Posts Tagged ‘fireofficer’
Are You a Fatalist or a Cliché Quoter?
After reading the title of this article your reaction may be, “No, I’m not a fatalist and I have no idea what you mean by a cliché quoter.” The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language1 defines fatalism as, “The doctrine that all events are predetermined by fate and are therefore unalterable.” Consequently, a fatalist…
Read MoreDo You Serve or Deserve? Part 2
Last week in Part 1, I described a couple of examples using the word deserve. This week we will take a deeper look into the subject. Servanthood depth As a member of the John Maxwell Leadership Team, I heard the CEO Mark Cole deliver a presentation titled Leadership Depth: Going Deeper so You Can Take…
Read MoreDo You Serve or Deserve? Part 1
The interview A young man wearing a suit and tie entered the room, introduced himself, and took a seat before an interview panel of which I was participating in. He was seeking a position as a firefighter with our agency and although he had no previous experience, he spoke as if he were a fifteen-year…
Read MorePersonal Development is Like Climbing a Ladder
In a career, climbing the ladder often refers to vertical movement through an organizational hierarchy. Are you ascending the ladder of personal development or are you watching someone else go higher while you whittle away time? Are you trying to climb the ladder of development by yourself or are others helping you? The photo shows…
Read MoreAre You Caught in the Wire?
The photo depicts a life size diorama of a World War I German solider cutting barbed wire. The display is from the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and is a perfect illustration of how we become tangled up and caught in the wire with the circumstances of life. We are eight…
Read MoreWho Are You Imprinting, Following, and Impacting? Part 2
In last week’s blog post, I mentioned an online article titled, Why Your Dog Follows You Everywhere, According to Behaviorists by Katelyn Chef. The article described “imprinting,” when “young puppies up to six months of age can imprint on their owners and learn to read social cues as they would their birth mother.”1 Imprinting and…
Read MoreWho Are You Imprinting, Following, and Impacting?
The photo shows our dog Java. She is a fifteen-pound, Toy Australian Shepherd/Rat Terrier mix, and in my opinion one of the smartest dogs walking around on four legs. When Java first became a part of our family, she would shy away from me. But over time, by picking her up, holding and petting her,…
Read MoreAre You Bridging or Creating Gaps With People
Do you believe a generation gap exists in our society? Do you complain that the younger generation does not listen, or they do not care? As a leader entrusted with the care of others, are you bridging or creating generation gaps? The authoritative battalion chief Periodically, I met with another battalion chief from a neighboring…
Read MoreGators Gobbling Gators
In October 2021, media outlets including USA Today ran a story showing video of one alligator eating another alligator in Horry County, South Carolina.1 The video is an incredible account of one large reptile gobbling up a smaller one. According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, “Alligators will eat almost anything, including each…
Read MoreHow Do You Create a Leadership Development Plan?
In the January 10th blog, I wrote, “as leaders if we do not have a plan to develop ourselves, then we resemble the steel ball inside a pinball machine. Bouncing off the bumpers and making a lot of noise but showing little progress for the effort.” How do you create a leadership development plan that…
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