blunt with the boss.
A better approach is the soft sell. Wait for the time to be right and then float the idea past the boss. If you're really coy about it you can actually do this in such a way that the boss thinks the idea was his or hers. If you can do that, it's far more likely to get traction. If the idea doesn't take hold. Don't become too pushy. Rather, be patient and wait for another opportunity for the idea to be floated. This time you might say "The solution to this problem is very similar to the ideas we were talking about a few weeks ago." Notice... you don't say "MY idea..."
You'll be amazed how much you can get accomplished through your boss when you don't care who takes the credit. If you want a better organization, let go of the credit and let all your good ideas become your boss's ideas. With some finesse, it is possible to manage up the chain of command.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Gasaway Consulting Group
www.RichGasaway.com
One of the best ways to influence change in an organization is to bump the ideas up the chain of command. How you do this will have a significant correlation to your success. Many bosses don't like their underlings telling them what they should be doing or what direction they should be leading the organization. So, best to avoid being so blunt with the boss.
A better approach is the soft sell. Wait for the time to be right and then float the idea past the boss. If you're really coy about it you can actually do this in such a way that the boss thinks the idea was his or hers. If you can do that, it's far more likely to get traction. If the idea doesn't take hold. Don't become too pushy. Rather, be patient and wait for another opportunity for the idea to be floated. This time you might say "The solution to this problem is very similar to the ideas we were talking about a few weeks ago." Notice... you don't say "MY idea..."
You'll be amazed how much you can get accomplished through your boss when you don't care who takes the credit. If you want a better organization, let go of the credit and let all your good ideas become your boss's ideas. With some finesse, it is possible to manage up the chain of command.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Gasaway Consulting Group
www.RichGasaway.com
Monday, December 6, 2010
Five things to prepare for advancement
Recently I received an inquiry from a fire officer who was looking for advice about what he could do to prepare for career advancement. After some reflection and notetaking, I spent the majority of my time figuring out how to get the list down to five. Here they are (listed randomly).
1. Accelerate your learning:
a. Read top rated leadership books (get them from the library for free). Some of the classics will be available on audio book).
b. Read a book on the fundamentals of supervision (not the latest and greatest fads book... a book on tried and true fundamentals.
c. Read Fire Engineering, Firehouse and Fire Chief magazines (on-line content is free).
2. Broaden your perspectives by exposing yourself to new ways of thinking:
a. Attend a business seminar that is not fire-related (Fred Pryor-type).
b. Visit websites where innovative thinkers are celebrated (www.TED.com).
3. Rehearse your performance:
a. Create scenarios (management and fireground) that you have to manage through. Script out your course of action, then critique your performance.
b. Record yourself (audio and/or video)... depends on the scenario and play it back and watch/listen to your performance. Rate it and make a plan to improve.
4. Learn from the mistakes of others:
a. Avidly read near miss and line-of-duty casualty reports. Vividly imagine yourself being there where things are going bad. Don't be a judge of what happened. Try to understand why it happened and how you could prevent that happening when you are in charge.
5. Develop a mentor relationship:
a. Find someone to serve as a mentor... someone who has accomplished what it is you want to accomplish. Learn from them. They've made mistakes. Learn from that. They've done things that work well. Learn from that.
b. Have someone you can turn to when you are faced with a challenging situation and you want a sounding board for how to work through it.
c. Consider hiring a coach to help improve your performance and help you prepare for advancement.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
1. Accelerate your learning:
a. Read top rated leadership books (get them from the library for free). Some of the classics will be available on audio book).
b. Read a book on the fundamentals of supervision (not the latest and greatest fads book... a book on tried and true fundamentals.
c. Read Fire Engineering, Firehouse and Fire Chief magazines (on-line content is free).
2. Broaden your perspectives by exposing yourself to new ways of thinking:
a. Attend a business seminar that is not fire-related (Fred Pryor-type).
b. Visit websites where innovative thinkers are celebrated (www.TED.com).
3. Rehearse your performance:
a. Create scenarios (management and fireground) that you have to manage through. Script out your course of action, then critique your performance.
b. Record yourself (audio and/or video)... depends on the scenario and play it back and watch/listen to your performance. Rate it and make a plan to improve.
