“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

You don’t just “get there”: As any parent who has driven with children can appreciate, our subordinates, peers, and bosses all want to know “are we there yet?”

Everything you see or hear these days that involves a “mistake” requires someone to pay for it.

Some of the best moments I have had on this job have been sitting around a table after conferences or meetings, having a beer, and rubbing elbows with people I personally admire.

I hope you enjoyed this series on intractable conflict.

Choose carefully what you want to fight over. Pick the battles that are REALLY worth fighting over.

There are clear pitfalls that occur, intentionally or not, when conducting negotiations.

Success will be measured not in how we deflect it and hold it at bay, but in how we engage it and mold it to benefit the needs of our community.

I wasn’t going to post today, because I am taking a day off to relax and be thankful for having meaningful work that is compensated by acceptable work conditions, decent pay and benefits.

It’s very much the story of the little boy crying “wolf”. When the time comes that we need to have credibility, it is too late. Hopefully the wolf ate the boy first.

People don’t choose the nuclear option against people they like and respect, unless they are sociopaths, of course.

In conflict, there will always be petty tyrants who want to advance their own egotistical agendas, and they will always be able to keep yes-men and weaklings in their employ.

Trollery isn’t limited to nameless, faceless POS who hide behind pseudonyms in internet comments or forums.

What do we as the nation’s emergency services perceive our values to be?

Leadership is dangerous and leaders get attacked, not just professionally, but emotionally and yes, physically.