Written by: Emily Joswiak • September 30, 2022• Business

Tips for Surviving Your First Firefighter Shift

As a new firefighter, you’re going to notice a lot of downtime while working. Don’t waste time; follow these tips for surviving your first firefighter shift.

Being a firefighter requires you to go to the fire academy first. After graduating, you’re ready to apply and get hired onto a fire station. As you learn valuable tips for surviving your first firefighter shift, don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. Experienced workers appreciate when rookies do something to occupy their time during the first few weeks of being on the job.

Remain Focused on Your Work

When you’re working any job, you need to stay focused, even during downtime. Most of the time, you’re going to sit around waiting for a call, and you could be doing something productive in the meantime. Don’t waste away your probationary period; this is your time to connect, get to know co-workers, and learn something new.

Reach out to your captain before your first shift starts to get a rundown on what workers tend to do to keep themselves occupied during long waits. Get together with co-workers and work out together, clean gear, go to a workshop, or volunteer to clean around the fire station.

Set Reminders for Event Times

You’re required to attend public events and meetings like everyone else. The best advice to give you is if you’re early, you’re on time, but if you’re on time, you’re late. So, always remember to arrive early enough for events to prepare yourself.

An easy way to remind yourself is to input every event, meeting, and other important dates into your smartphone calendar and also write it down in a notepad. Having it written out or inside your phone sounds tedious, but it’s better to have two things to help remember dates so you don’t forget.

Don’t Sit Around

The worst thing you can do during your first week is sitting around and not occupying your time. During the probationary period, this is your time to prove you can handle working as a firefighter, which is why you went through the fire academy and got to where you are now.

So don’t sit around. Get up and get active with everyone. If it helps, get some of the other recruits together and go to a training class, clean equipment, and learn something new from each other. You can only succeed by exiting your comfort zone and trying.

Learn How To Clean Equipment

During the downtime, you could learn something new. One thing you learned about in the fire academy was fire safety equipment and how to use and clean them. Now that you’re in the firehouse put that knowledge to good use. Grab an equipment piece and work with experienced co-workers to learn how to clean firefighter safety gear.

You’ll find that surviving the first shift as a firefighter isn’t scary at all; rather, it’s an exciting adventure full of memories and getting to do something you love. So, practice your skills and do something productive during the first few days as a firefighter.

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