The PRP - A Note from Our Steward

 

I’ve been fortunate to be able to help the Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program (WFLDP) out for the past 6 (almost 7) years as the Steward/Curator for the Professional Reading List, and this year marks the 6^th iteration of the list in the current format.

Like most folks involved in the WFLDP, this is a “passion project” in that it’s completely separate from my day job, and a lot of the work of finding books, reading them, and planning the discussion guides, takes place outside of my normal duties. I get some suggestions from the wildland fire community, and a small number of folks contribute to the discussion guides, but it’s mostly just me working in my own little bubble for better or worse.

I don’t say this to make it about me—I greatly appreciate all the help I do receive, and welcome more (hint, hint). What I’m trying to say is that since I’m the primary person involved, you as readers get a list that is slanted toward my biases, even though I try hard to evaluate the list from an extremely non-biased and professional perspective.

Here’s a look at what I think about, and a few of the biases I tend to have, when putting together the list each year.

1. For me, leadership is first and foremost about people. Good leaders will know the specific technical aspects of their craft, sure, but knowing people is something that brings benefit no matter what your role in the wildland fire organization. Being a proficient leader means understanding people, how we think, how we make decisions, what our unconscious biases are, how we interact with other humans and our environment, etc. The more we know about people, the better we are positioned as leaders and followers to perform at our best. And it’s critically important to understand yourself as well, not just those around you. This is why I include books like Brain Rules, Thinking in Bets, and The Invisible Gorilla. This is driven by my bias toward human factors (I’m an aviation safety nerd at heart). We study fire behavior, fuels, and weather, yet so much of the job is also about people… we should study human behavior as well.
2. Leadership starts with self. Yes, leadership is about taking care of and influencing those around you, and putting them first. But the dichotomy is that if you’re a mess, or don’t understand or lead yourself, your ability to lead others falters. By being a better you, you can be a better leader. This is why I include books like Self-Compassion, and Wherever You Go, There You Are. In fire we train ourselves physically... why wouldn’t we do the same mentally? With many of our peers at all levels acknowledging that mental health is a problem in the wildland fire culture, we should all take the time to do some mental PT.
3. This program is a toolbox within a toolbox, and you don’t need to use all the tools at the same time. Just as you don’t use a hammer when you need a screwdriver or pair of pliers, what you read for self-development should be varied as well. Maybe you want to work on some functional leadership skills for fireline leadership, so you read Extreme Ownership or Endurance. Maybe you’re transitioning to leading a program instead of a module, so you read Team of Teams or Turn the Ship Around for some new ideas. Maybe you’re after some inspiration from personal stories of leadership, so you pick up It Worked For Me or We Were Soldiers Once, and Young. Perhaps you want to know why we do things the way we do in wildland fire, so you look at The Thirtymile Fire or The Big Burn. It could be that you’re wanting to gain some knowledge about yourself and how to better deal with the constant stream of challenges we face, so you dive into the topic of mindfulness and self-care with WhereverYou Go, There You Are, or Self-Compassion. The point is, I view my role as filling the box with a variety of tools every year, so that you can grab what you need for your situation and interests.

At the end of the day, that’s actually my leaders intent as the Steward/Curator for the PRP… to provide you, as leaders and followers, with a well-rounded selection of books that you can use to sharpen your skills.

Not everyone needs the same tools at the same points in their careers, so I try to select a variety of books that will be beneficial to readers at all leadership levels. I don’t hit everyone’s needs every year, as that’s impossible with a target of 4-5 book for each year, but I hope that everyone can find something on the current and previous years lists that meets their needs.

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Justin Vernon has been the PRP Steward/Curator since 2014. Justin is the Unit Aviation Officer for the Siuslaw NF, Willamette NF, and the Northwest Oregon District BLM. We appreciate Justin's service and thoughts. All expressions are that of the author.