Okay guys, here is some advice from a training instructor in a relatively large brigade.
When you go to work, always ensure that you are washed and clean shaven and you are wearing clean ironed uniform, a common thing I see is young lads that think it is acceptable to shave the night before and end up getting reprimanded for having a face full of stubble by 9.30am. Whilst it may not be a major bad thing, it makes you stick out and draws attention to you unecessarily. If your uniform is not pressed properly, this will also draw attention to you as you will appear tatty in comparison to the others in your group.
It is quite common in this day and age for young people to have no experience of receiving commands and orders, you must remember that you are going to be employed in an environment where life and death decisions are going to be made in a split second and you won't always be asked your opinion before being told what to do. You will be expected to listen to what is being said and then react to the orders accordingly. This is not only when at work operationally, but also during your training. The worst thing a trainee can do is to start shaking their head when receiving orders during training, it shows a huge lack of respect and will bring unwanted attention to you. I know that in some brigades, you can be sacked for demonstrating bad attitude during basic training.
Listen and learn, the training staff have a huge amount of experience and also qualifications to back up that experience. The instructors may tell you things that you don't understand, if this is the case, ask questions until you do understand. One thing you can be sure of is that if you don't understand something, others won't understand it either. I always look upon students asking relevant questions as keen individuals with an interest in the subject matter.
I always tell my students
"It's better to ask a question and maybe look a fool for one minute, than to not ask a question and be a fool for the rest of your career"
Remember, basic training in the fire service is not easy. It is a physically and mentally demanding experience from start to finish, but it is an experience well worth doing. The skills you will learn and the knowledge you gain are just the tip of the iceberg and the learning doesn't stop on the day of your pass out parade. If you continue to study during your probationary period, you will gain a lot of respect from your watch peers, especially in this day and age where young probationers don't seem to do half as much studying as was expected in the past.
Another of the sayings I use is "Know your gear and how to use it at all times". Once you get on your watch, make sure that you know where every piece of kit is in the appliance lockers, this prevents you from looking stupid at an incident because you don't know where to find stuff. If there is a piece of kit that you have little or no knowledge of, don't shy away from it. Get in touch with your watch manager and ask them to arrange a drill session so that you can get hands on experience with the piece of equipment, this way you gain the respect of your junior officers and watch peers whilst gaining vital knowledge and skills. There is nothing more embarassing than seeing somebody not able to use their specialist equipment skillfully in front of members of the public.
A good thing, is to enjoy the experience, your basic training is the foundation phase of your career, go in expecting hard work and with a positive attitude and it will be easier than you think. Go in on your first day thinking, "this is it, I'm in and I can relax now" and you will find it extremely difficult to pass training. Remember that you will be put under some extreme pressure during training in order to develop your ability to deal with the pressure you will be faced with at operational incidents. This pressure may come in the form of raised voices, difficult working environments, heat and smoke, extreme hard work and very disciplined proceedures. All of this is done for your benefit, although you may not think so at the time. Whatever you do, stick with it and you'll get through it all a much better person than you were when you started.
Good luck and if you have any questions, send me an email and I'll try to help.
Regards
Kaiser
