Classes Offered
I Strongly believe that my purpose is to use my life and fire service experience to help others learn from my mistakes and victories in order to create not only better leaders but better people as well. My mission is to add value to someone’s life each day.
Let me know what you are looking for and I can tailor presentations to fit your individual needs. Email me for requests.
Through the darkness
Arming Today’s Firefighters for the war within
As Chief David Rhodes stated it, “A fire service culture war is in full affect.” Unfortunately, this is the reality that we are all facing. To make things even worse, one of the biggest collateral effects of this war is something that no one is talking about, and few have even heard of – Morale Injury and Lack of Organizational Support. Studies on these 2 topics have already proven them to be just as dangerous if not worse than the normal traumas that we encounter on a regular basis when it comes to how they affect our mental health. This means that it is time to bring these issues into the light and start to take a more proactive role in our mental health by preparing our brothers and sisters for the battle before it has been fought.
“Through the Darkness” takes students on a journey in which they will see how some of life’s hardest situations can be overcome if we can just win the battle that is being fought in our own minds. Defining and bringing awareness of the Morale Injury and Lack of Organizational Support that so many of us face is the first step but then what? The root of these issues usually comes from formal leadership above us which leaves us in a very hopeless situation that is beyond our control, however we are not helpless and still have a lot that we do control.
“Through the Darkness” gives students a proactive framework and tools that are needed to not only help them to increase their self-awareness to see problems before they plant roots, but it will also help them to discover hidden issues that could turn into something bigger. We can enhance the performance of everyone from the most seasoned and salty veterans to our kids playing youth sports by using the framework of Our Perspective, Our Connections, Action Taken, and Our Ability to Persevere. Through this framework, the students will begin to see that no matter what diversity the outside world may bring, it is no match for the power of our minds once we are in control.
This conversation is needed more than ever in the world we live in and, even more importantly, in the profession we are a part of. “Through the Darkness” will teach students the invaluable tools to find the strength and resilience to stay in the fight.
“When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside can’t hurt you.” – African Proverb
Maximizing Our IMpact
“Making the world a better place.” What was once a statement that pushed countless people to doing amazing things has in more recent years become a distant pipe dream and a statement that few seem to even hope for anymore. However, it doesn’t have to be that way; it isn’t the statement that is misguided, it is our perspectives and our attitudes that are causing it to seem unachievable. By reframing what seems to be a pipe dream, we will quickly see that we make the world a better place by making an impact on the lives of those around us and that is exactly what we are going to discuss.
We don’t merely exist to make an impression on those we encounter, we were created to make an impact on their lives and that doesn’t just happen on its own. In this class we will discuss the simple formula that will help us to “Maximize Our Impact”. That formula follows the great quote by Arthur Ashe, “Start where you’re at, use what you have, and do what you can.” I will break down each step of the formula and tie it into the process that we can use to begin making the world a better place. Simply stated; we start where we are – finding and using our identity, we use what we have – our story, skills, gifts, and abilities, and we do what we can – pursuit of our purpose.
Along the way I will share personal experiences, struggles, mistakes, and victories giving life to this formula to place it in a better perspective. We will also discuss the people that have had an impact on our own lives, the tremendous debt that we owe them, and how we can pay that debt back. We all need to realize the power that lies in our stories and the responsibility we carry to pursue the purpose that we were created for. The bottom line is this; we don’t have any control over how much time we have with others, but we can control the amount of impact we have on their lives while they’re with us. The amount of positive impact that we can have on the world is only limited by our willingness to stretch beyond our comfort zone.
We were perfectly made for an extraordinary purpose!
Why Are You Here?
Originally this class was built to mainly target probationary and new firefighters but as it has continued to evolve I believe that it now carries an inspiring message that firefighters of all experience levels and ranks need to hear. In this class we will discuss the importance of finding the true meaning of why we want to be here, a meaning much deeper than the go to answer of “I want to help people”. Students will hear how quickly “just wanting to help people” will fail them after the seeing the reality of sick calls, lift assists, and toe pains. To stay engaged for an entire fire service career we have to look much deeper than the surface of just helping people, we are a part of something so much bigger than that, but no one is talking about it.
We will also discuss several topics that a lot of firefighters, new and old, struggle with on a daily basis. These topics include finding a healthy balance of family and fire service, the ups and downs of a fire service career, the emotional/mental/physical toll that the fire service takes on us, and what to do when inevitable frustration hits. Emphasis in the discussion will also focus on living a life of service, the pursuit of personal growth, leading no matter where you are at, and learning how to enjoy all that the fire service has to offer us.
Bottom line - we are incredibly blessed to be a part of the fire service so what are we going to do to take advantage of this great opportunity that we have been given?
Enjoy where you’re at, and lead while you’re there.
Fire House Essentials:
From Character to Culture
For so many of us leadership is a tough combination of mirroring what you’ve seen and trial by fire. There is so much to learn that you never quite feel prepared for that role of leader. Leadership and Firehouse Culture are as dynamic as the fire service is itself and to make it worse most leaders are just given a very basic level of training to prepare for what they will be dealing with. To truly become a leader that others want to follow and to make a real impact towards positive cultural change there doesn’t seem to be a lot of good information and content out there to guide you through the process. We just have to learn through trial and error (and more error), but it doesn’t have to be that way. There are those that have ventured down that path, those who’s stories and experiences can help countless leaders for years to come if they just share their stories.
