Have You Hit the ‘PITCH’ Today?

By Devon Wells

All true baseball and softball players want to hit the pitch when they are at bat. Sure, there are other ways to get on base, such as getting hit by a pitch or being issued a walk, but the glory lies in a hit, especially a grand slam homerun. Hitting the pitch improves your experience, makes you more valuable, and helps the entire team win more games. Ultimately, a team with the highest batting average might find itself in the post-season and possibly playing for the championship.

So how does this apply to the fire service? Firefighters operate as a team in all of their functions. Daily shift work, emergency response, and social interactions are all team activities. High-performance teams have high levels of accountability for each member. If part of a team is not functioning at full potential, the entire team suffers. Just like a championship baseball team, firefighter teams must work well together to be the best.

VALUES

In my organization, we have identified five core values. The values were identified through an exercise that members of the department completed. The top values identified were professionalism, integrity, trustworthiness, cooperation, and health. To make it easier for members to remember these values and use them in their daily decision making, the PITCH acronym was created.

Professionalism

People that stay engaged and ensure confidence in what they do are said to act professionally. All members of a department should conduct themselves in a manner that brings credit to the organization and the fire service while on duty and off duty. Professionalism is a trait of volunteer and career firefighters. It has nothing to do with whether or not you get paid for your performance. It means that you are confident, respectful, and engaged in what you are doing.

Too many times, we read headlines of firefighters getting into trouble with the law and fire officers misrepresenting their positions. I recently had the unfortunate opportunity to witness a complete lack of professionalism by members of a large metropolitan department. Their behavior, while in official uniform, was disrespectful to their department, their community, the fire service as a whole, and themselves. Many members of the public witnessed the same conduct, which resulted in negative comments directed at the firefighters. This does not help the fire service in a time when our public perception is extremely critical.

Integrity

Integrity is doing what is right and being honest with yourself while firmly adhering to moral and ethical values. One way to describe integrity is your decision to sit at a red traffic light at 2 a.m.– not a single car on the street, law enforcement is not in the area, and the light just turned red. Choosing to sit at the light for the entire 45 seconds, even though no one will see you, is demonstrating integrity. No one value can have a greater impact on your organization; members exhibiting integrity, or the lack of it, will guide the direction of the department.

Being dependable and reliable in all situations to the department, its members, and the community makes a member trustworthy. The public holds a great deal of trust in its firefighters. Mothers are very protective of their children and would never hand them over to a stranger; however, when the child is sick and 911 is dialed and firefighters show up to help, the mother immediately hands her baby over to these strangers because she trusts the firefighters.

Cooperation

Internally, ask yourself how well your union, volunteer organization, and administration work together? If we are all interested in the well-being of the public, everyone should be able to work together to reach amenable solutions to every discrepancy. I have found that the more open, cooperative, and understanding the relationship between labor and administration, the better the outcome for all involved.

Finally, staying physically and mentally fit, promoting healthful living and fitness in all that we do, and being “fit for duty,” physically and mentally, is a high priority. Firefighters are dying and leaving the service at alarming rates because of health problems, many of which could be prevented. There is no need to be the next Mr. Universe. However, a well-balanced lifestyle of healthful eating habits and physical activity will increase happiness, job performance, and overall satisfaction with life. Also, avoiding unhealthful habits like using tobacco, excessive drinking, and not getting enough sleep will assist in keeping your mind and body fit for duty.

The public relies on us to provide a high quality, efficient, and effective emergency service in their most vulnerable situations. We owe it to them to be healthy and ready to serve them. When one team member is not physically or mentally ready to work, that member is a liability to themselves, their team, and the department.

All members of the organization should recognize the commitment they have to the success of others and the department. Team success is dependent on each member’s performance and adherence to recognized standards. When we are assessing the performance of our team at the fire station, do we assess our batting average to see how we are doing? If everyone is hitting the pitch, our chances of winning as a team are better. So ask yourself, “Have I hit the PITCH today?”