Weekly Scrap #319 - Marshall Boyd, imposter syndrome and making changes

Corley: I get asked all the time, what is a vigilante? What does it mean to be a vigilante? And so to explain that, I'm just gonna kind of explain where the vigilantes came from When I started the group, I honestly thought there was gonna be like 10 or 20 people who really like the scrap that would want to be a part of the behind the scenes helping pick out the guests and make the questions and things and I never dreamed that the vigilantes would grow into what it has grown into. Over 700 like-minded souls. If you're a vigilante, you are never alone We have members from across the country. We have members from across the globe. And it's just amazing what it's become. If you're in there, then you get to be in the Discord and the Discord is where we do all of our discussions and people go live and they talk and they ask questions and we have a channel for bitching and moaning for presenting classes. It's just, it's amazing the fellowship that is involved in being a vigilante. And it's not just that, there's so many other benefits. You get access to the vigilante-only swag shop. You get the fifteen percent discount on all merch from Firehouse Vigilance. You get the after parties, you get the vigilante get togethers when we're all at the same place and we get together And we raise a glass and do a toast and have the vigilante creed. You get the vigilante coin when you hit your one-year anniversary with your number. The fireaways, the the forums, the archives, all those quarterly projects that are coming that that you get to be a part of and get to be behind the scenes on, it's grown into something bigger than I ever imagined. And I want people to know about, I want people to be a part of. If you're not a vigilante, why not? I don't know. I don't know how how big it could be. I don't know. I mean the vigilantes are are where the work is at. They're the ones who are getting stuff done and it's phenomenal to be a part of it. I wanted to get on here and explain where it started, how it, how it came to be, and ask you if you're not a vigilante, why not? It go to Patreon.

Corley: dot com slash the vigilantes. That's where you sign up. It is $5 a month. I mean it's you can't even get a cup of coffee for that anymore. Five bucks a month and you get to be a part of this unbelievable group Go to patreon. com, sign up, become a vigilante, and I will see you on the Discord Corley Moore, Firehouse Vigilance. It is weekly scrap number three one nine. My guest tonight is Marshall Boyd, 23-year veteran of the fire service, all with the same two small fire departments just south of Houston. He's a husband to his beautiful wife Tara and father to four amazing kids. Currently wears a white helmet in both organizations, holding the rank of assistant chief with the Nassau Bay Volunteer Fire Department and the rank of battalion chief for the Webster Fire Department. His words, he is just trying to live into the faith, family, firemanship concept. I'm excited for this episode. I've been looking forward to it. And I am happy to say, welcome to Scrap. Episode number 319, my brother, Marshall Boyd. Marshall Boyd: Hey man, how are you? Corley: Doing good, my man. Doing doing good. We were we were messing with the settings right whenever we started and Marshall jumped in. So anything I missed in the intro, anything you would like to add?

Marshall Boyd: No, you you got my name right and you mentioned my family and I think you you got what I do for a living. I think that's that's the highlights. Corley: The big three Marshall Boyd: Yeah, it's the big three. Corley: I love it. Audience, it's gonna be fun. Marshall, I've been looking forward to having Marshall on. I know the vigilantes have been looking forward for Marshall coming on And it's going to be an exciting episode. So get your questions primed and ready for Marshall and myself. And let's have some fun on the scrap. Now, let's talk about those beautiful sponsors. When it comes to building your perfect attack package, you can't just slap any nozzle on any hose and hope for the best. That's a recipe for failure. com. And then a brand new sponsor, first time tonight on the scrap, Fire Innovations. They build the most innovative UL certified NFPA 2500 escape belts, ladder belts, class two harnesses for firefighters, and they build them right here in the USA. as well as the best bailout kits in the fire service featuring that talent, the Talon Escape Anchor and Core Descender, trusted by leading gear manufacturers. like Scott, Draeger, Fire Dex, Viking, Viridian, Inatex, Sterling Rope, and firefighters around the world. Fire innovations proven to save lives. And there you go, the scrap sponsors done. And now we're ready to focus our attention on Marshall. Are you ready, my brother? Yeah, if you have more sponsors, I mean you can do that as well as I will say FDIC 2026, we're doing the giveaway and we're announcing it on October seventh with when Anthony Castros comes in. on and the vigilantes we got all of the applicants in and they're going to be pouring over they're going to be selecting the winner on October 7th and so you will fight want to find want to tune in and find out on that episode. So let's go. Pretty much I love the topics you sent me. I love the topics you sent me. We leading off one of my favorite things to talk about is imposter syndrome the no one from nowhere. Your words, not mine, but I know that feeling. Yeah I'm from Moore, Oklahoma, Four Station Suburban Fire Department And so I absolutely feel that in my soul. So talk to me about your your journey. And and and for those who don't know, I mean I don't know who doesn't know, Marshall, if you if you've gone to a conference.

Corley: Because I met Marshall at I think CF Tactics was the first conference I probably met you at, I'm guessing. Marshall Boyd: Probably. Yeah. Corley: And I don't know how many conferences I've seen you at since. It feels like about 45. Marshall Boyd: Maybe Yeah, there's an ad there there's an addiction or something there that we could probably talk about. But yeah, it's when when your when your passion kind of You know, it when it blends in professionally and personally and there's, you know, kind of the lines get blurred, and yeah, you find yourself at a lot of those things for sure. But yeah, the the the imposter syndrome I I I'll probably qualify a lot of things tonight. And so the first qualifier of the night is Imposter sit imposter syndrome is a real like legit thing, you know, imposter phenomenon. Imposter syndrome. And It probably falls in like the mental health arena and there's legitimate demographics of people that struggle with that. I'm I don't fall into that demographic. There's legitimate like childhoods and and up and upbringings that involve you know trauma and abuse. That was not my story. True diagnosis. Yeah, there's true stuff. And so I use it you know, I feel it maybe a little more tongue in cheek. Okay. But the but but how it manifests with with self-doubt and some anxiety and you know compare you know what what's the comparison's the thief of joy right yeah absolutely and so so so you know being from a little department that that doesn't go to hundreds of fires every year and agreeing with people when they talk about you know experience matters. And, you know, we don't need instructors that don't go to fires and people that write books that don't go to fires. Like experience matters. And so sometimes it's easy to feel like I have all the experimental data. You know, I I know all that stuff. You know, I can re I can you know, almost get picked on about it. The guy with the numbers, you know, you can recite, I can rec recite, but you feel or I feel a lot of times like you don't have the experience to back it up. Right. No, absolutely. And so and so, you know, maybe it's a common thing, but you know, when you feel like that, you don't feel like everyone else feels like that.