Fire House Essentials is a class pulled from the lessons that I have learned on my journey of trying to create something special at our firehouse. This journey has been challenging, painful, and frustrating but it has also been one of the most rewarding processes that I have ever been a part of. Everything that offers a great reward will require a lot of work and that’s exactly what true leadership and positive cultural change offer and require. This class is designed to challenge you in ways that you may have not experienced before, by sharing real experiences that I have faced we’ll discuss the numerous pitfalls and victories that you will encounter on this journey. In the full version of the class, we will address 3 different areas: It Starts With Me, Leadership Roles, and Firehouse Culture.
The Power of Balance:
Leveraging Force Multipliers in Leadership
This is a presentation that I have been extremely excited about creating and sharing with leaders at all levels. This class will help the audience fill in the gaps that have always existed in leadership character & qualities. To begin, the audience and I will look at the process of listing character traits that are important for leaders to have and how our own personal bias affect what our lists look like. In other words, without even thinking about it we put a higher value on those traits that we possess over the ones that we struggle with. This is an interesting thought and one that we need to understand better.
Next, we will get into the meat of the class in which we will have an open discussion about what I feel are important pairs of contrasting traits that on their own can be good for leaders to have but by finding the balance within each pair the power of those traits explodes exponentially. For each pair of traits, we will look at the pros and cons of having each one by itself, then talk about the possibilities that arise when we find that sweet spot in the middle. For example, one of the pairs of contrasting traits is Leading by Example & Empowering. So first we look at what good things happen when a leader is good at Leading by Example and when they are good at Empowerment. We then will discuss the negative side of a leader who is only good at Leading by Example and a leader who is only good at Empowerment. And finally, we will look at what happens when a leader is good at both Leading by Example and Empowerment. I believe that focusing on balancing out contrasting traits will increase our leadership skill and our influence.
The last area that we will look at is finding balance in leadership styles. Of course, we all have certain styles that we are most comfortable with and that we tend to gravitate towards automatically but anyone who has tried to lead, inspire, or motivate others knows that if you are only able to use one style of leadership you are on a quick path to failure. We must stretch ourselves out beyond our areas of comfort to experience the growth that is required to become a next level leader.
Breath is Everything:
Creating Foundational habits worth Building
Without proper breath work, we cannot function anywhere near our optimal level. We will spend time discussing and practicing various breathing techniques that I help teach as a part of the Tactical Resiliency Training cadre during our 24-hour immersive resilience training for firefighters. Breath work techniques that we will introduce are Box Breathing, Recovery Breathing (Yoga For First Responders), and Triangle Breathing. We will also discuss what situations each of these are best used in and how I have used them to help me get through some of the most stressful moments of my life. If time permits, we can also dive into Meditation, Non-Sleep Deep Rest, and Mindfulness.
During this session I will share some of the skills that I have learned as an instructor of a fully immersive resiliency course for firefighters which is based on the importance of Breath. Using a very helpful tool that YFFR created to help guide people through different techniques, we look at not only each technique and when they should be used but also explain why.
Impact Beyond the Firehouse Walls:
Going Outside of Department District Lines to Reach Your Full Potential
For many of us, making a positive impact on the fire service is something we are constantly striving for. Unfortunately, at the same time we find ourselves confined by the limits and restrictions that are put on us by our current departments. Whether it’s policies that restrict the content of our messages or the decision makers limiting our involvement in creating positive change because of differing mindsets; we have to play by house rules at home. As the saying goes, “you’re never a profit in your own land”.
The good news is that there is so much more that we can do beyond the walls of our firehouses. I, like so many others, want to do more and be a part of something so much bigger but how do we get there? What avenues are available for us to make the biggest impact possible? How do we create opportunities for ourselves to share our message?
In this class we’ll discuss the lessons that I have learned through a journey of going from being checked out to being all in. This journey has only become possible because I have embraced the discomfort of growth and opportunity. We’ll discuss what it takes to transition from being a firefighter who only takes from the fire service to becoming a firefighter who will truly leave it better than they found it. The amount of positive impact that we can have on the fire service is only limited by our willingness to stretch beyond our comfort zone.
Creating Your Foundation
A trend that I seem to be seeing and hearing about more and more these days is that great fire service leaders are leaving the fire service and taking all the invaluable lessons and experience that they gained over their careers without sharing them. There are so many areas that I wish I was more prepared for when I became a station officer, areas that I had no choice but to just learn as I went. This of course means that we are going to be learning everything through trial and error, lots of error. This just doesn’t have to be the case. There are thousands of leadership books and classes that lay out all the character traits and values that good leaders possess and that’s great and useful information. But where do you start, with all that information we can be easily overwhelmed.
In this class I break it down to 5 areas that I feel like every leader should use as a starting point, or “Foundation” if you will. This class is aimed at all levels of leadership both formal and informal. The discussion will take us through several experiences that I have learned vital lessons as a leader, including lots of lessons learned through failed attempts. Although it will be especially helpful for all formal leaders and those who are preparing to become formal leaders; informal leaders will be challenged and inspired to become better leaders where they are now.
Creating Your Foundation is the first class in the Underground Leadership Movement series is Creating Your Foundation. It consists of 5 areas that I feel are vital for creating a firm foundation to build solid leadership on.
Creating Your Mission Statement
Putting Your Crew First
Leading with Humility
Pursuit of Daily Growth
Having Fun
Speaker Review
Thank you so much for not only sitting through one of my presentations but for investing in yourself and the fire service. I would greatly appreciate it if you could take a couple of minutes to fill out this short survey evaluating me as a speaker. This information is so appreciated especially if there are some suggestions that you have to make the presentation or me better. I promise I will not wear you out with emails, you’ll only receive one thanking you for your time. Thank you again!