Command Post: You Win Some, and You Lose Some

It is important for effective leaders to understand that their fire department operation is a continuum, a series of starts and finishes. There always are new beginnings to be considered and new journeys to be completed. There is no one and done in the world of leadership. You must be prepared for a series of successes and a number of failures. 

Let me share some wise advice that I got from my football coach in high school. As we moved through the varsity football season in my junior year, the issue of our three-win/three-loss season came up. When one of us asked him how he thought we would do over the last two games, he waxed philosophical on us. “Kid, sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose.” Of course, he went on to state that he much rather would win the last two games than lose them. (We split them.)

In my senior year, the football team won the conference championship. The following spring, our track and field team won its conference championship. These were some really great times in my life. Some great successes.

The highs, the lows

Over the course of my 72 years here on God’s green earth, I managed to accumulate really great wins. I rose to the rank of battalion chief in the Newark, NJ, Fire Department. I was blessed to become chief of my volunteer department in Adelphia, NJ. It has been my honor to serve as president of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors and as president of the U.S. branch of the Institution of Fire Engineers of Great Britain.

Unfortunately, there have been some serious lows. Like many of you, I have lost a host of family members. That’s part of life, but each time it happens, you are diminished by the loss. But you must soldier on.

One of my major disappointments came when I was kicked off of the track and field team the day before the election of captains. I was a shoo-in for the field captain spot. I will spare you the story of the stupid crap that I pulled that day, but three of us got kicked off of the team. We deserved it. However, the day after the election, the coach called us into his office and asked us whether we learned our lesson. Of course, we said, “Yes.” In the words of Forrest Gump, “Stupid is as stupid does.”

It is worthwhile to note that I generally took first place in the shot put and second in the discus throw. My sidekick usually placed first in the discus throw and second in the shot. Our other buddy usually placed third in both. That amounted to 18 points. I am sure that we had a great hand in the winning of our conference championship, but I never was the captain.

I almost lost my career as a U.S. Air Force firefighter because of a really stupid thing that I did in basic training. In the two training flights located within our barracks, there were about 20 of us who wished to be fire protection specialists. I was one of only two who were selected to go to Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul, IL. I was one happy camper.

However, on the last weekend of basic training, I almost ruined my firefighting career. My drill instructor and his sidekick who ran the other training flight in our barracks asked me to take care of both flights while they went on a weekend pass. The only time that we were to leave our barracks was for breakfast, lunch and supper. All went well until the last supper trip on Sunday.

We were late getting out and ended up as the last of 16 flights in line for the dining facility. I would have been fine, except I made the mistake of thinking. I can recall saying to myself, “What would General MacArthur do to take care of his men?” Then it all went to heck. I saw the snack bar across the street and had my men do an about-face and march into the snack bar.

We all were chowing down on burgers and fries and listening to the Supremes singing, “You Can’t Hurry Love,” when someone yelled, “Who in the hell is in charge of these troops?” Oh, my goodness, did I get yelled at by one of the drill instructors from another area. We were marched back to the barracks, and I was told to standby for disciplinary action.

The next morning, I stood tall, doing my best impression of a stammering Ralph Kramden of “The Honeymooners”—“Humida, humida, humida.” My drill instructor informed me that the colonel wanted me to be recycled to the first day of basic training and my orders to fire school to be rescinded. I stood there shocked and saddened.

My drill instructor told me that he knew that I did what I did for my guys and that was the story that he would try to sell to the colonel. But he said to me, “Carter, pack your bags and get ready to go to an incoming flight to start basic training all over.” Those were the longest two hours of my life up to that point.

When he came back, he called me into his office, and after a very long pause, he said, “Well, Carter, the old man bought that load of crap. Pack your bags. You are going to Firefighting School in Illinois.” Wow! What a load was taken off of my shoulders. Staff Sergeant Kubler was the first of many people in my life who kept me from going over the “cliff of stupidity.”

Encounter challenges

So, my friends, I have been able to move from place to place, enjoying both successes and failure, because of the direct and timely support of people who believed in me. I have been told not to look back, because the future is out there in front of me. However, I always have remembered to check my rearview mirror so that I wouldn’t repeat my past mistakes. Let me suggest that you should do likewise.

That said, it is critical to keep your focus on the future. The reason is simple: That’s where you are heading. You will be able to step over and around the rocks and shoals that life will toss at you. If you haven’t noticed these problems, let me suggest that you must look a lot closer. None of us is immune from problems. We need to see them and understand them to be able to solve them or work around them, to keep moving forward in a step-by-step manner. Don’t let the daily blips on your radar screen hold you up. Don’t let any roadblock keep you from crossing the finish line of success.

This is a continual challenge. Each day you will need to attack the day’s issues and problems head-on. To not do so is to fail.