Marshall Boyd: You know, and what you're describing is Corley: is the the vast majority of the fire service. Because I mean honestly, not most people don't work at Jobtown. They don't. They don't work in and even if they do work in Jobtown, there's only two or three busy houses. The rest of the houses are just normal. And so there isn't just this overabundance and plethora of of experiential experience to be had. So most people know for sure. For sure. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, that yeah, for sure. I think again, if you're watching this, everybody knows that that you know you gotta build the Rolodex somehow. And so those of us that don't go to 100 fires a year, we we do it with every other avenue that is available to us. You know, it's the conferences. It's the studies, it's FSRI, it's reading, it's the publications, it's the podcast, and you you and it's the training ground and it's trying to drill and train realistically and and create those conditions to try your best to build that Rolodex as if you were going to fires all the time. Corley: And obviously that the the building the Rolodex is better if you could go to fires and do it, obviously. Oh, for sure. Without a doubt. But when you don't have that option. I that's what I'm gonna do. I reference you and how many times I've seen you at conferences and I see you there not just there, you're also taking notes. You're also you know, always plugged in. Always. And it's one of the reasons you're on the scrap today is because You are a plugged-in chief who goes and tries to better himself and you prove it with your actions, not just talking.

Marshall Boyd: And and so I appreciate that. Corley: And no, absolutely. I love the talk about I I I hear it all the time. You know, if you don't if you have an experience, you can't teach it. If you have an experience, you can't write an article on it or anything like that. And I understand what they're saying. Yeah. Kind of like stay in your lane. Don't don't talk about stuff you don't know. But at the same time, not everybody, you know what It's it's a it's a it's a tough dichotomy that's almost created. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, there's there's a f there's a fine line for sure because people want to hear from different types of people. I mean there's a reason why there's so many popular instructors and And you know, there's different strokes for different folks. You know, I don't no one loves listening to everyone all the time. There's people that speak to you in ways you know, there's instructors that say things that you've you you know and you've heard before, but you feel like you've heard it for the first time. Right. You know, when they said it. And so I know that we all need to hear from people other than the guys that work for the huge, you know, urban busy department. It's just hard to tell yourself that sometimes, you know, it's hard to you just kind of feel like a fraud, like, well, I don't know why anyone would want to listen to me, but it it is what it is. It's all good.

Corley: No, no, absolutely, absolutely. And it's and it's real. The and and like I c like you, I love the fact you talked about those people that You can still remember what they said. Mark Von Oppen for me completely blew my mind the first time I saw him speak. It it did. And Same thing with Kurt Isaacson. The first time I was like Yeah, for sure. Holy smokes is all I'd ever had before Kurt was the the EMT refresher, the hazmat tech refresher is put on by the local you know fire service training organization. Yeah. And it's like Holy smoke, you can you can love this job and be passionate about it. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, you can talk like that? Yeah. Yeah, I I think that's probably his story is he probably has there's probably a group of instructors that have changed the trajectories of people. career more than anyone else. I was just talking a couple weeks ago with Chief Reinwald about when he started FD tactics. Right. The first conference he put on was a little like two-day conference in the woodlands And Chief Ike, he brought Chief Ike down for the first and I I'll never forget sitting in the front row of that class in 2018. It literally, it's like I was hearing about the fire service for the first time. Yes. I mean it was it was mind-blowing. And so it that's that set me on a path, you know. 2018 was like, dude, I I like I just consumed Kurt Isaacton like material from you know from that day on and and then everything else that kind of comes with it, you know.

Corley: No, and I remember I I got to catch Reinwald in Vegas. He did one in Vegas and I Romagus was there and Reinwald and I I don't remember who else I I'd be leaving people out. But I but I was like I turned it into a two-day vacation with Amanda And then I got to go to that conference. And then he did the third coast down there in Galveston. Yep. And I got to catch two of those. And it was phenomenal. Just absolutely awesome. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, no, you were I remember seeing you in Kima. I think it was the same thing. Yeah, the Kima board or something. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. I w I remember having dinner with my wife in one of the West restaurants down there. And I think you and Amanda walked in, I'm like You know, that's the guy that just started that it's like a weekly firefighter podcast. Yeah. I kid you not. my wife Terra was like You were kind of talking about doing something like that. And I was like, yeah, but I would you know I would never pull the trigger on it. You know, this is the guy that's doing it.

Corley: super super cool. That was like I don't even know what year that was. That was pre-COVID, I think. It was for sure. So it was it was very early in the scrap. That's awesome, man. Okay, change. I love this topic because we get the That's probably one of the number one questions we get on the scrap. Stop. How do you make a change in your organization? How do you implement a change in your department? And of course, I think he's in the he was in the audience earlier. I haven't seen anything recently, but Rob F and Fisher The absolute answer always is that 10 pounds of pressure 100% of the time. But talk to me about the changes and you've seen it in two organizations and just talk to me about the process. Marshall Boyd: Well, I don't I don't think I'm gonna have any you know miracle answers or say anything that anyone else hasn't, but if if the scrap tonight was a drinking game, then I think every time I said John Maxwell or quoted something I that I had read for him, you know, it would be a a take a drink moment. And and so I think that's you know, h his stuff has just always kind of spoke to me in a certain way. And So if you buy into that you know Maxwellian or whatever you want to call it a school of thought, then leadership is influence Absolutely. Foundationally, that's relationships. And so you have to figure out how to build relationships so that people Trust you, know you, respect you, believe what you're gonna say. and so I do think change and leadership are you know they're kinda it kinda go hand in hand in my opinion. I mean obviously with change in general there's things like patience and and like Rob's talking about perseverance and consistency and all these things but I think just building relationships and you know leading from every level, every rank. I I I think that's where I I think that's where we've seen and just having people open-minded people in the right places, the right positions, in the right times, you know, maybe some of its luck. but You know, John I you know John Maxwell is kind of where I'm gonna lean.

