Moving Up the Ladder

Being a protector of life is what fire officers and firefighters do. We can face challenging situations with expertise and aggressiveness. For some of us, however, we find it difficult to handle the doubt and bittersweet feelings that come with the progression from firefighter to officer, “junior” officer to “senior” officer, and finally to chief.

Over the past six months, I have attended several promotion ceremonies for brother and sister firefighters who were fortunate enough to see their hard work, dedication, study time, and promotional exam execution pay off. Almost every one of those promoted described a feeling of being torn about moving on to the next rank and leaving their current assignment. A couple even considered turning down the promotion so that they could stay in their present company, firehouse, or position for a little longer. My question is, why?

Book vs. Street

If you’ve devoted endless hours to study; have prepared yourself mentally, physically, and emotionally; and have been a student of the national or worldwide fire service; you’re ready to accept the promotion to the next rank. Now we all know people who are “book smart” and lack real-world experience, and we also know people on the other end of the spectrum who pass the promotional exam or assessment center but may not be as particularly astute to the technical way of doing things.

There are arguments about which one of these types is better, but fortunately most of us probably fall somewhere in the middle of these two extremes. That being said, being honest with yourself and recognizing where you fall on this scale may be the most important insight you’ll have.

If you’re the book smart, newly promoted officer, you should strive to learn the hands-on craft of the position you’re being promoted to prior to the promotion. That means observing the people currently in that position to see how they do their jobs. It means getting the bigger picture on the position from a firefighter who concentrates on your particular job and position on any given alarm, the sergeant/lieutenant who’s responsible for the rest of the crew, the captain/chief who must worry about a company and/or firehouse, and the members who report and respond within them.

Conversely, the senior member who’s been there and done that may need to get into the less exciting administrative functions that come with each promotional step. It’s part of the territory and shouldn’t be a surprise. And if you’re only taking the promotion for financial reasons, you’ll need to embrace this part of the job or it has the potential to torture you all the days of your working life.

It’s A Big World

Confidence (not cockiness) is the key here. If you look at a promotion as a good and positive thing, then the good will outweigh the relatively short-term negative feelings of loss from having to leave your comfort zone.

That big world exists no matter where you work or volunteer and no matter how large or small your department may be. Leaving a firehouse area can be a breath of fresh air to what may have become a comfortable and perhaps complacent way of doing your job. You may not even realize this until you’re out and about working in other places.

Have Confidence

Whether you were voted into the new officer position as a volunteer or got there through a promotional exam or assessment procedure, you should be confident that either the people or the process put you into this new position and you should be ready to take the reins.

Will there be a learning curve? Of course-there always is. Will you make mistakes? Of course you will. But if you’ve invested time beforehand to observe people in those positions, then you’ll have allowed yourself opportunities to learn from their mistakes in addition to the ones you’re bound to make.

It’s Never Too Early

As a young firefighter with aspirations to move up the ranks someday, it’s never too early to watch the officers currently in those positions. How they handle the day-to-day routine, administrative function, and emergency responses will be valuable learning opportunities-don’t let them pass you by. Emulate the officers you like/respect/admire and think about the actions of the ones you don’t. Ask what you would do differently in the same situation (use caution though, you may not be privy to all the facts in any given scenario or situation).

If you don’t participate in the promotional process, then someone else will. Think of some of the officers who rank above you. Could you do the job better than they can? If the answer is yes, why wouldn’t you take that challenge and grasp the opportunity to do it better?