After reading a recent article in the Republican American (http://www.volunteerfd.org/archive/repam.php) about a court battle between Chiefs, I realized its time to go back to kindergarten. (One Chief is suing another Chief for defamation of character…)
Pre-school and kindergarten are about socialization and ‘playing well with others’. As we grow up, we seem to forget some of the early lessons we were taught and now deserve a ‘Check Minus’ or an ‘F’ when it comes to ‘playing well with others’.
We are in a business to serve the public and too often we forget that. How many times have you gotten on scene to find the cops or EMS ‘messing up your scene’? Or maybe it is another fire company that is ‘in your turf’. It could even be that another firefighter is hogging the nozzle and not letting you play. Then tempers flare, we start fighting about the ‘correct’ way to do it, and it goes down hill from there…
We have all been there. I know I have wanted to slug a few people on scene, or afterwards, but we need to remember that we are there to serve the public. Jurisdictional issues and personal issues will always be there, but the time to fight about it is not when there are lives at stake.
We need to diffuse issues before hand and before they get out of hand. In the Republican American article, it becomes obvious that it was a case of a small issue that blew up and will be solved in court. While urinating contests may be fun, they are not the type of thing we want to do in public.
By nature, firefighters, EMS, and policemen all want to be in control, and are strong personalities. After all, it takes certain characteristics to make a public servant, and we all share them. These same qualities that make us strong also make us fight. Top it all off with our natural stubbornness and you get a mess.
Of course my idea is best because I thought of it, right? And Joe Blow is an idiot, so his thought is always wrong… We’ve all been there, even though we may not admit it. The hard part is to take a step back and look at why we are making the decisions we make.
Our ultimate goal is to do what is best for our patients, and the public at large. Sometimes that means checking your ego at the door. In the past I have discussed Napoleon Hill’s “Mastermind Theory” and it fits doubly here. Fights often start when one person has a ‘different’ idea. The point of the theory is that a good leader is able to accept others ideas and learn from them.
You do not have to like someone in order to like his or her idea. You also do not have to take it personally when someone shoots down your idea.
I know personally that I can get hot headed and offended when someone shoots down my idea. It is very hard not to take it personally. But you can’t let it get to you. The case in Seymour started with a technical issue and allegedly went downhill into a very personal battle.
This has now become two volunteer Chiefs who will battle it out in court, air their dirty laundry and end up in a worse situation then they started with. Think about your professional relationships and those that are strained may need some work. Try to work it out before you end up throwing fists, or in court. Can’t we all just get along?
Discuss this column at: http://www.volunteerfd.org/phorum/read.php?f=20&i=66&t=66