Since 100% of your
score in obtaining a firefighter job is in the oral board, what are you missing
that's keeping you from gaining that badge?
FireZine
Cutting edge interview skills to get that badge from Fire
Captain Bob.
More than 2,081 candidates have received their badge from
this program!
February 4, 2003. Copyright Code 3 Publishing 2003
captbob@eatstress.com web site: www.eatstress.com 888-238-3959
For Subscribe/Unsubscribe procedures, scroll to end.
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No one ever lost credibility by
being interesting.
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Nothing counts til you have the badge . . . Absolutely Nothing!
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Please forward or recommend
this FireZine to anyone you
know that wants to shorten the learning curve to get
that badge!
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In This
Issue
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1. Quick Presentation Skills Tip
2. Entry Level Skills Tip
3. Robs Corner
4. Promotional Level Skills Tip
(Entry level should read this too)
5. New Badges
6. Humor
7. Resource Websites for Candidates
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1. Quick Presentation Skills Tip
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On your mark.
Get Set . . .
How long do you think you have in an oral board to impress the raters into listening to your stuff? Three, one, or five minutes? You have 32 seconds. That’s right. In that first 32 seconds the board is checking out what you’re wearing (the strongest non-verbal statement you can make), eye contact, choice or words and what signature stories you start with to hook the panel into listening to your stuff. It’s called the halo effect. You come in with a halo over your head. It’s up to you to keep it. You have to come out swinging! If you start off with “Clone” answers, you’re dead meat.
The first oral board question could be, "What sparked your interest and why do you want to be a firefighter?" You proceed by giving the same clone answers the oral board has heard from almost every candidate for five days. Public service, giving back to the community, helping people, camaraderie, not the same thing every day, blah blah blah. The magic 32 seconds that you need to hook up with the oral board has passed and you didn’t hook them into listening to your stuff. You have just scored yourself. Trust me. You can see the glaze come over the board’s eyes. It’s like a deer caught in the headlights. This was you best stuff. Your mouth starts to go dry even more. You start to freeze up like the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz. They are gone and they won’t come back.
For more on “Clone” answers, click here:
http://www.eatstress.com/clone.htm
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Learn how entry level and promotional candidates are improving their interview
scores up to 15 points and nailing that badge!
Click here:
http://www.eatstress.com/newpage2.htm
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2. Entry
Level Skills Tip ===========================================
Question:
Do you think you have what it takes to answer situation questions correctly?....answer this one (in less that an hour).
What would you do as a rookie FF? Your Captain asks you to come inside his office to review your final evaluation of probation. You notice a smell of alcohol on his breath?
Reply:
This is a perfect example how you can be fooled on a scenario question. I believe there are only 30 oral board questions. They can be disguised in hundreds of different ways. This is one of the disguises for drinking on the job, which is number 12 on our 30 plus oral board list. The complete list is below.
Here is a simple way to break a disguised question down. Dissect the question down to its simplest term, one word, of what the question is really about (i.e. stealing, drugs, drinking, etc.). Once you have removed the disguise, you can place it in one of the 30 plus oral board questions you already have answers for.
This is one of the simple tools we have to uncomplicate the oral board process.
One way to help you do this is picture a piece of paper with a line drawn down the center. On the left side of the line are issues dealing with ethics, such as stealing, drugs, or drinking. With ethical issues, you ask appropriate questions to determine what you suspect.
If true, you don't deviate . . you go straight up to a supervisor. On the right side of the line is anything to do with getting along with others; you will go to great lengths to work it out before going to a supervisor. If you can decide what side of the line the question belongs, you have a better chance of knowing how to answer the question.
So take off the disguise of that this is your captain. Dissect the question down to its simplest form; one word. What is this about? Right, drinking. What side of the line is this on? Right or left. If it's on the left side of the line what do we do? Drinking is not tolerated. Right again, ask questions to determine if your suspicions are correct (are you drinking?). If so, you go straight up ( why don't we go to our supervisor) no matter who or what rank is on the other side of the table; and stick to your answer no matter what. YOU WILL NEVER BE WRONG! TRUST ME!
Click here for the possible 30 plus oral board questions:http://www.eatstress.com/thirty.htm
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Bottom line getting a badge is all presentation skills!
