The Unwritten Rules of Baseball and Firefighting
Brian Simpson, PhD, compares baseball’s unwritten rules with the ones that run the firehouse, from where people sit to why members play through pain. He gives officers a simple test for each rule: does it make the crew better at the job, or does it only protect someone’s position? He argues that an officer who stays silent is making a leadership decision, and that the rules need to be said out loud.
If this is the best job in the world, why are we having trouble recruiting?
Brian Simpson, PhD, says his department’s hiring tests once drew nearly 100 applicants and now draw 15 to 20. He doubts pay is the cause and points instead to barriers that fire service leaders built, including years of self-funded certification and months of silence on hiring lists. He asks why departments recruit and treat new hires the way they do.