IGNITE: Empowering Others

Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others. - John Maxwell

[Photo credit: Plumas IHC]

Leadership and Morale in Wildland Firefighting

Leadership and Morale in Wildland Firefighting

By Thomas Dockery

When you think of building a team in the wildland firefighting community what do you normally think about? If you have previous experience in leadership roles, you may have slides to go off of, some do’s and don’ts that you’ve experienced through trial and error. If you’ve been in a junior role (which we’re all in no matter the title), you’ve hopefully observed leaders in action and have created slides on what not to do and some goals on what you would like to do if you were given the opportunity. Building a team in the wildland fire community is extremely complex and there are a million different ways to do it. However, the tools we have access to are the same. How many of you reading this paper have read Leading in the Wildland Fire Service published by the NWCG or visited the Wildland Fire Leadership Development website?  If you haven’t read the book or visited the website, it’s definitely worth your time. In the book you’ll find information on framework for leadership, duty (accomplishing your mission), respect (taking care of people), and integrity (developing yourself). But I would like to add to it by writing about a nameless entity that can destroy a team or make others jealous and that is morale.

IGNITE: Improving Lives and Organizations

Fire leaders bring order to chaos, improve our people’s lives, and strengthen our organizations. ~ Leading in the Wildland Fire Service, p. 6 ~

[Photo credit: Tallac IHC]

IGNITE: Living Life's Lessons

Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. - Helen Keller

[Photo: Redding IHC]

The IFPM/FS-FPM Double Standard

(Hemera Technologies/Thinkstock)

“Following the South Canyon Fire in 1994, an interagency team was formed to investigate the fatalities and contributing factors. The subsequent 1995 Federal Wildland Fire Policy and Program Review, signed by both Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior, directed Federal wildland fire agencies to establish fire management qualifications standards to improve firefighter safety and increase professionalism in fire management programs.

IGNITE: Passing the Torch

Life is no ‘ brief candle’ to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.
~ George Bernard Shaw ~

[Photo courtesy of Buck Rock Foundation]

IGNITE: Passing the Torch

Life is no ‘ brief candle’ to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations. ~ George Bernard Shaw

[Photo courtesy of Buck Rock Foundation]

IGNITE: Change the Way You Look at Things

Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change. - Wayne Dyer

[Photo: Edu Borroso]

Some thoughts on what you eat…

Some folks proclaim, “you’re going to die anyway...” when they realize the amount of discipline I hold over what I eat. To that, I say, “it is not about dying, it is about how you live.” We have choices about what we eat, how much we eat, and how many different things we eat. Because we have choices, I want mine to be the best. So I research, study and reconcile what I learn with anecdotal information. I have come to a rather simple summary of what I should eat–QQV: Quality, Quantity and Variety.

IGNITE: Empowered!

Give me a place to stand, and I will move the earth. Give me a fulcrum, and I shall move the world. - Archimedes

[Photo: Redding IHC]

IGNITE: Remember Where We Came From

If we forget where we came from, we will often lose sight of where we're going. - Perry Noble

[Photo: Kyle Miller/Wyoming IHC]

L-580 and "Escape: The Great California Fire"

(Great pre-reading assignment by Sandra Millers Younger)

(View above Country Estates)

Greetings,

The International Association of Fire Chiefs is pleased to announce open registration for the San Diego County Megafires: An All Hazards Interactive Case Study; November 13 – 15, 2017. This program is certified as a National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) L-580 Leadership is Action course and limited to 40 participants.