Corley: Oh yeah. And you I can't think of it's hard to pick someone to lean on better. I mean you see you sat through the nine L's and you know that I reference him I don't know how many times leadership is influence being one of the one of the biggest. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, for for sure. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it i it's influence. And so I know the questions about change and I I've been fortunate enough to see some change. and and it seems very drastic, but you know, when you look back, it might have been, you know, it's been six, seven, eight, nine years. And I and I come from two small organizations. So I know there's a you probably know it well, there's some famous adage about the the rudder size of you know never changes but the size of the ship, you know, ch It's the size of the ship that changes. So the same rudder that's that turns the Webster Fire Department is what turns the Houston Fire Department. So we can make 180 spin you know, in Webster and something like that in Houston might take years. Years, yeah. You know, you know, years. So yeah, so so I I think when we talked I was referencing a change in those departments and and keep in perspective and how important that is. if you flash back seven years ago in in Webster, for example, which is my full-time job. You know, we had low bid hose, 100 PSI automatic fog nozzles, play pipes on all the two and a half, fiberglass poles, you know, TNT tools and foo bars everywhere, enough pickhead axes for everyone to have their own for some reason. you know, just I I I don't know what it was that ISO said everyone needs their own pickhead axe or something. Goofy like that.

Corley: No, no, and and and that's crazy just describing so many so many things. And and it's like whenever you ask why do we have this, they say ISO. That's always that was like this blanket answer. And it would not even know if it was true. But go ahead, sorry Marshall Boyd: This I I feel like I'm about to get someone's about to jump in the screen at me here real fast. Chief De Year is creeping in on me over here. He's gonna stay behind the camera. Get get out of here. Get out of here. but but anyway. Corley: all the all the all the things seven years ago at the at Webster. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, no, so you know ha having s having been through all that, having having been part of the group that was fighting to move away from some of those things, trying to get caught up with the times because we're getting outside of our bubble and and seeing that not that maybe not necessarily we're doing things wrong or that we could be doing things better. And everything that I say about Webster kind of translates to the volunteer department that I've been a part of for over two decades. They're kind of brother-sister organizations right next to each other, automatic aid partners. And again, having a leadership role in both organizations, you know, allows you to Yeah, you know, kind of you know, we train together, we we we think we think the same, we act the same a lot of the times, and so there's a lot of crossover. But Yeah, excuse me. Seven years ago is just a different seven, eight years ago, these are different organizations that The the tools and equipment look different. They're set up different. No one had heard of the Minuteman. No one had heard of Andy Andy Fredericks. it's just it's an organization where today you're work where I work.

Corley: Is that where you work? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, right. Right, right. But you know, you fast forward now and it's like Again, you gotta have some open-minded fire chiefs to let some of this stuff happen, which I'm fortunate to have. in currently in both of those organizations, but the culture and the mindset and the mentality now is unbelievable. That's you know, a a a a two-year guy in these departments would run circles around me thirteen or four 14 years in, you know, and and 13 or 14 years in, I would have told you I was pretty good at it and knew what I was talking about. You know, and again, you've heard this a a hundred times, but you know, a two or three year guy now is just a phenomenal fireman. And they get frustrated because things aren't moving and changing. Right. as fast as they want to. And so that's where this perspective comes in. Like when you can have those conversations and be like, I I know, I know, I know where you're at. I've been there. Right. things are pretty good and you have it pretty good. But you know anyway, I think keeping perspective always kinda allows me to you gotta know where you've been, where you're going, where you came from, all that kind of stuff. But just kind of rambling now at at this point.

Corley: No, no, it hey absolutely addressing the the change and and the point about the two-year fireman running circles around probably me at fifteen years. And and the crazy part is is I remember when I was younger being like, hey, the people, why why did you why is this this way in this department? We need to change. You know, when I was young and And I didn't appreciate till later that the that the generation before me had had their own battles and fought and fought their own things to get stuff done. That I was able to stand on that And say, hey, we can do better. And then the people that came after me are going to be able to stand on that and say, hey, we can do better. And it's up to me to make sure I'm not offended that they say we can do better. yeah, 100%. Questions coming at you from the audience. Shane Bridges come well I'm gonna go yeah I like this one stick around you have to tell me who you who you are stick around Marshall Boyd: That's a drone. That's a drone guy. Corley: Oh, it is. Stick around. Oh, I I absolutely Michael. I'm sorry. Team Ramrod. I've got one for you. All the classes you've gone to, I just didn't put it together. Stick around. I'm glad you you you've I'm sure you've heard some repetitive but really good info. What makes an instructor stand out from the rest of them that you enjoy? I love that question.

Marshall Boyd: Oh, that's yeah, that's a great question. Yeah, there there are instructors. I mean, they're popping in my brain that stick out. and I think they all have something in common. I think it's you know, what speaks to me is some sort of blend of the way they articulate the their you know it's like they're they're thoughtful, smart articulate. These are Aaron Fields, Nick Papa, you know, Jay Bonifield, Nick Ledeen. It's like they're wordsmiths. Like how do they how do they speak like that? They the the the every word is it feels like is is you know it's like premeditated, it's chosen very carefully. They they blend all the data and all the science with with you know seemingly real world experience and they just tell it in a way where you know I've never been lost, I've never been confused. They paint a very clear picture of of the things that they're talking about. And yeah, those guys, you know, I'm just like those the certain instructors speak to me a certain way. I think just the the the confidence and the way they speak, the way they articulate, and you know, those guys are kind of right up there, right up there for me.