Click here for the FREE 101 Inside Secrets How to Get
a Badge!
http://www.eatstress.com/faq.htm
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To ask Captain Bob any question just click here:
E-mail Mailto:captbob@eatstress.com
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3. Robs Corner
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Keeping on your game
Testing
is a hard, frustrating and some times a depressing process. Even if you’re good
there are some test with a 100% fail rate. Because of lawsuits, budget cuts,
hiring freezes, and who knows what other outside influences, there might not be
one person hired off of the list. Taking promotional exams can be just as
frustrating.
Because
the nature of this business of getting hired is so trying, you need to do some
things to take care of your attitude. You exercise your body physically. You
keep your mind sharp. Do the same with your frame of mind.
The
thing that will help you the most is to be successful. It may sound obvious, but
if you know you have done everything you can to prepare for your test, you can
look forward to the oral interview, and not feel like your going to get your
teeth cleaned.
I listen
to motivational tapes and CD’s, Captain Bob, Zig Ziegler, and tapes on sales and
how to sell yourself. These help to keep you positive and motivated.
Make
sure to get plenty of exercise. The reason you’re here today is because some
caveman ancestor of yours could run faster than whatever was chasing him. We
still have our “Fight or Flight response”, but it doesn’t benefit you sitting in
a chair presenting yourself. Adrenaline is the body’s way of stimulating
muscles, and can be burned off by muscle use. I make sure to take a good walk
before an interview.
It’s
difficult, at times, to deal with the let down. We will all be disappointed from
time to time. But people don’t remember you for what happens to you, they
remember how you reacted to the things that happened to you. So keep up your
chins and understand that you’ll never know why they hire or promote the people
they do. But, it’s not a refection on you personally; you may have been on the
list that they were only going to hire Canadians. Someday you'll
have it all come together, you'll be on your game, and yours is the game they
came to see. There's nothing better!
Good
Luck, Firefighter Rob
FIREFIGHTER ROB
NRTC@SONIC.NET
http://www.eatstress.com
You can read more of Rob’s
wisdom by clicking here:
http://www.eatstress.com/robs_corner.htm
Rob is Captain Bob's Son. He works for Contra Costa Fire Department. He does all the entry level coaching by phone nationwide. You can contact him direct with your questions or set up a coaching appointment @ 707-869-1330. or e-mail me @ nrtc@sonic.net
For more on entry level coaching click here:
http://www.eatstress.com/private%20coaching.htm
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4. Promotional Level Skills Tip ==========================================
During our promotional coaching for assessment center fire problems, we instruct our candidates to give assignments to responding units before they arrive to keep ahead of the curve. This prevents units from backing up and having to establish a dog and pony show in staging.
Andy was given 15 minutes to review a two-page document of his fire problem before going into the simulator. Part of the instructions were that the dispatcher would notify the IC before responding units arrived on the scene. As Andy entered the room for the fire problem exercise of a 3-story apartment fire, the moderator was already playing the role of dispatcher barking out orders. Andy kept his cool. He went on scene and gave a size up, took command, stated where the command post was located, ordered a second alarm assignment from dispatch, and most importantly turned to the raters and told them that his plan was to confine the fire to the apartment of origin. Understand if you go right to tactics without having a plan, it’s assumed you didn’t have one and you have lost the fire. This seemed to irritate the dispatcher. Andy assigned his personnel to the next arriving unit he assigned to fire attack.
Even though Andy had been instructed to give assignments to incoming units in his coaching session, he was waiting for dispatch to let him know before they went on the scene. Finally Andy asked dispatch when the units would be on scene. To his surprise, the dispatcher came back with all units are on scene. It was catch up time. Andy took a big swallow and went right to assigning units to water supply, ventilation, RIT Team, utilities, rescue, etc. During this time, the dispatcher was still barking out orders. Andy gave this command. Dispatch hold your traffic!
As with most simulations, they want to see how long you can tread water. Often, they will eventually make the fire larger than you can handle. Fire lapped from the second floor unit to a third floor apartment. Andy seemed to handle everything they could throw at him.
The lesson here is no matter what you might have been instructed, it is your fire. It’s your command. Run it the way you had planned.