4. Learn from the mistakes of others:
a. Avidly read near miss and line-of-duty casualty reports. Vividly imagine yourself being there where things are going bad. Don't be a judge of what happened. Try to understand why it happened and how you could prevent that happening when you are in charge.
5. Develop a mentor relationship:
a. Find someone to serve as a mentor... someone who has accomplished what it is you want to accomplish. Learn from them. They've made mistakes. Learn from that. They've done things that work well. Learn from that.
b. Have someone you can turn to when you are faced with a challenging situation and you want a sounding board for how to work through it.
c. Consider hiring a coach to help improve your performance and help you prepare for advancement.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
Sunday, October 17, 2010
The greatest gift
What is the best gift you’ve ever given or received? Was it clothing, jewelry, electronics? Recently while attending a class the speaker asked the attendees this question. I spent some time in quiet contemplation. As we went around the room some of the answers were pretty impressive – a new car for graduation, a vacation for an anniversary, the birth of a healthy child. No one could argue against the fact that all of those things were wonderful gifts.
When the facilitator got to me, my answer was different. The greatest gift every given to me has been the gift of someone’s time. It’s the most valuable thing they can give me for it is irreplaceable. If someone gives you a beautiful gold watch that costs them a thousand dollars, that would be an amazing gift. However, the person is likely to be able to replace the money they spent on the watch. The gift of time is irreplaceable.
When someone gives you the gift of their time, remember they could have given that gift it to someone else or kept it for themselves. But they didn’t. They gave it to you. When that happens, remember to thank them for choosing to give it to you.
When the facilitator got to me, my answer was different. The greatest gift every given to me has been the gift of someone’s time. It’s the most valuable thing they can give me for it is irreplaceable. If someone gives you a beautiful gold watch that costs them a thousand dollars, that would be an amazing gift. However, the person is likely to be able to replace the money they spent on the watch. The gift of time is irreplaceable.
When someone gives you the gift of their time, remember they could have given that gift it to someone else or kept it for themselves. But they didn’t. They gave it to you. When that happens, remember to thank them for choosing to give it to you.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Stop using the "Reply to all" button.
Have you ever had this happen? One of your associates is in need of some information so they show resourcefulness and send out a broadcast email to a group of 20-30 people seeking an answer to a question.
Some of the people on the list, for reasons that I can only fathom relate to ego or ignorance, hit the "Reply to all" button and send their pearls of wisdom to everyone on the original distribution list.
Do you REALLY have to clog up 30 people's email in boxes with your genius? You're making a big assumption if you think we had any interest in the original question in the first place. And you're making a monumental assumption if you think we want to know your answer. Here's a hint... WE DON'T!
Stop hitting the "Reply to All" button when someone sends out a broadcast email for information. Reply to the sender and if someone on the distribution list wants to know the replies, they can ask the original sender to forward the good replies on to them.
Perhaps the only thing worse is when two people on the distribution list decide to carry on a conversation about the question and in the process hit the "Reply to all" with every one of their messages. You may think we are interested in your private (now made public) conversation. Here's a hint... WE'RE NOT!
I'm sure I speak for a lot of people when I say... STOP THAT!
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
Some of the people on the list, for reasons that I can only fathom relate to ego or ignorance, hit the "Reply to all" button and send their pearls of wisdom to everyone on the original distribution list.
Do you REALLY have to clog up 30 people's email in boxes with your genius? You're making a big assumption if you think we had any interest in the original question in the first place. And you're making a monumental assumption if you think we want to know your answer. Here's a hint... WE DON'T!
Stop hitting the "Reply to All" button when someone sends out a broadcast email for information. Reply to the sender and if someone on the distribution list wants to know the replies, they can ask the original sender to forward the good replies on to them.
Perhaps the only thing worse is when two people on the distribution list decide to carry on a conversation about the question and in the process hit the "Reply to all" with every one of their messages. You may think we are interested in your private (now made public) conversation. Here's a hint... WE'RE NOT!
I'm sure I speak for a lot of people when I say... STOP THAT!
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
Friday, February 5, 2010
The measure of success
How does someone measure success? Some would say by the accumulation of stuff (houses, cars, boats, and other motorized toys). Others might say by size of the bank account (inclusive of stocks and bonds). I disagree with both.
I was told a very long time ago by a very wise person that I should measure my success by how much I help others succeed. In other words, the more I help other people achieve what they want in live, the more successful I will become. It took me a while to grasp on to the concept that helping other people be successful would some how make me feel successful.