Corley: No, and the names you just rattled off, Papa Ladine Fields, Bonnefield, as examples. It's like, holy smokes, could you rattle off a better list of instructors to to when you're talking about wordsmiths. I absolutely loved the question. I may work that into a five questions for firefighters in the future. is is a class that impressed you and why. That's a cool idea. Someone write that down. Do the Kurt. Write that down. Someone so I don't forget it. That's mainly why. So like I forgot. Shane Bridges coming at you said when battling with imposter syndrome or syndrome effects, what is your barometer to know you're on the right track? Marshall Boyd: Hmm. That's a that's a really interesting right. I I think I said softball, Shane. Throw a softball. Corley: You got ringers out there throwing you questions? Marshall Boyd: No, no. Statement Paraland, those, you know, those guys are killing it over there. So excuse me. No, w you know what what's the question about being on the right track in terms of kind of you know Centering yourself and kind of get getting out of those feelings of anxiety. Corley: Do you have any sort of barometer? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, well, you know, I think it's just continuing to, you know, positive self-talk, fight fight against those You know, again, if I fe and at times I do. I know that stuff isn't real and true, but it feels like it is when you feel like that. Right. I mean this kind of kind of could be a A lot of things are like this, but trying to tell myself that you know that's not that's not real, that's not true, that's just how I feel, it's made up and I tell you what helps a lot is is the people around you kind of kind of pulling pulling you out of that. I'll be honest. I'm wildly nervous right now. This is the first time I've ever done anything like this. I've been sweating, you know, I've been terrified like leading up to this, but what is what is made me feel more and more comfortable is getting those text messages and messages and and phone calls from people, finding out that I'm gonna be, you know, your buddies, your friends, your family telling you, like People saying they believe in you and saying you're gonna do well.

Corley: you know, I can it's things like that I posted that you know you're coming on. I put out the normal post I should say and put out the normal post. I created it with your pictures. You sent me some great pictures to use, and I had to pick one of them, you know what I'm saying? And but Long story short, the response you got from the support you got, yeah, you have to take a a pride in that and in a in a good way. And I mean that in a good way. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, and I appreciate I appreciate that. No, the thing is. It was great. Those are the things you have to look for because part of the whole deal of feeling like this is that you feel like your successes aren't even fully warranted. Like this is part of the whole imposter syndrome. It's like the successes you have were kind of luck or accidental. And there's, you know, you can look this up. There's huge celebrities and stars and authors and that legitimately struggle with this. Like Maya Angel Maya Angelou might have been one of the one of the most famous person that brought this to light. And she basically said something like She'd write a book and it would get published. And she was convinced it was going to be this book that got published that proved and showed everyone that she was just a big phony. And then she'd write another book, it'd get published. And you know, the the it was a cyclical kind of thing. And so, you know, for whatever reason, I'm I don't meet the demographics. I don't meet the childhood upbringing. I don't meet the abuse. I don't meet the trauma. But for whatever reason, you know, just I've always felt like whatever success is maybe weren't deserved or earned. That promotion was, you know, I did I really deserve the promotion? You know, a lot of us struggle with taking compliments in general.

Corley: Like, I think there's a there's a two-edged sword to humility. You know, it's humility is a phenomenal thing. I think it's key to being a good leader. I really do. I think it's It's a paramount and key so you can hear and you can learn and you can grow. But there is a downside to humility, and that's if if it it you have to have the pool of the ego. You know what I'm saying? That it's a for sure. You you have to have an you can't have too much because then you become just a A know-it-all asshole, plain and simple. And if you get too much of the other, then you're you're just meek. And meek's not the right word, but kind of mousy and you you don't like it. No, no, you're right. Yeah. And so it's it's this balance that that needs to exist, but it's so tough because humility is so important. And you never want to believe your own press and you never want to start Espousing yourself. And so it's it's a weird it's a weird push-pool that that has to exist to be effective. but it's what you're describing. And so but awareness, I think Self-awareness.

Marshall Boyd: Yeah. Self-awareness. Yeah. Leaning into that you know, that emotional intelligence stuff, trying to introspective, start in the mirror, you know, all all that kind of stuff, I think, is think is important. Corley: No doubt. Travis Smith wants to know if you get an answer for this one. We're gonna we're gonna write the book together and and we'll get rich together. How can you change a white-collar fire department more blue collar? Marshall Boyd: Hmm, a white collar fire department. So you know, what what do we really mean in by that, I guess? Is is that mean white collar as in It's it's all policy procedure. Corley: typically usually what they're talking about is like you're saying, it's policy driven, procedure driven. What I get from it most of the time is looking good is more important than being good, right? Okay. And and so the appearance is what matters, not necessarily actually being good. And The thing is, is it's not it isn't something where it's either or. You can look good and be good. but when you when you push the be good off to the side and say all that matters is who's following the rules, who's checking the boxes, who's wearing the right things.

Marshall Boyd: That's what I get from it. Okay. Yeah, no, no, and that adds up. And that's that's tough. Yeah, because I don't think there's an organization that that exists that doesn't have some chief officer that you know would like shoes to be polished and and collars and to be on and is anti-hoodie and and so on and so forth. And so yeah, that's You know, that's an impossible question with an impossible answer. It it's some sort of balance like everything. There's some sort of meeting in the middle. And because I I again I think a lot of us can swing to the to the far side and go You know, Mrs. Smith doesn't care what you're wearing when you show up, you know, to her house fire, or whatever, we you look at those iconic pictures of you know, FDNY firemen in the street and everyone's wearing something different. Yeah. They couldn't look more mismatched, you know, than than they do, but they just, you know, came down from some you know fire some of us would yeah never you'll never experience in your career but so yeah there's a there's there's a fine line and I know for us when we deal with that stuff kind of the mantra is Don't be an easy target. You know, let's let's do the things around the certain people that they want us to do and look a certain way and then and then focus on what's important. You know, if you got someone that's really stickler for uniform, just, you know, don't let it be an issue. But if it's something like your fire department doesn't want you to train and drill because you know you it's C E solutions for training and it's you know it's that whole thing. Well that's a I think that's a little bit that's a That's a harder fight.

