How Well Do You Know Your Crew?

As the leader of your crew, do you know the people you are working alongside? I spend nearly as much time with my crew as my own family. If I want to successfully lead my crew I need to know as much about them as they will allow me to know. 

I want to know about their wife and children. I find it enjoyable to see their families grow. I find it hard when they are going through hardships. 

I have learned that I also must be in tune to their little quirks. By being able to read those quirks I can determine how to handle difficult conversations with them. I know that some of them will take any effort to correct actions or behavior poorly, no matter the delivery or intent. 

A Firefighter that we will call “Firefighter Joe” is a prime example. Firefighter Joe is not actually on my crew, but he is on my shift. Firefighter Joe is a hard worker. Whenever something needs to be done around the station, “Firefighter Joe” is the one that always steps up to handle any and all tasks. “Joe” takes pride in his performance. Now for his quirks…  If a Captain tries to give Firefighter Joe a tip on how to do a firefighting task better he becomes quickly offended. His ego will not allow him to take constructive help. Firefighter Joe is an open book with his personal life which has been tumultuous at times. Joe’s openness has been exploited in the good natured (sometimes not so good natured) teasing that can happen at a Fire Station. Firefighter Joe does not usually handle this well. 

If Firefighter Joe makes a mistake or accidentally damages something, he immediately feels like he will be fired. No amount of comfort will make this feeling go away for him.

So how do we work with Firefighter Joe’s quirks? I try to reassure him that he is doing a good job, and give something constructive that can be worked on to become better. When the inevitable, “why are you coming down on me for this when no one else has ever told me this” happens, I reassure him that I want him to be the best he can be. Sometimes this helps, other times not so much.  I know that he will go to other Captain or one of the Chiefs and tell them that I yelled at him, even though I never once raised my voice beyond conversational level. 

When you want the best for the firefighters you work with, you just need to let them know how to be better. It is not always fun or easy, but if you understand the quirks that they have, it helps in the delivery of the message.

**Firefighter Joe is used to protect the individual, and is not solely one person. Every department has the same people working there, the names and faces are different, but the personalities are the same.**