However, having embraced that philosophy for nearly 30 years, I can honestly say it does work and I feel incredibly successful for having helped so many other people achieve their goals. In just the past several months I have provided coaching to three persons who want a career in the fire service. As their coach, it’s not my job to tell them what they want to hear. It’s my job to give them the unvarnished truth about their chances of success and how to improve those chances.
I also had a conversation with an associate of mine whom I helped with some advice more than 15 years ago. I told him that when he became successful, he would have an obligation to help someone else the way I helped him. The purpose of his call was to tell me that he had done for someone else exactly what I had done for him so many years ago. And so, the cycle repeats itself. Helping others makes me feel successful. Give it a try. You may be amazed at how good it feels to help someone else get what THEY want.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
I was told a very long time ago by a very wise person that I should measure my success by how much I help others succeed. In other words, the more I help other people achieve what they want in live, the more successful I will become. It took me a while to grasp on to the concept that helping other people be successful would some how make me feel successful.
However, having embraced that philosophy for nearly 30 years, I can honestly say it does work and I feel incredibly successful for having helped so many other people achieve their goals. In just the past several months I have provided coaching to three persons who want a career in the fire service. As their coach, it’s not my job to tell them what they want to hear. It’s my job to give them the unvarnished truth about their chances of success and how to improve those chances.
I also had a conversation with an associate of mine whom I helped with some advice more than 15 years ago. I told him that when he became successful, he would have an obligation to help someone else the way I helped him. The purpose of his call was to tell me that he had done for someone else exactly what I had done for him so many years ago. And so, the cycle repeats itself. Helping others makes me feel successful. Give it a try. You may be amazed at how good it feels to help someone else get what THEY want.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
Friday, January 22, 2010
Strategic Planning is like Vacation Planning
Think about what it takes to plan a vacation. You have to consider who’s going with you; what you’re going to do; when you’re going to go; where you’re going to go; why you’re going in the first place; and, how you’re going to get there. In other words, the five W’s and an H (who, what, when, where, why, and how). The same is true when you think about strategic planning in your organization.
As the leader of the organization, you’re the driver or pilot, or engineer (depending on the mode of transportation you select) and the members of the organization are on board (hopefully) and going along for the ride. To get them on-board (i.e., buy-in) requires commitment and preparation on their part. They may have to be convinced, especially if they don’t know where the organization is going and why.
Think about if you wanted someone to go on vacation with you but you did not share the details of the five W’s and the H. Can you see how they’d be concerned and perhaps lack commitment to blindly follow you? To follow blindly in any direction is scary. You can run into trouble, you can get hurt, you can fail and look foolish.
If you want to have the best success with the strategic direction of your organization, get the members involved in the process of setting the direction and then communicate all the details of where you’re going, how you’re getting there, why it’s important to go there… you know… the five W’s and an H.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PHD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
[Note: This posting can also be found on "The Bleeding Edge of Change" at www.Firehouse.com]
As the leader of the organization, you’re the driver or pilot, or engineer (depending on the mode of transportation you select) and the members of the organization are on board (hopefully) and going along for the ride. To get them on-board (i.e., buy-in) requires commitment and preparation on their part. They may have to be convinced, especially if they don’t know where the organization is going and why.
Think about if you wanted someone to go on vacation with you but you did not share the details of the five W’s and the H. Can you see how they’d be concerned and perhaps lack commitment to blindly follow you? To follow blindly in any direction is scary. You can run into trouble, you can get hurt, you can fail and look foolish.
If you want to have the best success with the strategic direction of your organization, get the members involved in the process of setting the direction and then communicate all the details of where you’re going, how you’re getting there, why it’s important to go there… you know… the five W’s and an H.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PHD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
[Note: This posting can also be found on "The Bleeding Edge of Change" at www.Firehouse.com]
Monday, December 14, 2009
Have a back-up plan
If your career is in fire or EMS you have one of the greatest jobs possible. Having spent 30 years in the fire service, maybe I am a little biased. All things considered, it’s a pretty good career path. But what if something happened that meant you would not be a firefighter any more. Maybe you are involved in an accident that leaves you disabled. Maybe you have a heart attack at a young age that leaves you unable to return to work. Maybe you’ve been “downsized” as a result to the current economy. Maybe you unexpectedly find yourself working for a psycho boss and you decide to quit instead of enduring the stress of working for the boss from hell. Perhaps you were lucky enough to get hired at 18 and now you’re 50 and you can retire and move on to a new chapter in your life. Whatever the reason, you’re now a civilian again. Now what are you going to do?
