Day 1: Introduction to Human Performance

Day 1: Introduction to Human Performance 

Week of Remembrance June 30-July 6 

This Week of Remembrance is dedicated to all those who have fallen in the line of duty and has been intended to serve as an opportunity to renew our commitment to the health, wellness and safety of wildland firefighters. 

Human Performance is a complex and multi-faceted process. It consists of physical, psychological, and environmental factors, and each of these is vital for us as firefighters to complete our missions safely and effectively.

IGNITE: Temporary Teams

In the wildland fire service, firefighters, dispatchers, managers, technicians, support services, medical staff, law enforcement, the military, and others are brought together in rapidly assembled temporary teams to accomplish a given mission. – Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, page 13

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!

‪#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

The Professional Reading Program - How do YOU use it?

A while ago the WFSTAR program came to the WFLDP Professional Reading Program and asked if they could help us broaden our reach by featuring the program in the annual fire refresher video series. This is the result.

IGNITE: Testing Teamwork

Teamwork is never tested in good times. – John Maxwell

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!‪

#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

IGNITE: The Art of Leadership

Conversely, committed leaders, avid pupils of the art of leadership, can inspire others and make an enormous difference in people’s lives, on the results of the team, and in the progress of the organization. – Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, page 25

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!‪
#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

"LCES and Other Thoughts"

Original Document
By Paul Gleason
Former Zig Zag Hotshot Superintendent
June, 1991

"LCES and Other Thoughts"

I have been asked to give input on wildland firefighter safety to the Fire and Aviation Staff - Safety and Training, Washington Office. First, let me say I am honored to be able to contribute at this level. The afternoon of June 26, 1990, as I knelt beside a dead Perryville firefighter, I made a promise to the best of my ability to help end the needless fatalities, and alleviate the near misses, by focusing on training and operations pertinent to these goals.

Throughout my career I have dealt with wildland fire suppression, as a Hotshot Crew Supervisor, with only minor injuries occurring to those I have directly supervised. This is primarily because of two reasons, luck (which cannot be ignored) and basic lessons which I learned from the exceptional firefighters I have had the opportunity to work with. Many of the really valuable suppression lessons I learned were prior to fire shelter requirements.

Young Firefighters Learn the Art of Leadership

Every spring, firefighters can be found in various trainings all over the country. It is part of the pre-season preparedness to ensure they are not only mentally preparing for the fire season, but enhancing and refining their skills from year to year.

IGNITE: Beyond Comfort Zones

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don't necessarily want to go, but ought to be. – Rosalynn Carter, First Lady of the United States 1977-1981

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!

#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

Mescalero Apache Helitack – Not Just another Interagency Crew

Mescalero Helitack Crew: Kevin Pellman Aldon R. Coriz, , David Melendrez, Golden Moore (BIA); Chris Jensen, Tony Carpenter, Louis M. Bouvier (USFS); Nate Maplesden, Miguel Laurenzana (Mountain Air Helicopters).

When one hears “interagency”, do they think many agencies, one mission? The Bureau of Indian Affairs Mescalero Apache Helitack Crew is just such a crew.

Consisting of members from Bureau of Indian Affairs Southwest Regional Office, Navajo Regional Office, U.S. Forest Service, Lincoln National Forest/Smokey Bear District, and Cibola National Forest, this is what interagency looks like in practice.

The Big Lie

Honor the Fallen Essay Introduction

I’m the author of this essay, but it reflects two years of dialogue within a group called Honor the Fallen. Coalescing in the wake of the 2013 Yarnell Hill fire and loss of 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, HTF is a collection of roughly 30 “seekers” within the wildland fire community. Hose‐draggers, fire directors, dirt diggers, academics, “Ollies”, agency administrators, ICs, FMOs…a diverse cross section is an understatement. This essay benefits from their critical eyes and input.

IGNITE: Spirit of Duty

We fulfill our obligation by mastering our jobs, making sound and timely decisions, ensuring tasks can be done and are accomplished, and fostering this spirit of duty in subordinates. – Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, page 25

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!‪

#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

No Two Staff Rides are Ever the Same

(South Canyon staff ride participants* with varied backgrounds and perspectives discuss Human Factors near H-2. Photo credit: Paul Hohn)

No two staff rides are ever the same. Regardless of how many times a participant attends, differences occur and something new is learned. One reason for this is the audience background or experience and the perceptions each participant brings to the staff ride and how those items are woven into staff ride discussions.

IGNITE: Try Something New

Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow. – Ronald Osborn

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence!‪

#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/

When Firefighters Become Patients

[This article is a joint effort between Firehouse magazine and the Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program to promote firefighter health and wellness. We hope all firefighters, regardless of volunteer, structure or wildland, will glean something valuable.]

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(Photo credit: John Foxx)

I’ve read a number of articles about depression and suicide rates among firefighters over the years and couldn’t agree more that this is a serious problem that requires more attention than many departments give it. Sadly, however, that’s not the extent of the mental health problem in our profession. Firefighters endure years of stress that impacts them psychologically and, as a result, they can develop problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or experience worsening pre-existing mental illnesses. That is what happened to me, and I would like to share my story to help others see if this could be happening to them.

IGNITE: Boss or Leader?

Tools - More Than Equipment

One of the most important duties a leader performs is developing his/her subordinates for the future. 

Fire leaders are committed to building a high level of competence in team members. Their satisfaction depends on it as does the future of the organization. Some of today’s team members are the leaders of tomorrow; it is the leader’s responsibility to mentor and help them cultivate the right tools and skills that they will need to face the challenges of the future. [Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, p. 40]

IGNITE: Duty - Respect - Integrity

Ron Garcia - Fun and Camaraderie

Fun and Camaraderie from The Smokey Generation on Vimeo.

If you're not having fun at work, then it's time to do something else. 

Ron Garcia, District Fire Management Officer for the U.S. Fire Service, doesn't actually share what the average human being would consider fun in this video. However, he shares a genuine response about fun in the workplace. When you office becomes the great outdoors, the definition of fun can take on a whole different meaning. Take a few minutes to see if Ron's ideas of fun match any of yours.

IGNITE: Giving Up the Credit

A good leader takes a little more than his share of blame, a little less than his share of the credit. - Arnold H. Glasgow

Do your part and share throughout your sphere of influence! ‪

#‎fireleadership‬ ‪#‎fireminis‬
http://www.fireleadership.gov/