Meigs Volunteer Fire Department

Be a good firefighter first before rushing to become an officer. Foremen that don’t take the time to be good carpenters rarely appreciate and value a good carpe...nter. Very similar to officers who don’t take the time to be good firefighters first. Like a soldier, the carpenter sharpens his own tools. He carries his equipment in his tool box, and works under the direction of his foreman. He makes columns and girders with an axe, shapes floorboards and shelves with a plane, cuts fine openwork and bas reliefs accurately, giving as excellent a finish as his skill will allow. This is the craft of the carpenters. When the carpenter becomes skilled, he works efficiently and according to correct measures. When he has developed practical knowledge of all the skills of the craft, he can become a foreman himself. - Miyamoto Musashi

Take care of your workers. They are the engine that drives the ship. #leadership #firefighters

Doing the right thing may make you a target of those who aren’t. Do it anyway! Embrace the target. - Curt Isakson

After a while, when you’re out in front driving positive change, you come to expect, and accept the friction that accompanies being first in formation. And jus...t like birds as they migrate, more will join the flock, each taking a turn as lead in the V formation so no individual has to bear the entire burden and abuse of strong headwinds. Keep moving forward. There are others who are willing to step up when you grow weary. Don’t quit. We’ll get there together. See more

Give me a firefighter with an edge. Someone who will gnaw their bottom lip off when they make a mistake because they’re so pissed at themselves. Give me the o...nes who learn from those mistakes and come back as stronger, more aggressive performers. Risk is relative to how much work an individual or company is willing to extend in advance of the event. Efficient sounds like safe, politically correct language. We are in the danger business. We should stop shying away from doing our jobs and start by not dancing around the issue in order to appease those who we have to hustle past on emergency scenes on the regular. I’m not interested in pleasing the crowd. I’m interested in performance and little else. See more

Got our new Engine put in service last night!