There are many ways you can find yourself unemployed. Some may be planned. Some may not be. Regardless of where you are in your career, it would be wise for you to pause and say to yourself: If I could not be a firefighter, what else am I prepared to do? How else could I earn my living? How could I support my family? How would I find satisfaction in life? It is not the first day you wake up unemployed that you want to give thought to these questions.
One of the best pieces of advice that was given to me early in my career was: Have a plan B. Develop another skill or acquire knowledge or training that will prepare you to do something else… just in case. This advice was given to me during a time when I was contemplating switching my major in college from business administration to fire science. I was already two years into the business program when the desire to be a firefighter-paramedic overwhelmed me. I was completely consumed by the desire to serve. I was getting some awesome experience working for several fire and EMS departments. It was a good time in my life. I was having lots of fun. There was nothing more I wanted than to be a firefighter-paramedic.
I talked with a trusted advisor about switching majors to fire science. Surely that would help me get hired full-time on a fire department and help launch my career. My advisor was a firefighter and an instructor so I just knew he would be on-board with my decision to change my major. But he wasn’t. In fact, he strongly discouraged me from switching my major to fire science. I wasn’t expecting to receive that advice.
But when he explained his logic, it made perfect sense. He explained that a degree in fire science was not an essential component to getting a fire job. But, having a college degree would likely give me a few extra points in the hiring process. He explained that a fire science degree would be useful so long as I worked for a fire department but it would not have much usefulness if I ever moved on to doing something else. A business degree, on the other hand, would have usefulness within the fire department and would also open other doors of opportunity if I ever could not be a firefighter.
I was young and full of enthusiasm to be a firefighter. The thought of doing anything else never crossed my mind. I didn’t want to imagine that such a scenario would ever happen to me. Nonetheless, I valued his advice. After all, he had a good career in the fire service and his degree was in secondary education. So how could I argue with his logic?
I stayed in the business program and graduated with degrees in finance and economics. Then while serving as a volunteer firefighter-paramedic and company officer I continued in school and earned my master’s degree in business administration. Then came my big break… I got hired into my first full-time fire department job… as the fire chief. Talk about starting at the top! If I didn’t have 10 years of solid, progressively responsible volunteer experience and a master’s degree in business administration I don’t think I would have been a contender for the job. So my career was underway. But all the while, in the back of my mind there was the constant reminder of the sage advice from my mentor: What would I do if the day came when I would no longer be a firefighter? What was my Plan B?
That voice would nag at me. I can vividly remember him saying: Be prepared. So I went back to school again, this time to earn a doctor of philosophy degree. I had lots of friends and professional associates ask me why I would do such a thing, especially this late in life and with four school-aged kids at home? I knew I needed to have a solid Plan B. I needed to have something else to do when that day came.
To be fair, it was not only the additional education that helped prepare me for that day. I also started teaching classes and writing for journals early in my career (before the creation of Internet magazines and blogs). The more I wrote the better writer I became. The more I taught the better teacher I became. This was coupled with my insatiable desire to learn and for continual self-improvement. I read everything I could get my hands on. I attended every class I could. I never passed up an opportunity to teach a class or to volunteer for an assignment.
My upbringing in a family of blue-collar hard-working, whatever-it-takes steelworkers was evident in my work ethic. I didn’t realize it at the time I was growing up, but being in an environment of hardworking parents was also preparing me for my Plan B career. Unlike some, I was fortunate that my Plan B was just that… a plan. When I went back to school for my PhD I knew that when I completed this degree it would be time to put my newly acquired education to use and that would not be possible in a capacity of my current job. Completing my terminal degree would signal a graduation celebration… a graduation from school… and a graduation from the fire service career I had enjoyed for 30 years. It was a good run… and it felt good to have a plan. It felt even better when my plan came together.
