Frank Viscuso's Blog (24)

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Here is an excerpt from my newly released book, "Common Valor: True Stories from America's Braves, Volume 1" 

     Mike was working…

     Every adversity you and the team you are leading will ever encounter is either a problem or an opportunity. Although one might think there are many different variables that would distinguish one from the other, there is really only one difference between the two – YOUR ATTITUDE. That’s right. Often times the difference between a problem and an opportunity has everything to do with how you look at the challenge at hand.

     Opportunities…

One of the questions that I am often asked is, “I’m am a newly promoted officer and I want to make some changes but I am encountering a lot of resistance, what should I do?”

Resistance can come in many forms – a micromanaging boss, a lazy or complacent culture, a core group of over inflated egos with “inner circle” mentality, and the all too common “because that’s the way we have always done it” mentality. Each…

Endurance is a discipline worth mastering. Those who do are often the same ones who succeed in life. Most of us have experienced the battle between the inner voice and the physical body. Take jogging for example. At some point in your life you had made the decision that you needed to get in better shape. Perhaps you drove down to the local sporting…

I would rather have one frustrated culture creator in my inner circle than 10 yes men. Yes men tell me what I want to hear. They make me feel smarter than I actually am because they are afraid of my response to…

People say it's lonely at the top, but that's not…

          When leading a team through change, people often encounter adversity. I firmly believe that if you ever lose your will to fight someone with fight still inside of them will control your life. The “will to fight” can sometimes be described as stubbornness, and for that reason stubbornness can sometimes be a good thing.

           Leaders need to stand their ground when…

          I once heard a colleague jokingly say that change would be easy if it wasn’t so hard. I don’t fully agree with that statement. I personally believe that the hardest part about change is actually making the decision to change. I also believe that leading a team through change would be much easier if it wasn’t for a select group of stubborn people who resist change.

          It may be true that most people don’t like change, but it’s also true that for…

               This may be the most important blog I have ever posted. In order to make the greatest impact possible I have decided to also keep it short.

               When I was younger my parents never let me quit a sport once the season began. Their philosophy was "Finish what you started. If you quit when things get hard you'll quit anytime you encounter adversity in life." I will forever be grateful for that…

          Let me begin by saying there are two sure fire ways to fail as a leader in the fire service. One is to DO without ever thinking and the other is to THINK without ever doing.

          You and I both know people who habitually take action before developing a sound game plan. They are what I call “Ready/Fire” people. They don’t take the time to aim at the target they just shoot like a chimpanzee holding a…

          Busy people get things done. I used to say those words all the time - usually in a sentence like this one, “If you want to build a successful team, look for busy people because busy people get things done.” There is a coma of complacency in society today. we are battling a communicable disease I call entitlement mentality. Everyone wants the rewards of labor, but far too many don’t want to work for those rewards. Many who do the work are busy, and busy…

          “Let’s go boys. Eat your breakfast. We have to leave or we are going to be late for practice.” I yell from the garage.

          Our two boys, four and six, were having their usual morning chat about Super Mario Brothers as they enjoyed their raisin toast, oatmeal with dinosaur eggs, and strawberry explosion smoothies through a multi-colored flex straw. My wife and I gathered their baseball uniforms and…

Every adversity you and the team you are leading will ever encounter is either a problem or an opportunity. Although one might think there are many different variables that would distinguish one from the other, there is really only one difference between the two – YOUR ATTITUDE. That’s right. Often times the difference between a problem and an opportunity has everything to do with how you look at the challenge at hand.

Opportunities exist…

The following is an excerpt from Step Up Your Teamwork from Chapter 2 – Preparing for Success. What other qualities would you add to this list?  

 …

     I am 100% on board with the concept of SOP’s and SOG’s, so please don’t misinterpret this message. I also believe that in the absence of rules, people make their own. In a structured and dangerous profession like ours it’s important to have rules, regulations, policies and procedures. Its equally important that we train on our procedures and create muscle memory so that we can improve our chances of success and reduce the amount of unnecessary decisions…

Every organization has a culture. It is either created by design or default. Creating a culture of customer service does not happen by accident. Buying into the concept of layered leadership (the need for leaders throughout your entire organization) is especially important when it comes to customer service.

Helping others seems to be part of the DNA of most firefighters. Creating culture; however, goes beyond just being a good person. There has to be a clear and focused objective or…

You have heard them all. Maybe you have even said some of these things. I am talking about fire service staples like the following:

• “Don’t worry, this is just a routine fire.”
• “All you have to do is put the wet stuff on the red stuff.”
• “Stay in until you can’t stay in anymore.”
• “Because that’s the way we’ve always done it.”…

      On September 17, 2011, a protest called Occupy Wallstreet was organized in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City’s Wall Street financial district. The protest was initiated by a Canadian activist group. It was the first of many Occupy protests that flowed throughout the world.  Their initial purpose was to take a stand against corporate greed, economic inequality, and undue influence of financial services corporations on government. Their…

I try never to make promises I cannot keep. That being understood, I'd like to share with you why you should invest your valuable time and hard-earned money to attend the annual Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC).…