Later Andy reviewed his evaluation of the fire problem with the personnel analysis that was in the room during the fire problem. She told Andy that when he left the room, the raters told her to hire him now. Andy got the top score of 19 of the possible 20 points in this exercise. The analysis mentioned, “Well, you’ve been here before.” Andy said, “No, this is my first promotional test.” She said, “That’s not possible for your first time out. How did you do it?” Andy told her, “I studied hard and got some coaching.”
Yes, he did. The defense rests!
Andy ended up number 2 on the list his first time out. There are 3 jobs open.
For more on our
promotional program click here:
http://www.eatstress.com/promo.htm
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5.
New Badges
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Capt. Bob,
Almost 2 years ago at this time I began pursuing a
position with the Colorado Springs Fire Department.
Through friends in the department, as well as other
firefighters in the area, I became aware of your
audio/video oral board preparation guide. For the
past 8 years my goal has been to work for this
department, and I knew if I wanted to give myself a
substantial chance I'd have to prepare early and set
myself apart from other candidates. I used your
entry-level audio/video program, along with a tape
recorder, and rehearsed my personalized script over
and over until it became second nature to me. The
first oral board I ever took I placed in Band B. The
following year I refined my script and practiced even
more and was fortunate enough to place in Band A this
past May.
Two weeks ago (January, 16) I received a call
stating a conditional offer of employment upon
successful completion of a polygraph exam, drug test,
and physical exam. Just yesterday I received a call
from the department extending their offer of
employment for the upcoming fire academy which begins
in March.
When I got the call, I immediately drove over to my mothers work. When I walked in she saw the smile on my face and knew why I was there. My mother and the other women in the office started crying.
The oral boards have been the
most
challenging portion of this hiring process. I can
undoubtedly say that without your program, along with
your personal advice throughout the past two years, I
would not be where I am today.
In less than 6 weeks I begin a new aspect in my
life. One I've been patiently waiting, hoping, and
dreaming of for many years now. No amount of thanks
could be expressed to my family, friends, and your
help throughout this process. It hasn't sunk in yet,
and like you said, it may never sink in. -Dennis
Hi, Captain Bob! Things are going great! We
start the academy on Feb 3! I am soooo excited and pleased with my choice.
Thanks again for your advice. Take care, Anna
I got a job with SFFD! Thanks for your help!
Jason
Click here to see how candidates have improved their
position in gaining a badge:
http://www.eatstress.com/newpage152.htm
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Check out the current "Bonus Nugget" oral board tip on our
web site by clicking here:
http://www.eatstress.com/bonusnugget.htm
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Hot off the Press! Captain Bobs new book, Eat Stress For
Breakfast. Click here to check it out:
www.eatstress.com/stressfire.htm
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The Formula
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Here's what we know after 30-years of experience.
Candidates
who get our Audio/Video Entry Level or Promotional Program,
use the work booklet, practice with the all-important TAPE RECORDER, and come
back for a private coaching session, catapult themselves into the Olympic
camp. That's where you get a shot at that badge you have
been
looking for.
One on one coaching sessions
are where you get dialed into making your best presentation. It can make the
difference between being down on a list and being in the top 10 going for the
chief's oral. Candidates armed with this information are the one's who are
smoking past you in the oral, grab the badge and leave you as the bride's maid
again. We know because we get the calls when they get their badge! You can
contact my Son Rob direct to set up a coaching session @ 707-869-1330.
Robs e-mail is nrct@sonic.net
Click here to learn more
about private coaching
http://www.eatstress.com/private%20coaching.htm
You start by ordering our
Entry Level Audio/Video or Promotional Program from the products section of our
web site below or by calling our distributor Rayve @ 800-852-4890. This program
will keep you motivated! Consider also getting our new book "Eat Stress For Breakfast"
to help you along your journey.
"Nothing counts 'til you have
the badge . . . Nothing! And, there is no feeling like proudly
wearing the badge."
Check out the specials on our products for entry level and promotional testing:
http://www.eatstress.com/newpage6.htm
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6. Humor
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Subject: Why Athletes Can't Have Real Jobs
Chicago Cubs outfielder Andre Dawson on being a role model: "I wan'
all dem kids to do what I do, to look up to me. I wan' all the kids to
copulate me."