All of this because 28 years ago I had a mentor who convinced me I should have a strong Plan B. That advice put me squarely in the driver’s seat to set my own destiny. Now I am doing work that I absolutely love and I feel so accomplished. I have more time for my family. My stress level is significantly lower and I feel like my consulting, teaching, writing and podcast messages are making a difference toward improving firefighter safety and fire service leadership. My blessings are many… because I had a Plan B.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
There are many ways you can find yourself unemployed. Some may be planned. Some may not be. Regardless of where you are in your career, it would be wise for you to pause and say to yourself: If I could not be a firefighter, what else am I prepared to do? How else could I earn my living? How could I support my family? How would I find satisfaction in life? It is not the first day you wake up unemployed that you want to give thought to these questions.
One of the best pieces of advice that was given to me early in my career was: Have a plan B. Develop another skill or acquire knowledge or training that will prepare you to do something else… just in case. This advice was given to me during a time when I was contemplating switching my major in college from business administration to fire science. I was already two years into the business program when the desire to be a firefighter-paramedic overwhelmed me. I was completely consumed by the desire to serve. I was getting some awesome experience working for several fire and EMS departments. It was a good time in my life. I was having lots of fun. There was nothing more I wanted than to be a firefighter-paramedic.
I talked with a trusted advisor about switching majors to fire science. Surely that would help me get hired full-time on a fire department and help launch my career. My advisor was a firefighter and an instructor so I just knew he would be on-board with my decision to change my major. But he wasn’t. In fact, he strongly discouraged me from switching my major to fire science. I wasn’t expecting to receive that advice.
But when he explained his logic, it made perfect sense. He explained that a degree in fire science was not an essential component to getting a fire job. But, having a college degree would likely give me a few extra points in the hiring process. He explained that a fire science degree would be useful so long as I worked for a fire department but it would not have much usefulness if I ever moved on to doing something else. A business degree, on the other hand, would have usefulness within the fire department and would also open other doors of opportunity if I ever could not be a firefighter.
I was young and full of enthusiasm to be a firefighter. The thought of doing anything else never crossed my mind. I didn’t want to imagine that such a scenario would ever happen to me. Nonetheless, I valued his advice. After all, he had a good career in the fire service and his degree was in secondary education. So how could I argue with his logic?
I stayed in the business program and graduated with degrees in finance and economics. Then while serving as a volunteer firefighter-paramedic and company officer I continued in school and earned my master’s degree in business administration. Then came my big break… I got hired into my first full-time fire department job… as the fire chief. Talk about starting at the top! If I didn’t have 10 years of solid, progressively responsible volunteer experience and a master’s degree in business administration I don’t think I would have been a contender for the job. So my career was underway. But all the while, in the back of my mind there was the constant reminder of the sage advice from my mentor: What would I do if the day came when I would no longer be a firefighter? What was my Plan B?
That voice would nag at me. I can vividly remember him saying: Be prepared. So I went back to school again, this time to earn a doctor of philosophy degree. I had lots of friends and professional associates ask me why I would do such a thing, especially this late in life and with four school-aged kids at home? I knew I needed to have a solid Plan B. I needed to have something else to do when that day came.
To be fair, it was not only the additional education that helped prepare me for that day. I also started teaching classes and writing for journals early in my career (before the creation of Internet magazines and blogs). The more I wrote the better writer I became. The more I taught the better teacher I became. This was coupled with my insatiable desire to learn and for continual self-improvement. I read everything I could get my hands on. I attended every class I could. I never passed up an opportunity to teach a class or to volunteer for an assignment.
My upbringing in a family of blue-collar hard-working, whatever-it-takes steelworkers was evident in my work ethic. I didn’t realize it at the time I was growing up, but being in an environment of hardworking parents was also preparing me for my Plan B career. Unlike some, I was fortunate that my Plan B was just that… a plan. When I went back to school for my PhD I knew that when I completed this degree it would be time to put my newly acquired education to use and that would not be possible in a capacity of my current job. Completing my terminal degree would signal a graduation celebration… a graduation from school… and a graduation from the fire service career I had enjoyed for 30 years. It was a good run… and it felt good to have a plan. It felt even better when my plan came together.
