Couplings Fire Podcast

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!!! This week's episode I'm joined by my friend, Curtis Hensley, and we take a page out of our childhood where we used to write up a Christmas List for Santa every year.  Well, we've grown older through the years, but that doesn't mean we don't still have a Christmas List - and ours are based around fire!  Have a good time with us while we laugh, reminisce, an...

A post on social media recently got to me.  A first responder, brand new into the "job", was guilted and pressured into removing their post after coming to a first responder facebook group to ask a question and get constructive answers.  Unexpectedly, they received negative comments, jabs against their abilities & knowledge, and - quite honestly - bullying and harassment.  Ultim...

Join me as I share an amazing conversation with Bill Dungey, creator of The Wedge. What is The Wedge? In the simplest terms - it's a goal setting program designed to teach you how properly set goals and succeed in achieving them. Yes, that's the simple explanation, but there is SO MUCH MORE to the program. And, did I mention the program is Free????   I'm trying out this program in Januar...

I had the amazing opportunity last month to go on two 24hour ride alongs with a career city fire department. In this week's episode, I'll walk you through my experience, what I learned, what differs from the volunteer experience I know, and what absolutely blew me away. If you have ever thought of making the transition from volunteer to career, this episode is for you. As always, I don't claim to...

This week, my friend Rob Ridley from National Fire Radio and I go over the question, "Are there such a thing as bad members?".  What differentiates a bad member from a good member?  We then travel around from topic to topic - both related and unrelated as far as the rabbit holes take us.  This is a long episode, but every bit is filled with valuable insight & opinions. We end th...

Do you get stuck in the same bubble & routine that you're used to?  Constantly go to the same restaurants, hang with the same people, watch the same shows, read the same type of articles?  You're stuck in an algorithm, my friend. What would life be like if we broke that cycle?  How do we grow our perspectives and thought processes to come up with new possibilities and solutions to our lives and ev...

This week, my friend Logan Watts joins me to talk over the importance of the search and the realities rural departments deal with.  Volunteer or Career - it doesn't matter & the public doesn't care - they just want you to do the job you signed up for.  You're in for a lot of deep insight and intriguing rabbit trails on this one. We end the episode with the second segment of "Family F...

Do you have a plan to fight a main street fire in your first due? Have you ever thought about how you would respond, what resources you need, and what your department is even capable of? Don't wait until the call comes in to think about it for the first time. This episode is here to get you thinking, helping you figure out what information to gather to start making your plan. As always, I don't cl...

This week I have the amazing opportunity to sit down with a friend and mentor who has had a very big impact on my growing passion in my fire career: David Mellen of Valor Fire Training. How can conferences have an impact on you?  What is the importance of realistic training?  How does good training impact future fire calls?  We cover this and more in an episode full of good conversa...

Buckle in, we get real on this episode.  Be prepared to challenge the way you've always thought about things and open your mind to another perspective. This one is for those of us (myself very much included) who are gung-ho, fire always on our minds, and tend to think, "no one else is taking this seriously".  Are we the problem?  Can we actually avoid unneeded animosity and accompli...

I'm joined by a firefighter I've looked up to and whose podcast & message helped inspire me to grow out into the wide world of the fire service and even start my own podcast - Robby Owens of the Average Jake Firefighter Podcast & Blog. A leave of absence isn't a bad thing.  Whether career or volunteer, taking a leave can be strategic, re-energize you, and actually strengthen your pass...

My friend David Stender joins me this week to discuss our thoughts on the importance of getting out of your "bubble" to attend out of house trainings & why networking is such a big deal to us. As always, I don't claim to be an expert.  I just love to talk fire.  All I want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire department ho...

Well, a few weeks have passed and talking with some others, I realized there are a few topics I recorded that need a little more explanation.  These come from the episodes "It's Not Your Emergency...Or Is It?" and "Anxiety and the Fire Service Part 1". After better explaining some of those points, I jump into the main episode topic - Why your department should be family oriented.  Since...

I have my friend Jonah Applegarth on the podcast to share his experience working on a wildland firefighting department back in 2015. As always, I don't claim to be an expert.  I just love to talk fire.  All I want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire department however they can.              ...

A short and sweet episode for you.  We get right to the point, "Are you doing it for the right reasons?"  This episode is made to make you think, reevaluate, and maybe realign if you need to. As always, I don't claim to be an expert.  I just love to talk fire.  All I want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire departme...

This will be a two parter episode, with the 2nd part coming out sometime in the future. I get down to the nitty gritty details with my anxiety, what it's like, and how I deal with it on the fire ground.  By joining me for this episode, I hope you pick up some new ways to help you with your anxiety or give you a perspective on what those with anxiety go through to help your fellow first respon...

This episode gets raw.  What started out as a quick, pre-episode update turned into a full fledge topic. Do you ever have something tug on your heart so much and you just need to talk it out? Yeah - that's what happened.  Get ready for real, unfiltered, and brutal honesty on how the last week has been going for me & adjusting to Chris's new life as a career first responder. As always, I don't clai...

Welcome to my first completely solo full episode! "What the heck is the local newspaper doing on scene?  Why are they standing in that spot that's obviously dangerous/too close?  They keep getting in our way.  Could they park in a worse spot?  I wish they would stop putting wrong information out there.  Why is it so hard for them to understand what we need them to do?!" &n...

Hold on tight, everybody.  Unexpected turns coming up.  You've been warned... I (Taylor) am taking on the podcast solo this week to update you all on the big changes coming to the podcast... this should be fun. As always, I don't claim to be an expert.  I just love to talk fire.  All I want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volu...

We talk one of our favorite subjects - Mentorship. Formal, informal, personal, and career. Chris gets fired up on this one, Taylor brings up tons of tangents, and just a tad bit of technical difficulties.... oh the joys. As always, we don't claim to be experts.  We're two people who love to talk fire.  All we want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their...

Join us for a night at Chris & Taylor's kitchen table. In classic table talk fashion, we let the conversation go where it wants and have a great, laid-back night. As always, we don't claim to be experts.  We're two people who love to talk fire.  All we want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire department however they can....

This week, we'll get a look into the Scott Firefighter Combat Challenge & Shane's journey with competing in it. He also shares his mental health journey & the class he has began teaching regarding the importance of mental health in the first responder world. Want to reach out to Shane? E-mail: shaneasmith36@me.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/shane.smith.714049 Instagram: www.instagram.com/s...

We decided to bring you some of our favorite ideas for fundraising.  Whether you are raising money for your operations, a fellow firefighter, a charity organization, or what-have-you, a good fundraiser idea plays a huge part in getting you the money you need.  And, Taylor let slip one of her favorite ideas to date, so definitely take advantage of this episode. As always, we don't claim t...

No, this one didn't come from The Lion King..... though Taylor would have loved it to be. Join us for a shorter episode on what being prepared in the fire service means & looks like to us. As always, we don't claim to be experts.  We're two people who love to talk fire.  All we want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire dep...

Helllllooooo Color! Taylor loves color, so we had a discussion on how color plays a big part in the fire service from the helmets & gear all the way to colors of lights. As always, we don't claim to be experts.  We're two people who love to talk fire.  All we want is to give the inspiration to anyone listening to take the steps to bettering their volunteer fire department however the...