New Year with New Challenges

 Good morning from the jumpseat.  It’s about that time of the year again where we grab paper and pen to spell out what our goals for the upcoming year will be.  From losing weight to learning a new skill, we all should take the time to write out some goals to give us direction for the new year.  Within these goals we should include something for our fire service career.  “If you want to drive from West Virginia to California, how do you get there?” “You have to read a map!” (That quote came way before the GPS devices we all use now).  This wise quote may be a little overused by me, but it hits the point very well.  So what is on the horizon for your fire department career? I’ll get your brain started with my goals as a foundation:

Fire Service Goals for Ryan in 2012:

1.       Stay more active around the fire station during my 24-hour shift. Seems like when the work is done, so am I.  No matter how busy we get there is always something else that needs cleaned, learned, or replaced.  Simply put, this one is hard because downtime is hard to come by these days.

2.       Mentor a new person in the fire service.

3.       Learn something new every shift while reviewing the information that I already know to make my crew safer on the fireground.

4.       Prepare for the next promotional exam. Another hard goal because riding backwards is the best job on the job.  But alas, we must grow up and move up the ladder.  Next step driver/operator.  If this happens we will have to be second or third due all the time!!

5.       Continue to share my experiences with the loyal readers of Firehouse.com.  Blog more often and write 10 articles in 2012.

So there they are Firehouse.com readers.  These are some of my fire service goals for 2012.  I have many more that I will not bore you with, but these are the ones that I focus on when I am wearing the navy blue suit.  I hope that you (the readers) can help me achieve my goals while I (the blogger) can continue to inspire and inform you from the rear facing seat.  

Now it’s your turn let’s hear your goals for 2012!

Happy New Year firefighters let’s keep up the great work!!