All of this because 28 years ago I had a mentor who convinced me I should have a strong Plan B. That advice put me squarely in the driver’s seat to set my own destiny. Now I am doing work that I absolutely love and I feel so accomplished. I have more time for my family. My stress level is significantly lower and I feel like my consulting, teaching, writing and podcast messages are making a difference toward improving firefighter safety and fire service leadership. My blessings are many… because I had a Plan B.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Leaders are readers
I recently had an opportunity to have dinner with another fire chief who has enjoyed much success in his career. He’s visionary, well-respected and gives much of himself back to our profession by traveling and teaching classes. I asked to define and describe a common trait that he sees in leaders as he travels the country. He told me the best leaders are avid readers of everything they can get their hands on: Books, journals, newspapers, even the magazines on the airplane.
I have to agree with this chief’s assessment completely. I have been an incessant reader throughout my entire adult life. I stash books like squirrels stash nuts. I have a couple on the nightstand in the bedroom, several on the end table in the living room, a few in my car and a couple in my computer bag. I typically read 4-5 books at a time. Maybe I’ve got ADD, ADHD or OCD. Whatever the reason, I can never remember reading just one book at a time. Maybe it harkens back to the habits formed in the formidable years when teachers would assign homework that required the reading from multiple books. Who knows?
My favorite types of books are those that inspire me to greater achievement. I enjoy books about leaders who have overcome adversity and those who have had successful careers. I like self-help books that give me ideas for making incremental improvements in my own performance. I may read an entire book and only extract one good thing I can use from it. But that one thing may be a golden nugget. Some of the best gifts I have received were books. Many I still have and re-read regularly. Some were so good, I had to give them away.
As much as I read books and journals, I don’t spend much time with the newspaper. I find reading the newspapers depressing. It’s always chocked completely full of bad news that I prefer not to read. I find my disposition being dragged down when I read about all the crime and troubles of our world. I’m not in denial that such things exist, I’d just rather not dwell on it. For the same reason I don’t watch much television either.
I am reminded about a discussion I overheard recently where the topic was the economy and the conversation was focused on two previous economic recessions, one in the early 1980s and one in the early 1990s. I didn’t remember there being recessions in the early 80s or 90s. I had to go look it up. In the 1980s recession unemployment was slightly over 10%. In the 1990s recession unemployment was just under 8%.
Hmmm. How could I not remember this? Surely it was big news at the time. Guess I was too busy living life and wasn’t too worried about all the bad news that was happening around me. I didn’t read the newspaper or watch much TV then either. I guess I didn’t know I was supposed to be depressed over the economy. I bought things when I wanted them and I didn’t worry much about the recession.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
[Note: This article was also posted on The Kitchen Table blog.]
I have to agree with this chief’s assessment completely. I have been an incessant reader throughout my entire adult life. I stash books like squirrels stash nuts. I have a couple on the nightstand in the bedroom, several on the end table in the living room, a few in my car and a couple in my computer bag. I typically read 4-5 books at a time. Maybe I’ve got ADD, ADHD or OCD. Whatever the reason, I can never remember reading just one book at a time. Maybe it harkens back to the habits formed in the formidable years when teachers would assign homework that required the reading from multiple books. Who knows?
My favorite types of books are those that inspire me to greater achievement. I enjoy books about leaders who have overcome adversity and those who have had successful careers. I like self-help books that give me ideas for making incremental improvements in my own performance. I may read an entire book and only extract one good thing I can use from it. But that one thing may be a golden nugget. Some of the best gifts I have received were books. Many I still have and re-read regularly. Some were so good, I had to give them away.
As much as I read books and journals, I don’t spend much time with the newspaper. I find reading the newspapers depressing. It’s always chocked completely full of bad news that I prefer not to read. I find my disposition being dragged down when I read about all the crime and troubles of our world. I’m not in denial that such things exist, I’d just rather not dwell on it. For the same reason I don’t watch much television either.
I am reminded about a discussion I overheard recently where the topic was the economy and the conversation was focused on two previous economic recessions, one in the early 1980s and one in the early 1990s. I didn’t remember there being recessions in the early 80s or 90s. I had to go look it up. In the 1980s recession unemployment was slightly over 10%. In the 1990s recession unemployment was just under 8%.
Hmmm. How could I not remember this? Surely it was big news at the time. Guess I was too busy living life and wasn’t too worried about all the bad news that was happening around me. I didn’t read the newspaper or watch much TV then either. I guess I didn’t know I was supposed to be depressed over the economy. I bought things when I wanted them and I didn’t worry much about the recession.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGasaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
[Note: This article was also posted on The Kitchen Table blog.]
