Becki White's Blog (8)

Does your department use social media to educate and inform the community?  Do you wish they would?  If you are on a fire, EMS, public safety (police/fire) or emergency management agency, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to complete a short survey on social media use in…

I was presented with a challenge about smoke alarms, I was asked to investigate why there are all these news stories out there about how children don’t wake up when the traditional smoke alarm goes off, but at the same time, we don’t see personalized smoke alarms being marketed widely.

There was also a comprehensive study done by Pediatrics—the Official…

You’ve heard the saying, “Actions speak louder than words.”  It rings true.  If you want to be the best, then you need to try your best.  You need to be all in.  There is no ‘part way.’  There’s no quick-fix, juicing diet plan that will help catapult you to that status.  It’s sweat, hours and commitment. …

I haven’t always been the ‘out front’ type.  I used to spend my time in the back of the room, positioned perfectly to avoid being called on, or called out, able to…

I hold myself to a very high standard, I strive for perfection day in and day out.  It gets a little exhausting and can be defeating chasing an unattainable bar, but I would never consider lowering it. The problem with aiming so high is that I expect those around me to hold themselves equally accountable.…

As I push forward to be the best firefighter I can be, I spend a lot of time reading articles and blogs about tactics and fire science.  I watch videos and listen to podcasts.  I talk to men and women who have been in the fire service for decades, trying to tap into their knowledge.  I find myself overwhelmed by the amount of information out there.  We are in a time where…

We all know that everyone deals with grief differently.  In the fire service, we all deal with more than our share of tragic events.  Many cope by detaching from the ‘reality’ of the event.  We treat the event as a daily occurrence on the job, equating it to someone with an ‘office job’ completing a report.  We pride ourselves in our ability to do it all,…

Some people dread the thought of speaking to large groups of small children.  Their wiggling bodies and wandering minds are hard to reign in.  Most successful teachers have come to grips with the fact that their job consists of ‘knowledge imparter’ and ‘entertainer’ in equal parts.  Given that fact, there are many factors to consider as you prepare your presentation.…