Safety, Trust and Leading From Within

Something I've always loved about the fire service is the camaraderie.  The feeling of being accepted for your contribution as a team member.  Whatever your strength is, you bring it and it helps the group.  As a group we love this.  We love being a mixed bag of interests, specialities, and knowledge.  We get free expert advice on mechanics, nutrition, construction, fitness, real-estate...  But, these little strengths are more then just added bonuses, they are the glue that make our teams strong.  These long shifts give us the opportunity to contribute more then just to our community, it allows us to bond. It allows us to learn to trust each other and in turn work in dynamic teams.  We lean on each other for these strengths and combine ideas to rectify problems.  Without our diversity we would be inefficient ineffective and not nearly as interesting.

I thought this month would be a good month to reflect on feeling safe in our working relationships and also trusting ourselves and each other.  This TED Talk talks about how important trust is in working relationships.  Another important piece to this video is that there are leaders in all walks of life. Every one of us has the ability to change the environment in which we work.  I hope we all choose to make it better, if not for you...do it for the person to the left and right of you.  I hope you enjoy!