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Hee Haw Logic
When I was a kid there was a comedy-variety show on television called Hee Haw. It was a show that was essentially senseless humor and the kind of program you could watch if you didn’t need much mental stimulation but just wanted to enjoy a laugh. One recurring segment of the show was in a barber shop where the barber would have a person in the chair giving them a shave and would tell them a story about something that happened in the town. The barber would say something that was bad news and the customer would say “That’s bad.” Then the barber would say “No, that’s good” and proceed to explain why that which the customer perceived to be bad, was actually good. And then when the barber was done explaining the good news, the customer would say “That’s good.” Then the barber would say “No, that’s bad” and proceed to explain why hat which the customer perceived to be good was actually bad.
So it goes in life. Everything good that happens to us has some element of bad and everything bad that happens to us has an element of good. It’s all in the matter of your perspective. Some people can, so effortlessly, find the bad news in anything that’s good. Take, for example, the conversation I had with someone yesterday about the weather here in Minnesota. It’s mid-November and our typical temperatures would be somewhere between Brrrr and Oh-My-God cold. While I’m teaching a class we take a break and I walk outside. The weather is amazing! It’s brilliantly sunny and the temperatures are in the 50’s (very unusual for Minnesota in mid-November). I made a comment about how beautiful the day is and someone says “Ya, if it just wasn’t so windy.” This comment made me think about how some people can find fault as if they get a reward for it.
This day was, indeed, a blessing and someone was still able to find a way to complain about it. Was it a “perfect” day. No. But is it reasonable (or necessary) to expect perfection? Isn’t “good enough” sometimes good enough? This day should have exceeded everyone’s expectations for warmth and sunshine. Yet, for this one person… still not good enough.
People who go through life with a disposition like this person’s miss some of the greatest treasures that are laid at their feet because they’re too busy looking for the bad things in life. One thing’s for sure, if you go around looking for bad news and faults in people, you’re going to find them. Likewise, if you go around looking for good news and gifts in people, you’re going to find that as well. And YOU… are one of those people. Look for the bad qualities in yourself, and you will focus on them. Look for the good qualities and you will focus on those.
When something good happens to you and you say you were “just lucky” you are discounting all your good qualities and giving credit to happenstance. Acknowledge that the good things that happen are because of your preparation and hard work. When something bad happens to you, don’t dwell on it. Find the good in it (and there always is something good about everything bad that happens) and focus on how to use that good to your advantage.
In the spirit of Hee Haw, here’s an example of a recent day in my life that demonstrates the banter from Floyd the barber.
- I was driving to a meeting today and amazingly there was hardly any traffic on the road.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because I got a flat tire and there was no one around to help me.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because the first car that came by stopped to help me.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because the guy was taking his kids to school and didn’t have time to stop and help me out.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because he offered to give me a ride to a service station at the next exit.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because I had to sit next to one of his kids who spilled chocolate milk all over my new suit coat.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because I took off my suit coat and tie and when I went to my meeting later that morning the client (who I was trying to impress with my new suit) commented on how at ease he was with my casual attire and that helped me secure a very large client.
Life is ten percent of what happens to you… and ninety percent of how you react to what happens to you. In every good, there is bad. In every bad, there is good. Keep you mind occupied by the good and it will propel you in the direction of success.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Gasaway Consuting Group
www.RichGasaway.com
[Note: This article was also published on the Kitchen Table blog.]
So it goes in life. Everything good that happens to us has some element of bad and everything bad that happens to us has an element of good. It’s all in the matter of your perspective. Some people can, so effortlessly, find the bad news in anything that’s good. Take, for example, the conversation I had with someone yesterday about the weather here in Minnesota. It’s mid-November and our typical temperatures would be somewhere between Brrrr and Oh-My-God cold. While I’m teaching a class we take a break and I walk outside. The weather is amazing! It’s brilliantly sunny and the temperatures are in the 50’s (very unusual for Minnesota in mid-November). I made a comment about how beautiful the day is and someone says “Ya, if it just wasn’t so windy.” This comment made me think about how some people can find fault as if they get a reward for it.
This day was, indeed, a blessing and someone was still able to find a way to complain about it. Was it a “perfect” day. No. But is it reasonable (or necessary) to expect perfection? Isn’t “good enough” sometimes good enough? This day should have exceeded everyone’s expectations for warmth and sunshine. Yet, for this one person… still not good enough.
