Little Book With A Big Impact

Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, LWFS, the Yellow Book, the Leadership Bible. Whatever you call it, it sets the foundation for expectations and future progress throughout your leadership journey. As you progress through you career, take the time to read and reread Leading in the Wildland Fire Service. You might find that it means something different each time you read it depending on where you are in your leadership journey.

Some of the ideas we have been thinking about in reference to an updated version of the book are:

• Updating the values and principles – This would be a major change and take a ton of work since the book is basically an expansion of the values and principles. This could call for major content changes as well.
• Updating the “look” of the book, either by changing the color of the book or by redesigning the cover all together. The book is currently yellow, so some call it the yellow book. But some people call the Business Handbook the yellow book, also. 
• What if the book was blue? 
• Had different graphics? 
• Would that make a difference on who or how many people read it?
• Updating the vignettes with more current examples and stories – During the 13 years since the release of the book, many incidents to learn from have happened. 
• Although the current vignettes are great, and fit the need, are there more current examples we could use that might connect with the incoming generation more?
• Visual stimulation/Updating graphics – The book contains very few graphics. 
• Does it need more? 
• Would more people connect with the book if there were more visual stimulation? 
• Do the current graphics (Situational Awareness Cycle/Decision Making Cycle) need any updates or are they good how they are?

What if anything would you change about the book if you could?

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Monica Morrison, Leading in the Wildland Fire Service and Values & Principles Coordinator, is a Fire Operations Specialist on the Payette National Forest.