Everyone knows they need to refuel their car, recharge their batteries and take care of the maintenance of their vehicle. The problem is, people often don’t think about recharging their mind. Departments need leaders with fresh ideas, goals, and who can motivate their members. This week I had the pleasure of attending the “Get Motivated” seminar at the FleetCenter in Boston which not only recharged my mind, but made me realize this exactly the type of program every department needs.
The seminar was put on by Peter Lowe and a company called “Get Motivated”. (http://www.getmotivatedseminar.com ) I learned about the seminars from the Zig Ziglar website at (http://www.ziglartraining.com/seminars.php?osCsid=c2f75f061059b4f1a7d8fc27629035f4&info_id=4 ). The Get Motivated seminar had a great range of speakers from Mayor Rudy Giuliani to Jerry Lewis. To top it all off, they were only charging $49 to bring your whole office (or department).
Let me set the environment for you before I go on to explain the details. Held at the FleetCenter, the Get Motivated seminar was attended by over 12,000 people. It was a loud, fast paced, energetic program with a great group of speakers and just in case you didn’t know who they were, fireworks announced their entrance. Peter Lowe has been holding these seminars across the country for years and has built a great line up of speakers he brings to your area.
The day started off with the Manager of the Boston Red Sox, Terry Francona. As the seminar was held in Boston, you can guess what type of reaction Mr. Francona received from the crowd. He spoke about a topic every department needs and that’s teamwork. Running a winning ball club and even beating ‘the curse’ was definitely an inspiring story. When Mr. Francona went on to describe what it was like in the locker room before games, you would have thought he had been in the clubroom of firehouses throughout the US.
The next speaker was Zig Ziglar, who I have to admit was the one I was there to see. Zig is 78 years old and at times was running around the stage, involving the crowd and had more energy then I have most days. :) Zig spoke for a little over an hour about motivation, which is something every department needs. Zig has scientific proof that listening to a motivational speaker not only charges your mind but increases blood levels of dopamine, seratonin, and multiple other endorphins. I challenge each of you to listen to Zig and not get into it. He gives you his ‘Ziggets’, little bundles of knowledge, that not only can help you personally but your entire department.
Zig Ziglar is proud to have done every Peter Lowe seminar except for three when he had a bad case of diverticulitis. Zig had to have most of his colon removed and loose nearly his entire blood volume to miss this program. (He jokes that he’s a ‘semicolon’ now. ;) ) If it takes that much to hold Zig back from being there, what would it take to hold you back? If you can’t make the seminar, pick up his audio CDs.. (http://www.ziglartraining.com/product_info.php?products_id=52)
Krish Dhanam came on next to talk about “Gaining with Goals”. Krish is an immigrant from India, and Zig Ziglar’s right hand man. His story of coming to the US with nothing, and becoming an international motivational speaker is amazing. Statistically immigrants are more likely to succeed and become a millionaire then those born here in the US. Krish’s story about setting goals and achieving them is one that we need to take to heart in the fire service. Too often we are reactionary and don’t have goals for our departments. How do you get anywhere without a destination and how do you know if you’ve gotten there?
The seminar had two speakers, Phil Town and James Smith who spoke specifically about personal finance. While this may not help your department, it may help you personally. Phil Town has a great story about how he went from a white water rafting guide on the Grand Canyon to a multi millionaire investing in the stock market. James Smith has a similar rags to riches story but has made his millions in real estate. Both Smith and Town had their pitch for another seminar, and to tell you the truth, I’d love to attend both. It may not help my department, but if you’re at all like me, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind making more money. :)
The last speaker before the lunch break was General Tommy Franks. For those of you who do not recognize the name, General Franks was in command for the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The entire Get Motivated program had a patriotic feel, starting with the national anthem and multiple motivational and patriotic songs/singers throughout. To see General Franks speak, and the reactions of the members of the military in the crowd made me proud to be in the US. You think you’ve got a hard time commanding a fire ground, try being in charge of 25 of the most volatile countries in the World.
After a free lunch, we came back to Mayor Rudy Giuliani. I think the chants of “Rudy for President” set the atmosphere just right. This is the guy who had to control NYC during the devastating time of 9/11/2001. Besides giving an amazing talk about leadership, his stories about 9/11 were tear jerkers. Here is a guy who had to lead during one of the hardest times in US history. His “Six Principles of Leadership” is a take home for all fire officers. If you ever plan on truly leading your department exceptionally, you need to hear Mayor Giuliani speak.
Peter Lowe, who produced the program, spoke about motivational techniques and how physical and mental actions combine. Peter Lowe used the metaphor of breaking a board with your bare hands to show you how to reach and exceed your goals. While he may have wrapped up with a bit of religious material, he gave the group an opportunity to go on break and miss this part of his speech. The fire service has strong religious ties and I suggest everyone stays for the entire speech. Peter Lowe also brought out Dion Branch, from the Super Bowl wining New England Patriots. I am not a big sports fan, but it was nice to hear from the ‘winner’.
Tom Hopkins spoke about sales and asking questions. At first you may not think of our job in the fire service as sales related but anyone who has ever had to ask your town management for a budget knows the fire service is a sales job. We are a customer service business at heart.
The final speaker was none other then Jerry Lewis. While he may not have been speaking specifically about motivation, it was an honor to hear and see his comedy in person. This is a man who has helped thousands, if not millions, and cares just as much about his cause as we do about the fire service. He continues to get the laughs and had the crowd falling off their chairs. ;)
I do not have anything to do with the Get Motivated program, Zig Ziglar, or anything having to do with the show. I presented this information to the group at VolunteerFD.org to convince you to take your department to see the program. The results will far outweigh any cost.
Personally I have grown by attending the program and have a new outlook on many things in my life. I have also made a personal commitment to develop a motivational program specifically for the Fire and EMS market. This is the type of program we all need to get past the bickering and back room politics we all deal with. More info to come...
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