People who go through life with a disposition like this person’s miss some of the greatest treasures that are laid at their feet because they’re too busy looking for the bad things in life. One thing’s for sure, if you go around looking for bad news and faults in people, you’re going to find them. Likewise, if you go around looking for good news and gifts in people, you’re going to find that as well. And YOU… are one of those people. Look for the bad qualities in yourself, and you will focus on them. Look for the good qualities and you will focus on those.
When something good happens to you and you say you were “just lucky” you are discounting all your good qualities and giving credit to happenstance. Acknowledge that the good things that happen are because of your preparation and hard work. When something bad happens to you, don’t dwell on it. Find the good in it (and there always is something good about everything bad that happens) and focus on how to use that good to your advantage.
In the spirit of Hee Haw, here’s an example of a recent day in my life that demonstrates the banter from Floyd the barber.
- I was driving to a meeting today and amazingly there was hardly any traffic on the road.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because I got a flat tire and there was no one around to help me.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because the first car that came by stopped to help me.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because the guy was taking his kids to school and didn’t have time to stop and help me out.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because he offered to give me a ride to a service station at the next exit.
- That’s good.
- No, that’s bad because I had to sit next to one of his kids who spilled chocolate milk all over my new suit coat.
- That’s bad.
- No, that’s good because I took off my suit coat and tie and when I went to my meeting later that morning the client (who I was trying to impress with my new suit) commented on how at ease he was with my casual attire and that helped me secure a very large client.
Life is ten percent of what happens to you… and ninety percent of how you react to what happens to you. In every good, there is bad. In every bad, there is good. Keep you mind occupied by the good and it will propel you in the direction of success.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
Gasaway Consuting Group
www.RichGasaway.com
[Note: This article was also published on the Kitchen Table blog.]
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Vest wearing sissies
I was recently reading a heated debate in a forum where tempers were flaring. I may not be able to do the topic justice but I’ll try to summarize. I would refer you to the site, but I do not condone the form of childish name calling that I observed. It’s embarrassing, not to mention completely unprofessional. We wonder why we suffer to obtain and maintain the support of our elected officials and general citizenry? Some contributors have lost sight of the fact that those forums can be read by anyone. Ok, on to the topic at hand.
The sparring parties in this debate were warring on the topic of aggressive fire attack strategies. On one side of the debate was those advocating for strong command and control of the incident where the incident management team is responsible for assignments and accountable for the actions on the incident scene. On the other side of the debate were those stumping for more independent action by firefighting crews, denouncing the need for “vest-wearing sissies.” The tone of the comment led me to believe the author was of the opinion that incident and sector commanders who don identifying vests in the process of managing their incidents are fearful of aggressive structural firefighting.
As I have been a student of human motivation for many, many years, I have come to understand that all motivation is spawned from two emotions – fear and desire. Everything we do (and say) comes from fear or desire. I have to wonder… those who behave this way in forums - ironically, almost always anonymously - what are they afraid of? Or, what is it they desire?
You think you know? Feel free to post your thoughts. I just ask that you keep your comments courteous and professional. Remember… everyone has access to the forums.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGsaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
[Note: Also posted in the Kitchen Table blog.]
The sparring parties in this debate were warring on the topic of aggressive fire attack strategies. On one side of the debate was those advocating for strong command and control of the incident where the incident management team is responsible for assignments and accountable for the actions on the incident scene. On the other side of the debate were those stumping for more independent action by firefighting crews, denouncing the need for “vest-wearing sissies.” The tone of the comment led me to believe the author was of the opinion that incident and sector commanders who don identifying vests in the process of managing their incidents are fearful of aggressive structural firefighting.
As I have been a student of human motivation for many, many years, I have come to understand that all motivation is spawned from two emotions – fear and desire. Everything we do (and say) comes from fear or desire. I have to wonder… those who behave this way in forums - ironically, almost always anonymously - what are they afraid of? Or, what is it they desire?
You think you know? Feel free to post your thoughts. I just ask that you keep your comments courteous and professional. Remember… everyone has access to the forums.
Fire Chief (ret.) Richard B. Gasaway, PhD, EFO, CFO, MICP
www.RichGsaway.com
RBG3100@aol.com
[Note: Also posted in the Kitchen Table blog.]
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