Combustible

Combustible episodes:

• 05.12.2024

  Episode 104 - Lē'•der•shǐp' (noun)

  We talk about it A LOT, but we’ve never really tried to define what we think leadership is. In this episode, we discuss various definitions of leadership; what we like and what we don’t like.

  
• 01.20.2024

  Episode 103 - What Would Ted Do?

  Whenever you lose your way as a leader, you can always ask yourself, “What would Ted do?”

  
• 11.09.2023

  Episode 102 - Building Experience And Turning It Into Expertise

  In this episode, we dive into how firefighters’ decision-making process works, and how critically reliant that process is on experience. So, where are we missing opportunities to build experience and convert it to expertise? We’ve come up with a new concept...

  
• 06.19.2023

  Episode 101 - Bob Maynard Part III - The Black Box

  In Part 3 of our interview we pick up where we left off and get into how we evaluate accidents in the fire service, what we might be able to learn about that process from the airline industry, how to...

  
• 06.11.2023

  Episode 100 - Bob Maynard Part 2: Purposeful Non-Compliance

  Bob is the first guest we’ve had to show up to the recording with a powerpoint presentation. And while that gave us a chuckle, it’s a presentation filled with concepts that blew us away…and it’s a presentation that he threw...

  
• 06.03.2023

  Episode 099 - Bob Maynard Part 1: The Most Interesting Man In The World

  Bob Maynard is Shane’s father-in-law, and he just happens to also be one of the most interesting people we’ve ever met. Highlights from his past include Chinook helicopter pilot during Vietnam, personal pilot of one of our leadership idols, did...

  
• 01.25.2023

  Episode 098 - Technical Expertise vs. Judgment

  This episode started with the deceptively simple question, “At what level in your organization do people begin to feel and act as if they are valued more for their judgment than for their technical expertise?” We applied that question to...

  
• 11.16.2022

  Episode 097 - George Cowgill on Resigning, Retiring, and Leaving the Birmingham Fire Department

  Former Birmingham Firefighter George Cowgill posted a very personal account of his time as a firefighter and why he’s leaving that behind. If you’ve read it, you’re probably not surprised that it went viral, which is how we came...

  
• 11.06.2022

  Episode 096 - We Debate What the Hell a Psychological Contract Is (and Whether You Can Break One in Good Conscience)

  Like the picture above, psychological contracts can be binding, circular, heavy, old, rusty, and sometimes broken. Before this episode, two of us hadn’t ever heard of a psychological contract, but apparently we all have them. What they really are, who you...

  
• 09.12.2022

  Episode 095 - Know Your Enemy

  Fire is where the glory is. They call us firefighters, not building fighters. But fire isn’t really the enemy, is it? How well do you know your enemy?

  
• 08.14.2022

  Episode 094 - Every...Single...One

  Murder holes, force multipliers, and obstacles. All of them are components leading to what very well may be a unified theory of firefighters.

  
• 07.23.2022

  Episode 093 - We Solve The Pay Problem

  Spoiler Alert: we don’t really solve the pay problem. That would break a long-standing tradition on our podcast of not solving anything. But there are virtual arms races in some regions as departments raise salaries to compete for what seems...

  
• 06.18.2022

  Episode 092 - That I May See

  What happens when lightning doesn't strike a house, and you don't act like the other firefighters?

  
• 05.29.2022

  Episode 091 - The Pathfinder Part III

  And we wrap up our series on The Pathfinder with Part III, which picks up right where we left off at the end of Part II.

  
• 05.18.2022

  Episode 090 - The Pathfinder Part II

  We think that the Pathfinder concept is such an important one, that we actually recorded two separate episodes trying to get it right. But each episode went different directions, so they both ended up being valuable to the discussion.

  
• 04.16.2022

  Episode 089 - Damned Sweet

  What do a fire recruit, a 70’s sitcom, and Walt Disney have to do with regret?

  
• 03.12.2022

  Episode 088 - The Pathfinder

  Every organization has those persons who push the organization from the inside. They advocate passionately for change, but while they’re doing it they can cause discomfort for those around them. They challenge long-held assumptions. They champion new technologies and strategies....

  
• 12.03.2021

  Episode 087 - The Ship of Theseus

  This isn’t really an outtake; it’s just a topic that wasn’t really large enough to devote an entire episode to. Bill, all by his lonesome, talks into the mic about the paradox of The Ship of Theseus and what that...

  
• 10.24.2021

  Episode 086 - Be Wrong Or Do Nothing?

  A listener asked us: “At what point is a wrong decision actually worse than no decision at all?” It’s a great starting point for a roving conversation that gets into whether results matter in that calculus. We also rehash our earlier...

  
• 09.24.2021

  Episode 085 - On Hallowed Ground with Eriks Gabliks

  The National Fire Academy is the home of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial; hallowed ground for any firefighter. To borrow a phrase from President Lincoln at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, PA (just 12 miles north...

  
• 09.03.2021

  Episode 084 - For Bill Smith, A Battle Buddy

  On June 6, 2021, Baldwin County Sheriff’s Deputy Bill Smith gave his life while saving others who got caught in a rip current off the Alabama shore. Two of our podcast crew (Shane and Bill V.) worked for Bill Smith...

  
• 07.21.2021

  Episode 083 - What's Better: To Be Liked or Respected?

  As is the case with many of our episodes, we didn’t set out to make an episode about this. It actually was just a spirited conversation that we were having when we realized we should hit the record button. Is it...

  
• 06.08.2021

  Episode 082 - Firefighter Luck

  How do we as firefighters deal with luck? How honest are we about what part luck plays in our successes? More specifically, how much do we count on the same luck at our next fire? That’s where we start anyway, and...

  
• 04.02.2021

  Episode 081 - What Do You Do When You Don't Get Promoted?