New Orleans Saint RB George Rogers when asked about the upcoming
season: "I want to rush for 1,000 or 1,500 yards, whichever comes first."
And, upon hearing Joe Jacobi of the 'Skins say: "I'd run over my own
mother to win the Super Bowl," Matt Millen of the Raiders said: "To win, I'd
run over Joe's Mom, too."
Torrin Polk, University of Houston receiver, on his coach, John
Jenkins: "He treats us like men. He lets us wear earrings."
Football commentator and former player Joe Theismann, 1996: "Nobody
in football should be called a genius. A genius is a guy like Norman
Einstein."
Senior basketball player at the University of Pittsburgh: "I'm going
to graduate on time, no matter how long it takes." (now that is
beautiful)
Bill Peterson, a Florida State football coach: "You guys line up
alphabetically by height." And, "You guys pair up in groups of three,
then line up in a circle."
Boxing promoter Dan Duva on Mike Tyson hooking up again with promoter
Don King: "Why would anyone expect him to come out smarter? He went to
prison for three years, not Princeton."
Stu Grimson, Chicago Blackhawks left wing, explaining why he keeps a
color photo of himself above his locker: "That's so when I forget how to
spell my name, I can still find my clothes."
Lou Duva, veteran boxing trainer, on the Spartan training regime of
heavyweight Andrew Golota: "He's a guy who gets up at six o'clock in
the morning regardless of what time it is."
Chuck Nevitt, North Carolina State basketball player, explaining to
Coach Jim Valvano why he appeared nervous at practice: "My sister's expecting a
baby, and I don't know if I'm going to be an uncle or an aunt." (I wonder
if his IQ ever hit room temperature in January)
Frank Layden, Utah Jazz president, on a former player: "I told him,
'Son, what is it with you? Is it ignorance or apathy?' He said, 'Coach, I
don't know and I don't care.'"
Shelby Metcalf, basketball coach at Texas A&M, recounting what he
told a player who received four F's and one D: "Son, looks to me like you're
spending too much time on one subject."
Amarillo High School and Oiler coach Bum Phillips when asked by Bob
Costas why he takes his wife on all the road trips, Phillips responded:
"Because she is too damn ugly to kiss good-bye."
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7. Resource Websites for Candidates
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Perfect Firefighter
Candidate. Job listing and a
complete resource web site with a community bulletin board.
Don McNea Fire School, Inc. is the #1 Firefighter
Preparatory Entrance School in the Country.
They have the inside information how to tackle those psychological and
personality questions on the written.
Learn how entry level and promotional candidates are
improving their interview scores up to 15 points and nailing that badge!
http://www.eatstress.com/newpage2.htm
FREE 101 Inside Secrets How to Get a Badge!
http://www.eatstress.com/faq.htm
Check out the specials on
our products for entry level and promotional testing:
http://www.eatstress.com/newpage6.htm
FIREHIRE, Entry-level
firefighter examination process:
Firenuggets.com "The
Internet magazine dedicated to keeping firefighters safe"
http://www.firenuggets.com
Fireforhire:
firefighter employment job
listings
Are you passing the
physical ability?
Check out
http://www.firefightersworkout.com/links.html
B-Pad Assessment Devices.
If you're an agency looking for a new dimension to evaluate candidates,
or a candidate wanting information on how you can orientate your skills for this
evaluation check out their web site:
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FREE ARTICLES FOR YOUR PUBLICATIONS
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I have many articles available for reprint in your
publication, newsletter, etc. You may use
articles written by me that you see in Fire-Zine or
go to our web site @ http://www.eatstress.com/faq.htm
All you have to do is print the article in its entirety along
with the by line, the credits, and complete contact
information found at the bottom of the web site page. I would
appreciate a tear sheet or electronic copy too. Thanks
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http://www.eatstress.com/firezinearchive.htm
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THE SMALL PRINT
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TIME TO SHARE. Please send your
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Nothing counts til you have the badge . . . Absolutely Nothing!
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Code 3 Publishing. Fire Captain Bob Smith, Speaker, Author, Publisher
Information Products on How to Get a Badge.
Web site: http://www.eatstress.com Over 300 pages of helpful information.