The Skilled Communicator

"Listen" by highersights is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

“Communications” is a foundational element of firefighter safety as seen in the 10 Standard Orders, 18 Watch Out Situations, LCES, and Leading in the Wildland Fire Service (see below). Unfortunately, failure of communication remains a constant finding in accident and incident reviews. So how can we become skilled communicators?

The 2023 Wildland Fire Leadership campaign—"In Service of Others"—is based on a collection of essays by Robert Greenleaf, who coined the term “servant-leader.” Greenleaf and others have identified communication as one skill good servant-leaders must have. Greenleaf challenged servant-leaders to listen—not hear but listen to understand. Just because we hear words doesn't mean are listening and comprehending what other people are saying.

Hearing is one of our five senses. Merriam-Webster defines hearing (a noun) as “the process, function, or power of perceiving sound, specifically the special sense by which noises and tones are received as stimuli.” However, to listen (verb) requires action and goes far beyond sounds. Listening requires leaders be fluent in verbal and non-verbal cues, and are well-versed in slang and dialect.

Servant-leaders listen without bias and judgment and are fully present. They seek to understand to ensure that what they say is accurate and that their message is received so the team has a common operating picture. Being a skilled communicator requires the servant-leader to respect the human condition and how emotions and life affects a person’s ability to listen.

What if we wake up on the wrong side of the bed, go into the station with a chip on our shoulder, head down, and try our best to just go through the motions. How do these and other factors affect our ability to listen and affect what we're trying to convey?

Who is Responsible for the Message?

We've been taught to repeat back what we hear. Although a helpful habit, what happens when we repeat back what we heard and the person says, "No, that's not what I said."? Or even worse, a person didn't listen and still responds with an affirmative response like “correct” or “copy.”

Who is responsible for ensuring someone having a bad day understands the leader's intent that day? The culture has been the person's responsibility to "pull their head out of their ass." However, that is not how leader's intent is defined by NWCG (National Wildfire Coordination Group):

"Additionally, all leaders of firefighters have the responsibility to provide complete briefings and ensure their subordinates have a clear understanding of their intent for the assignment: task, purpose, end state." IRPG (Jan. 22, pg. ix)

If being told something was enough, we wouldn't have any safety issues because every IAP (incident action plan) I've seen under incident objectives has "SAFETY of firefighters and public" as the number one objective.

We all need to do a better job listening to our people and pay specific attention to how our instructions are received.

Leader’s Intent – A Real-Life Example

I asked my seven-year-old son to put his dinner dishes in the dishwasher. Ten minutes later, it's still sitting on the table. I asked him again this time telling him to put it in the dishwasher before he can have dessert.

"I did it. Can I have dessert now?"

Five minutes later, I open the dishwasher to find his plate on the bottom shelf, along with mashed potatoes and corn all over the bottom of the dishwasher because he didn't rinse his plate first.

Whose fault is it that I had to clean out the bottom of the dishwasher? I have told him in the past to rinse his plate before putting it in the dishwasher. Until he understands the full process of throwing the uneaten food in the trash, rinsing his plate, and then placing it in the dishwasher, I have to communicate to him what the expectation is.

Let's break it down using leader's intent.

Task:

• Put the dinner plate in the dishwasher.

Purpose:

• Mine - to wash the plate
• His - to get dessert

End State:

• Mine - Clean dishes
• His - Put the dish in the dishwasher and eat dessert

As leaders, we must look at miscommunications, mistakes, and failures, find the root cause, and adjust. However, as servant leaders, we must look at our role being the first one that needs correction.

Had I told my son he could have dessert after he cleaned his plate off into the trash, rinsed it in the sink, and placed it in the dishwasher, I could have avoided the extra work I had to do and the frustration I showed to him.

As we enter the season, crews get geared up, engine assignments are given, and team cohesion begins, active listening is a tool everyone should add to their gear.

A servant leader needs to be sure they not only have a clear picture in their head of what is being said but also that those that are hearing it have the same picture. It’s not personal if someone doesn’t understand what they’re listening to. If they are honest and vulnerable enough to relay back to you what they think they heard and it’s not right, correct the errors not with intolerance, but with respect and gratitude. Rephrase what you had to say that might help them to hear it how you intended it. Repeat until your visions are the same.

Although challenging with practice and tenacity, we all can learn to become skilled communicators.

Hear the words, listen to the emotions, watch for the body language, and be present!

Wildland Fire Leadership Challenge – Digging a Little Deeper

Suggested books for better listening and crew cohesion:

• The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (Patrick Lencioni)
• Surrounded by Idiots (Thomas Erikson)
• De-Escalate (Douglas E. Noll)
• Multipliers (Liz Wiseman)
• The Five Love Languages (Gary Chapman). *Don't laugh. I recommend this book for every possible relationship, whether it be romantic, friendship, with family or foe.

COMMUNICATIONS IN WILDLAND FIRE

10 Standard Firefighting Orders

1. Keep informed on fire weather conditions and forecasts.

4. Identify escape routes and safety zones and make them known.

7. Maintain prompt communications with your forces, your supervisor, and
adjoining forces.

8. Give clear instructions and be sure they are understood.

18 Watch Out Situations

5. Uninformed on strategy, tactics, and hazards.

6. Instructions and assignments not clear.

7. No communication link with crewmembers or supervisors.

12. Cannot see main fire; not in contact with someone who can.

LCES

"C" – Communications

• Radio frequencies confirmed
• Backup procedures and check-in times established
• Provide updates on any situation change
• Sound alarm early, not late

Leading in the Wildland Fire Service (pg. 50-52)

"Fire leaders show respect by keeping people informed..."

Five Communications Responsibilities:

1. Brief

2. Debrief

3. Acknowledge and understand messages

4. Communicate hazards to others

5. Ask if you don't know

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e. L. Pelletier is a dispatcher for the Uintah Basin Interagency Fire Center and is the vice coordinator for the 2023 WFLDP campaign. Previously, Eric held career seasonal positions with FWS and BIA. The thoughts are those of the author.