“It all happened really, really fast,” recalls Eric Linnenburger, who learned while working a 48-hour shift on a Friday that he had been chosen as interim deputy chief of operations, starting Monday. Linnenburger, who had been a battalion chief in Westminster, Colorado, for several years, now finds himself making perhaps the most jarring transition in the fire service – from line to admin. Fortunately, Linnenburger has long focused on career development, helping company and chief officers hone the skills for their current positions with an eye toward the future. We dig into all this, plus:

• Learning to “control the controllable”
• How to batch learning and exercise
• An incident play-by-play with a “don’t throw the baby” moment
• How a fire department physical may have saved his life
• The “shock and awe” of his new mustache

Check out these articles we discuss on the show:

• Leadership isn’t easy, but stop making it so complicated
• The ‘messy middle’: Finding your footing in the battalion chief position
• Successful leaders must be comfortable operating in the gray

This episode of the Better Every Shift Podcast is sponsored by TheFireStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting TheFireStore.