Corley: That's a more difficult battle. Marshall Boyd: Yes. Corley: And I love kill them with competence, man. That's one of my sayings. Kill them with competence. Man, if they if they're gonna bury you in rules, just follow all the rules so they can't put any more on you and just kill them. Be so good at it they can't do anything about it. So yeah, I did it. Marshall Boyd: A lot of times following the rule. Can you hear me? Corley: Yeah Marshall Boyd: But you said check, check. Corley: So Oh no, I was checking I was checking boxes in my head just to just to kill 'em. Marshall Boyd: I was yeah. Some sometimes following all the rules doesn't take a whole lot of time and energy. It just it just feels like it does. You know, so like just just fall in line with some of those things and then do what's important and and get out and and drill and do the do the things you have to do and do the things you need in order to do. that are gonna that are gonna make a difference. Corley: And and both me and Marshall, I think I I'm speaking for him, but I think he'll agree. Is it can crush your soul to do it. It can It can hardly be but but you're playing a long game. You're winning the long game, not not the the the you're not bloodying a nose in the short little brawl And although the bloody a nose sometimes can feel so much better than for sure. And it's yeah, everybody wants to see blood. Rob Fisher's coming at you. Rob, Effin Fisher says, question, Chief Boyd, other than agility, what's another benefit to working in a smaller organization?

Marshall Boyd: Oh yeah, that's a that's a great question. A lot of times I think, again, maybe that's something to do with the way I think you tend to think There's more negatives. Like, you know, I would if we were only bigger and if we were only busier, but there are there are tons of benefits to being in a small department. one is obviously he said other than agility. It's easy to pivot when when you're small. but there relationally, I think is a big key You know, I know everybody that I work with and volunteer with. all three shifts. You know, I know everybody's name, first and last. I know their wife's name. you know, hoping to know all of their kids' names at at some point. So relationally, it feels a little bit more close-knit, a little bit more like a family. We've had a fantastic history of come Halloween, come Christmas, guys who have kids, let's get them off. Let's get these single guys coming in and covering and working you know, things like that where I I think again, my perspective on leadership and influence is relationships. Right. And it all starts and s starts and stops with relationships. And so you just not that there can't be a relationship in a hundred fire station department, but It's easier for us to get on the same page about things and and head in the the same direction with with things just because of the size of the organization.

Corley: I don't know if that's like a cop out like easy answer or whatever. But it's spot on because it goes right with your rudder, the the rudder in the boat. You know, if you're on an aircraft carrier with two thousand people crew It's you can't have a relationship with them all, but if you in a if you're in a small schooner with a hundred band crew, you can know every person in there On some level. It's just easier. It's easier. And and right to your point of relationships equals influence equals John Maxwell, leadership is influence. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, yeah, right. It just plays out. You know, being again, you know, being a chief officer of those departments, you know, my I I take the I take the influence that I have very, very seriously. And so The small department's accessibility is is is much different. The access I have to the fire chief and the access I have to the company officers on and off my shift are are are much different than you know a a big department. So it's almost like the the influence is mag is magnified or, you know, it it it carries a little bit more weight. than just because of the size of the organization.

Corley: Love it. I absolutely love it. Great question from Rob. Speaking of which, Rob, I love the the side conversation going on. I'm going to take a minute here to hype the scrap solo. The scrap solo, I'm recording the first episode of it tomorrow with Chief Candace Ashby. we're going to be focusing in on toxicity in the workplace and the fire department in an organization. that's what the w that's the topic we're going to solo out. And I bring that up to say to Rob, I I would love to have that conversation on a solo about the devil's advocate. standards that you're talking about. I think that'd be fun. So all that being said, several people in chat have asked Marshall to weigh in on Euro versus US helmet. Is there a story? Is there a story here? I don't know. Should I ask this question? Marshall Boyd: That is out of control. And Sam should ban those people from the chat as as fast as possible. the I I will give a quick quick down and dirty on that real quick is Again, perspective and change. And the organization that I work for, I mentioned seven, eight years ago, we looked very different. And that's old hose, triple layer, 100 PSI fog, et cetera, et cetera. There was a time, a previous administration that said, you know, we we're gonna stand out. Well this the Webster Fire Department is gonna stand out and the way they chose to do that is they they just ordered everybody European fire helmets. And said, We're not gonna test them, talk about 'em, ask your opinion. You're just gonna wear 'em. They they invited the Houston Chronicle down and they took pictures and they wrote articles and the first fire department in Texas to fully adopt the newer, safer, European style. I mean the whole thing was you know kind of a joke so yeah, that that's what they're referencing. We call those the dark days. We call them the dark days, the dark ages in in Webster that we no longer wore them. We wore them for about 18 months. and if anyone really wants to get into a conversation about them, we wore a Rosenbauer helmet, they're not lighter, they're not safer, they don't sit lower on your head. It's hard to hear them. It trap heat it traps heat differently.

Marshall Boyd: It's not the European version of the European fire helmet. You know, there's no integration. the whole thing was a disaster. We had a guy get burned and we got rid of him. And so kind of ended end the end of discussion. But it's the only time I've ever been embarrassed being a fireman Like stepping out of the fire truck and the looks of the comments that we would get, it's is wild. Corley: I love it. I absolutely I don't mean I'm laughing at you. I want you to know that. I'm not laughing at you at all. Marshall Boyd: I've never felt embarrassed in my bunker gear before. You know, for 18 months. Corley: But you can you can honestly say you've tried them out and you it this isn't just I don't like the look, so I I hate it. This is this you can You have more experience with it than No for for sure. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, for for years after that, I fielded questions in the firehouse from departments all over the country, training chiefs and PPE committees. s who had seen the article and were were curious about the helmets and want to know what we thought. And you know, the chief got his wish. We made the headlines and and and we got publicity. And I I I feel W some satisfaction that I potentially was instrumental in preventing the European helmet in fire departments all across the country.

