Challenges: 2023 Wildland Fire National Leadership Campaign - In Service Of Others

2023 campaign banner – In Service Of Others

Theme:

The theme for the 2023 Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign is “In Service Of Others.”

Book:

Each participant should obtain a copy of Seven Pillars of Servant Leadership - Practicing the Wisdom of Leading by Serving by James W. Sipe and Don M. Frick.

Task:

The campaign is an opportunity for personnel at the local level - whether collectively or through self-development - to focus on leadership development activities relating to the national campaign theme.

Purpose:

To promote leadership development across the wildland fire community disciplines.
To provide an opportunity and resources that can be used for leadership development at the local unit level.
To collect innovative leadership development efforts and share those efforts across the community.

End State:

A culture that creates and shares innovative leadership development efforts in order to maintain superior leadership in the fire community.

Dates of Campaign:

Any time between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.

Audience:

All students of leadership and fire (wildland fire personnel—line-going and support).

Implementation:

The campaign is flexible. Local units or teams may use or adapt any or all materials (weekly challenges, reading materials, blogs, etc.) found on the Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program website and within the Wildland Fire Learning Portal, posted on our social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, and Blogger) or develop a program or activity of your own spotlighting the campaign theme. Campaign coordinators are encouraged to craft the campaign to the needs of the local unit and team. Innovation should fuel your campaign delivery: workshops or tailgate sessions, to kick off staff meetings, as a team activity or self-directed, etc.

2023 Campaign Activities

Challenge #1

Effective leaders are servants first.

Download and read “Servant leadership: How to lead by serving your team.”
Join us on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal for a robust learning experience. (Portal registration required. Search for “Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign.”)

Challenge #2

Effective leaders commit to the growth of themselves and their people.

Download and read Chapter 1 of “The Journey to the East” by Hermann Hesse.
Join the discussion on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. (Portal registration required. Search for “Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign.”)

Book Study Discussion Questions:

What barriers exist for me to tell my story?
Who is your “League”?
Do you have, or have you had, such a deep-seated commitment to your “League”? If so, what was it that made you feel such loyalty?
How committed are you to the Wildland Fire Values (duty, respect and integrity) and Principles?
Do you personally need to experience something to learn from it? Is this the same view you have of those your serve?
“Does not each generation by means of suppression, concealment and ridicule, efface what the previous generation considered most important?” How does the following quote relate to the previous question?
- “All history is remembered history.” – Colonel Eric Carlson, paraphrased from The Courage to Be by Paul Tillich
What are you personally seeking? (What is your Journey to the East?) What are "we" seeking as a wildland fire service?
Do you have someone on your team who looks out for the well-being of the team and identifies issues? Is it you or someone else?
Have you had a team member leave the team? How did this affect team cohesion?
- If the member came back to the team, how was that member treated? How did the return affect team cohesion?
Have you ever "lost your way" along your journey? How did you/do you intend to get back on track?
How can we be individuals on a group mission?
How do we bring the past and the future into the present moment? (Answer personally and as a team in the wildland fire service.)
How do we mitigate getting so caught up in our own world that we fail to see the needs of others?

Challenge #3

Effective leaders commit to the growth of themselves and their people.

Download and read Chapter 2 of “The Journey to the East” by Hermann Hesse.
Join the discussion on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. (Registration required. Search for “Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign.”)

Book Study Discussion Questions:

Discuss a time of chaos when you felt alone.
Do you consider the wildland fire service a resilient organization?
How does a team move on without a leader/servant-leader?
Has politeness/respect lessened since you first joined your team?
Who/What provides the cohesion for your team?

Challenge #4

Effective leaders commit to the growth of themselves and their people.

Download and read Chapter 3 of “The Journey to the East” by Hermann Hesse.
Join the discussion on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. (Registration required. Search for “Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign.”)

Book Study Discussion Questions:

Reflecting upon the last couple of years living through a pandemic, was there a point you felt alone and without a leader? If so, how did you deal with the situation? Did you ever feel helpless? If so, have you recovered? What words of wisdom can you give others?
Has your passion for the thing you seek waned over time? If not, what helped keep the passion alive? If so, what do you intend to do (if you do) to revitalize that passion?
Who are the “elders” (those with knowledge and/or experience) in your sphere of influence?
How does a leader know when they can get no more from someone with whom they serve?

Challenge #5

Effective leaders commit to the growth of themselves and their people.

Download and read Chapter 4 of “The Journey to the East” by Hermann Hesse.
Join the discussion on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. (Registration required. Search for “Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign.”)

Book Study Discussion Questions:

When were you the most happy?
Discuss your reaction to the following statement in Chapter 4:
- “…what person really knows another or even himself?”
Do you have a support system within your team that engages in times of despair and need?
How do you handle personal mistakes? How does your team handle mistakes?