  You make the case that you’re the best person for the next step up; only you don’t get chosen. What do you do then? When does a natural amount of disappointment turn into an unhealthy perception of being slighted?...

  
• 03.15.2021

  Episode 080 - Joy, the Job, and Some Questions from Austin Kohler

  For this episode, we talk with “backstep” Firefighter Austin Kohler, who is only a few years into his career in the fire service. We ask him what he enjoys about the job, and what he didn’t expect about it. And...

  
• 03.14.2021

  Episode 080 - Joy, the Job, and Some Questions from Austin Kohler

  For this episode, we talk with “backstep” Firefighter Austin Kohler, who is only a few years into his career in the fire service. We ask him what he enjoys about the job, and what he didn’t expect about it. And...

  
• 02.21.2021

  Episode 079 - Planning, Preparation, and Pivoting with Louie Bruno

  The book Leadership On The Line says a plan “is no more than today’s best guess.” So why do some in our profession get so attached to their plan that they can’t see when their plan has lost all chance...

  
• 01.31.2021

  Episode 078 - The Tenth Man

  What you’re about to hear wasn’t really ever intended to be an episode. It was a side conversation that took place during a recording session in December 2019 that we just happened to record. We sat on it for over...

  
• 12.31.2020

  Episode 077 - A Challenge for 2021, Hal Moore, and Buried Treasure

  We’re issuing all of our listeners a challenge in 2021. It’s only nine minutes long, but the effects could last for many years to come if you’re willing to take us up on it.

  
• 11.06.2020

  Episode 076 - A Better Version of Yourself?

  We’ll wager there isn’t a firefighter in the fire service who isn’t an advocate of training. But when you call that training “higher education” you start to get somewhat mixed reactions. Make higher education a prerequisite for some promotions, and...

  
• 08.30.2020

  Episode 075 - A Risky Episode: Building Your Team of Rivals

  How do you figure out if someone is good for your team? Good for the organization? Good for you as a leader? What does it mean to build a diverse team, and how can different skillsets, talents, and perspectives be...

  
• 08.08.2020

  Episode 074 - Ten Rounds of Undermining and Custom Turnout Gear

  When you don’t agree with a decision made above you, is it wrong to let people know you don’t agree? For this Ten Rounds we discuss whether telling those you are supervising that you don’t agree with something undermines authority...

  
• 07.28.2020

  Episode 073 - Screw-ups Are Your BFF

  No matter how hard we try to avoid them, screw-ups are going to happen. When they happen, we shouldn’t avoid acknowledging them. Don’t wear them like a badge of honor, but own them nonetheless. You’ve already paid the price for...

  
• 06.21.2020

  Episode 072 - Ten Rounds Of Managing Expectations

  At the end of our last recording session we only had twenty minutes left to record, which isn’t enough for a full episode. So Hatch suggested we do Ten Rounds. It’s simple: any one of us can talk for two...

  
• 04.25.2020

  Episode 071 - Sizing Up The Size-Up

  We all should be doing a size-up as we approach any scene. And if you’ve got other units responding with you, someone is ultimately going to be required to give some of what you’re seeing and thinking over the radio....

  
• 04.10.2020

  Episode 070 - We Get A Lawyer with Lance LoRusso

  In this episode, we sit down with Attorney Lance LoRusso to discuss the dangers of something almost all firefighters engage in: social media. And you can’t talk about social media without talking about the legal ramifications of firefighters taking pictures...

  
• 03.27.2020

  Episode 069 - The Boots on the Ground

  There is a central concept that runs throughout Pete Blaber’s The Mission, The Men, and Me: That you should always listen to the boots on the ground. We really like that idea. Colin Powell said something similar when he described...

  
• 03.07.2020

  Episode 068 - Flippin' Firefighters with Todd Edwards Part 2

  This episode is the second part to our conversation with Todd Edwards. We pick back up where we left off last time: with Todd’s view on how to approach the problem of underperforming firefighters in your station. Granted, if you’re...

  
• 02.29.2020

  Episode 067 - Flippin' Firefighters with Todd Edwards Part 1

  The illusion of a perfect fire is a tempting one, but it’s also just that: an illusion. In the first part of our discussion with Todd Edwards, we talk about the “perfect fire,” the nature of evaluating our performance...

  
• 02.17.2020

  Episode 066 - The Bandwagon with Payton Owens

  Payton Owens came to the fire service, left, grew an impressive beard, and then came back again. When he left the department, he had some pretty serious stuff going on in his personal life, but he freely admits: he had...

  
• 12.29.2019

  Episode 065 - Outtakes: We're All In on Plan A

  A short side discussion from one of our recording sessions about what’s at the nature of success when operating on the fireground: adaptability.

  
• 12.14.2019

  Episode 064 - Outtakes: Command NOT Control in Knots

  This quick discussion was born out of an article called “Command NOT Control” by Eric Saylors. Not all of us had read the article, and Shane and Pabel (who did read it) aren’t sure if they agree with it or...

  
• 11.26.2019

  Episode 063 - Talking Shop with Chief Chris Wessels

  When we sat down to talk to Chief Chris Wessels, we had a specific topic in mind that we thought we would cover. But what happens so often with the best conversations happened here; the conversation itself led us to...

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Twenty: What Citizens Can Do

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Nineteen: Federal Involvement

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Eighteen: Research for Tomorrow's Fire Problem

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Seventeen: Fire Safety for the Young, Old, and Infirm

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Sixteen: Fire Safety for the Home

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Fifteen: Fire Safety Education

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.

  
• 10.21.2019

  Audiobook: America Burning - Chapter Fourteen: Forest and Grassland Fire Protection

  This audiobook was a project of Combustible to produce an audiobook version of one of the most important documents in fire service history.