Corley: Had an impact, baby. Had an impact. I love it. I absolutely love it Luke Stevenson coming at you from down under wants to know he's from the future, by the way. I have to say it every time. How do we avoid the trap of pursuing change for change's sake? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, no, there's I mean there's gotta be a reason something changes, most most definitely. You know, l little change is change too. And so we have these conversations about changing things every time we come to work. Somebody doesn't like you know something, you know. So the shift before after change something up and there's a loop where there wasn't a loop and there's a nozzle where it used to be a set you know, there's there's always some conversation and shouldn't the tools be mounted out here or now they're mounted in the cab or vice versa For me, change starts with can you articulate the reason why why baby this change needs to happen? I don't want to hear about, you know, why something's better or something's worse if it can't be like rationally and logically articulated. like we just don't need firemen, you know the their passion. It's this, you know, an excuse for why they're fired up and arguing about, you know, one thing or another. Like I want to hear logical, rational articulation of why something needs to change.

Corley: Right on. Marshall Boyd: And then we take the next step. I mean, and then, you know, really where in in these two organizations everything comes down to the to the stopwatch, really. If if If no one cares one over the other, then we're gonna do what's fastest because obviously seconds count. Corley: And so Ooh, I love that as the as the final desire. Is that a Agreed upon? Is that kind of like a value that you guys all agree on? Like hey, we can it's kind of an an informal thing. Marshall Boyd: We we we we put things up next to each other on a on a fairly regular basis. basis. I mean, and it might sound stupid, but there was a time where like the water can had three different positions on the truck that people thought it it might make well, we just took videos of air break air brake to like a front simulated front door grabbing and dismounting the water can from these three different locations. And you know, trying to prove or not prove anyone wrong, but just show like what's the easiest and what's the quickest. Right. Because we don't really Yeah, just let the clock decide. If if if and I don't say, you know, it's not that nobody cares because in this situation, three probably three people, three different people cared about these three different locations, but you know those type of feelings don't really, you know, really matter in that situation. We need to do what what's you know makes the most sense. And and and and a lot of times it's the stopwatch that makes the most sense.

Corley: Right on, right on. No, I love that as a as a deciding factor. Rob Fisher coming at you. I like this question. I had to read it to make sure I had it right because it was a longer one. Question. Given the significant changes you've seen since first hearing Chief Ike Lecture. What's one thing you'd like to go back in your career and change for you, not your organization? Rob likes to get philosophical. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, that's a that's a great question. well the I'll say the first thing that pops in my head, changing for me probably affects my organization. So So again, maybe it's a cop-out easy answer, but what I excuse me, when I first heard Chief Ike and Chief Ridewalt speak It was almost kind of liberating. It was like they were saying things that I had thought about but felt like I couldn't say out loud. You felt them in your soul. Yes. Right. I mean there were so many things that kind of freed you up. Felt ways I felt about how the fire service would talk about cancer in one way and can completely dismiss it in in other ways. talk about I don't know. J just just things that seem to make sense. you know, forward laying, you know, the first engine forward laying was a pretty standard thing in in in my area, like everyone's area. can't throw it you know, you can only throw a ladder one way. Can't be in, you know, can't be backwards. It's always gotta be Hallered versus I mean just thing after thing after thing where I f you know you felt like, you know I I felt liberated in really to say to to say the things that I'd been they kind of freed me up, to be honest. Yeah. I'll I'll never forget that again, 2018, the Woodlands. I think Chief Ike was slotted for two or four hours. You know how that goes. Yeah. and Reinwald and Romagus, I think, were slotted for the rest of the time and they ended up, you know, deferring their time. You know, as I think Kyle has done in a bunch of conferences where he just gives his time to to you know who whoever is on a roll and needs it. but that's what happened that day. And I think Chief Ike just went off like he does and I sat in the front row just being like, you know what?

Marshall Boyd: I'm tired of holding it all in. You know, this guy can do it, and it's proven with experience and and Corley: and and and fires and saves and rescue, you know, et cetera, et cetera. Marshall Boyd: It's like it just it it really it felt kind of liberating. It was like, you know what, I've had a problem with guys footing the ladder from behind it since I was two years into the job and saw a tool fall and hit somebody in the head. I've always thought, why shouldn't we be on the outside with the you know, so but we didn't do that in those organizations. And so it was those type of things where I was like, you know what We're gonna do what makes sense and what's best for people and what's best for the citizens and what's fastest and it doesn't matter if we've always done it or not, we'll address the change without like you said earlier saying that the way we've always done it was wrong or saying that the way that anyone has done it, you know, who came before us were doing what was doing it wrong. That's not the case. We're just We're changing something for the better.

Corley: I love it. I got one coming at you from the Gabinator, the Gabinator underscore 10. So he may be related to you. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, this is my this is my oldest son. Corley: He says any tips for balancing being a firefighter and raising four kids at the same time? Marshall Boyd: Wow, that's a very thoughtful question. Very thoughtful question. yeah, I mean, You know, I guess the easy answer is I mean, how how do you feel about the the term work-life balance? You know, do you feel like that's a fallacy I think personally, are you asking me or Yeah, I mean what's the quick the you know the work-life balance thing? Corley: I always said the same thing over and over. There's no such thing As work-life balance. That's my answer every time. There is no such thing as work-life balance. Your family comes first. If you get that out of whack, you are out of whack. You are out of balance. Okay. Or out of out of calibration, is what I like to say. Go ahead Marshall Boyd: That's right. So I I think there has to be a pecking order and you have to stick with it or or things get out of whack. And so you mentioned at the beginning the faith family firemanship is sort of the pecking order. And if that gets out if any of that gets out of whack, you know, if I if I you know if my faith gets out of whack and I'm not I'm not giving that the time and energy that it that it needs and it deserves with you know my my relationship with god and then i put you know some something something's gonna suffer and so that order is very important But what we ask all our firefighters, and this is probably no different than more Oklahoma is when when you come to work for 24 or 48 hours, we want you to be all in for 48 hours. Yeah. Right? We want you to come to work. And we just want you to eat, breathe, live, sleep, firefighting and the Webster Fire Department or the you know the Moore fire department. Right on. Knowing that knowing that sometimes that's impossible, right? Life, you know, w home bleeds over to work and work bleeds over to home. Absolutely. but but but th but that's the goal. And and we we we want you to do that.

