“You can buy people’s time; you can buy their physical presence at a given place; you can even buy a measured number of their skilled muscular motions per hour. But you cannot buy enthusiasm … you cannot buy loyalty … you cannot buy the devotion of hearts, minds or souls. You must earn these.”
–Clarence Francis
In all things, I’m no expert. I’m a practitioner, which means I’m always practicing to do better. And in a field as broad as fire prevention, I’m sure we’re all learning on the job to some extent.
Although we in prevention often talk about the technical side of the job, we too often ignore the important management issues we face. In our profession, I’m convinced there’s as much a need for dialogue on leadership as there is for codes and investigations.
Leadership & Management
The difference between management and leadership: Management is buying measured numbers of skilled muscular motions per hour; leadership is giving someone the room and support to make mistakes, to grow and, ultimately, to give your organization their heart.
If that sounds mushy, I’ll explain in fire service terms. A firefighter goes into a burning building because of a passion for and commitment to public safety. Their very sense of self is derived from providing public service, placing themselves in harm’s way and doing a dangerous job. No matter how badly supervisors screw things up, firefighters still have heart for the job.
Many of us in fire prevention are motivated in the same way. Our jobs may not present such a level of danger, but the outcome we seek is the same–to reduce fire losses and deaths. These passionate people give their time, money and sweat to create a safer community. It’s hard work, but they stick with it. Why? Because they have heart for the mission.
A Winning Team
Effective leadership requires the following factors:
A shared vision: Vision is not just a leader’s view of where things should be going. Selling your own ideas may be possible for the persuasive, but sooner or later, people want to realize their own vision for solving problems. So the more we do to create a shared vision, the more likely we are to get shared energy. The bottom line: A vision collectively produced has many more supporters with their hearts in it.
Competent leaders: Leaders must be good managers–assigning tasks, dealing with day-to-day problems, budgeting, etc.–to earn the respect of their employees and peers. We can’t gain respect if we don’t know anything about our field, as well as how to get people moving in the right direction.
Mutual respect: Mutual respect is fundamental. If you talk down to people, they resent it. If you treat them as equals, they are more likely to respect you in return. Explaining why a decision is being made is oftentimes as important as the decision itself. Increasingly employees want the respect of being told why things are happening the way they are.
Mistakes are OK: Risking mistakes is, well, risky. But operating in fear of them stifles all creativity and energy for progress. We learn by watching others, by studying–and by making mistakes. Even if you’re on the right path, you can be run over if you’re standing still. Some mistakes are monumental, demonstrate bad judgment and can’t be tolerated. But most are learning experiences, even when they happen in a public setting (like an inspection for fire code compliance), and they can be channeled into growth and larger responsibility.
Compassion: Understanding that our colleagues aren’t perfect–and neither are you–is a basis for mutual respect at a deeper level. Your colleagues have lives and loved ones and face struggles and triumphs, just like you. Treating them like machines means all you’ll ever get in return is robot-like behavior.
Conclusion
As Chief Seattle is purported to have said: “People won’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” We must look beyond minor infractions to see the person seeking to do their work well. Only then will we see the gifts and talents they possess.
Prevention isn’t just about codes and technology. It’s about people. It’s about growing ourselves, learning to unlock our own potential and passion, while unlocking the passion and potential of our colleagues. This may be risky, but I’m convinced it’s more effective than buying a certain number of muscular motions per hour.