Marshall Boyd: and let us know if you can't for some reason because of personal issues and And the fact, you know, as as family and brothers and sisters and leadership, we should be somewhat dialed into some of that personal stuff that's been going you know, you know, going on at home anyway. Corley: But you're back to talk about the relationship. Marshall Boyd: Yeah. It's it. It's all it's all relational. And again, that that's that's it's all relational. Faith, family, and firemanship, all three of them. It's all about relationship. And so at the end of that 48 or 24 hours, what we want you to do is go home and be all in at home. Yes. Right. We want you to be all in, knowing that, again, the just just the opposite is true. Sometimes work carries over to home, but we we want the relationship at home to be such that again your family understands when things are out of whack and you communicate that stuff. Corley: It's funny what communication does in terms of solving. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, I don't know what we'll we've never gotten it right, but faith, family, then my job is the order. I try to always keep that. I try to be as present as I can when I'm at work and give those guys, which are my family, you know, my my attention. And when I'm at home, you know, be present and all in and you know, you know, I have an amazing wife and amazing family that helps, you know, hold me accountable as well when yeah, accountability is kind of a big deal, right? At work and at home.

Corley: Right on, man. No, great answer, brother. And and I like the all in, all in, because we all understand that there's going to be emergencies at home that take your time away from the job. Those are emergencies And hopefully your family understands there's going to be emergencies at work that take your time away, you know, that shouldn't. But there should be if you keep it right, if you keep those priorities correct, hopefully those are minimal and you can have the support network on both sides to take care of those things. That's awesome. I like this one. It's a process. Marshall Boyd: No, no, you know, you don't get it right or wrong. It's an ongoing thing that you get it wrong, obviously. Corley: There's no finish line. Marshall Boyd: continue to learn and grow and I love Simon Sinek. Corley: He talks about you don't win at marriage. You don't win at working out. You just keep you keep going to the gym and you keep on putting in the work. Colton Goody. I like this one because I saw something in the Vigilante Discord earlier today about through the lock that you posted. I I didn't I didn't delve into it, but I just I glanced at it, read it. But he said, what's your thoughts on respectful entry?

Marshall Boyd: Well, this is a guy that worked with, so he's he's another respectful entry through the lock, passive entry, whatever you want to call it, nerd, like I am. But just that's just ironic timing today. a young firefighter on the Discord, I think he said he's been on the job for two years. He posted a picture of commercial storefront door and said You know, there's a there's a you know, like a Adams Wright style lock with a mortise, you know, a c a cylinder and their K twelve couldn't slide over it because it was recessed. And it was like, you know, how would you Corley: We had a we had a plan A. Marshall Boyd: We to pull this cylinder and and the tool couldn't grab it. How else would you get in the door? And so it just, you know, gave me again completely f you know interesting timing that this was just earlier today. and not wasn't really planning on talking about through the lock. It seems like a pretty boring topic. the weekly scrap cultain. Negative. But but but but anyway, so yeah I was able just to kind of brain dump on them about all the different ways. Quickly that you could possibly get in, the different tools that could be using, the company that makes those tools, you know, threw seven or eight different things at him. And he was like, did you see the response? I thought the response was cool. Like, this is the reason I joined the Discord was was to get answers like that.

Corley: I saw your response to his picture, but yeah. Marshall Boyd: Yeah. So it's kind of cool. And again, through the lock is nothing new. It's been around. People have, again, like we do in the fire service, rebrand it, respectful entry, rebrand it. brand it passive entry, but you know through the lock forceful entry has been around forever. Now there's a bunch of new fancy tools that can be be used and so whether where you might have in the past four or five ways to get into a let's say a commercial store front door there there's probably easily 10 or 12 different ways to get through a door. The reason I like the topic so much is it it it it bleeds over to every other thing that we do and it's it's twofold One, I like the problem solving and the creativity involved in it. I think problem the problem solving aspect is is one of the things I love about this job more than anything. It's we want to be tested, we want to come up real time, real speed, and work through the algorithm. And through the lock, you know, force blending in general has a pretty defined algorithm and flow chart And it's pretty deep. You know, it's not like you know just too I mean you could just you could wr you could write a whole page of of sort of your algorithm based on conditions And and so it's I like that challenge of matching up how much time do we have based on conditions, based on the severity of the call, that's gonna determine, you know, where in my A to Z algorithm I'm gonna start this this. This this forceful entry process.

Corley: Yeah. How much does speed take over the algorithm? Marshall Boyd: Yeah. Speed's the name of the game, right? If the building's on fire, we're not worried about you know, trying to grab a latch or use a bytap you know, a bypass tool or loiding technique or something like that. We're we're we're okay breaking stuff with things No, I remember Go ahead, go ahead. No, I was gonna say I come from the land of you know the co the commercial fire alarm, the smells and bells, the The general alarm at 2 a. m. Nothing visible, no odor, no key holder, keys in the knocks box aren't working. And so you know, ten years ago we would have broken something. ten years ago we did break stuff. We we broke stuff all the time. And so, you know, are we doing what's most fun for us or are we doing what's best for the citizens we serve? Sure. and so those are two different things. And that carries into this the second point of the why I like it so much. It's it everyone remembers Hurricane Harvey. we were like ground zero for Hurricane Harvey, right? The five 500-year flood You know, it it was ground zero was basically like three counties. One of the counties, Galveston County, you know, the the the water destroyed thousands and thousands of homes. Well, fifty percent of all homes destroyed by Hurricane Harvey in that county had no flood insurance. And so fifty percent of all homes destroyed with all property lost got got zero dollars. you know, there was no insurance. And so that that that thought and idea has never really it's never really lost, you know, it's never really left me. And so I just kind of treat every home and every business as if It's owned by someone and this is all they have. Right on. And so I want to get in with minimal damage. I want to be able to re-secure because We're public servants and we're gonna do what's right for them, not what's fun for us or what we've always done because that's the right thing to do. And You know, and and if it takes a little more time, that's fine. Where does it fall within the sort of the the time severity conditions? Severity flow chart. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right.

Corley: Well i is it more important to get back and get back to sleep? So smash the door down because you know it's you know say you know, but in all likelihood you're you're chasing a faulty wire or a you know insert whatever. Marshall Boyd: Right And and and props to the two organizations I'm in. They've adopted this stuff with open arms and it's become we actually, you know, we Colton helps he we we teach a lot of through the lock stuff in our area And I get s I get snapshots sent to me on a regular basis of guys in departments in our area using these techniques for the first time to get through. you know, a door, a commercial door or a rear door with you know, a guard latch where they've cut down a carpenter square and they they've used it for the first time or you know, just something really simple, but you don't know what you don't know And and which that's never been set on the scrap before, I bet. You know, you don't know what you don't know. And through the lock is just knowing a few things and having a few tools and then this world opens up to you that that kind of never existed before.

Corley: So anyway. No, I love it. I love it. man. Tony Nunez coming at you. He says, what are some things that you have taken from your full-time house to your volunteer house and vice versa? Because you do have a unique, I mean there's a lot of people that work both, but unique plugged in, white helmet both. So talk to me. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, no, it it's a it's a really interesting I love both of these organizations. I I live in the community I volunteer in. Small bedroom community, one station volunteer, fire department, 100% volunteer. And then the neighboring city is the city I work for, 100% you know, career department. so I have a wild five to seven minute drive to work in the morning. And but you know back to some of the things we talked about it it's where I live and it's where I work and it's where I grew up. So there's a there's there's a personal aspect to it. when when we're on the side of the road for an accident, you know, I'm getting honked at by somebody that I know. I'm getting a text message texted to me with a picture. If we're grocery shopping, I'm running into somebody, you know, I go to church with or went to high school with. And you know, that that personal touch helps keep things into perspective. Absolutely. But but the way you manage and lead people in those organizations are are vastly different. Thank you. You know, I I think one of the things I I mentioned to you is again, leadership is influence. Right. And if you want to test your ability to lead an influence, you should do it in an environment where you have zero leverage. You have zero leverage over people like if yeah, they'll just walk away. you know, y at work you do it because you know, somebody said so and they sign your paycheck. You know, in Nassau Bay, you have to convince people it's the right thing to do. You know, you have to show and convince and win people over. And fortunately, there's just a jam-up group of volunteers there that have bought into it. because it is true, but it's also not enough to say that Mrs. Smith doesn't care if you're paid or volunteer, right? Because the fire's the same. the same amount of danger, the same amount of work, the same amount of everything.

Marshall Boyd: but the worlds are just drastically different. and I don't care what anybody says, the volunteer fire service is a harder version of the fire service. W when I walk in the apparatus bay going to work, the guys know what truck they're on, what seat they're riding, the gears set up exactly how they want it. They know they're going to a fire today. That's their mindset that they drove in with. Their gear is set up just like they're going to a fire. and everything is you know what I'm saying? And in the volunteer fire in the volunteer world, any minute, any time, any day, the thing goes off. Guys are running in. You know, you don't even know who's gonna be on. I'm sorry if you see this. I got the low battery thing popped up on my phone. Corley: -oh. Marshall Boyd: -huh. yeah, this whole thing was derailed, you know that. so it anyway, but but yeah, the worlds are just v you know, drastically different. you you don't know which guys are gonna be there. You don't know once they're there what seat what riding positions they're gonna be in. there's a there's a There's an anxiety that every call starts with just because you're behind the eight ball always. This isn't like a live-in of a volunteer fire station with live-ins and shifts. It's a true 100% Come from home, come from work, volunteer fire department. And it's operated like that from the beginning. It's got incredible culture, it has an incredible fire chief. who's open-minded and has been there for 30 plus years as the fire chief. Wow.

Corley: And yeah, just no that's that's an unusual story in and of itself because usually it's the opposite. Been there so long, God, could he leave, please, you know? So we can make some changes. Marshall Boyd: Been there so long, lived in the community for so long, cares about the community in the department so much that he's willing to say, even if I don't understand, I trust the guys that do. which is an unusual situation. Corley: So that's that humility, you know, which leads to so much influence and so and empowerment. And anyway. Marshall Boyd: It's wild, right? It's wild. It seems so simple and so easy. And, you know, I'm not gonna say I I I I run up against the opposite thing at work, but there's there's there's just so many there's so much It's it's much more difficult at times and there's there's layers of things and and and politics and ego and and all these other things that are involved where where there doesn't need to be, but you know, sometimes it is what it is. Corley: I love the discussion. I absolutely love the the all of it. But you told me low battery. I don't want to finish this solo. So I'm going to ask you. I got a dozen questions over there still, but I'm going to I'm going to move on. We just started talking I'm going to move to book or books that you think firefighters should be reading. And I'll be disappointed if you don't say at least one John Maxwell book.

Marshall Boyd: But I'm just telling you that. Yeah. Well, yeah, you're probably a lot like me, Corley. I don't love to read So this is gonna be a this is gonna be a big shock to you. They say leaders are leap leaders are readers, right? What are we? Yeah. I have I I have always struggled to read, but the invention of the audiobook was a game changer for me. So I'm gonna I'm gonna rattle off a few that that have been kind of you know, bouncing around on the head. first three are non-fire service related. So yeah, if you want to dip your toe into leadership and you and you're someone that doesn't struggle with looking in the mirror and kind of seeing where you stack up, the 21 irrefutable laws of leadership. by John Maxwell is absolutely the place to start. I think if you can follow, you know, he he lays it all out for you. Corley: Very it's so easy. It's really easy. So firefighter friendly. It's so yeah. Marshall Boyd: It's yeah, it yeah, leadership is influence. It's very simple, it's not easy. I think someone said that on the podcast earlier, like firefighting is simple, not easy. Like leadership is simple, it's not easy. You just you have to care. Care. So yeah. Yeah. So yeah, 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. If you're a girl dad, strong fathers, strong daughters. Love it. By Meg Meeker. And if you can approach that book with an open mind and an open heart, it could be a it could it could it could be an absolute game changer. Absolute game changer. I wish I'd have read it when my girls were younger.

Corley: I read it when they were teenagers. And so I wish I'd have read it when they were when they were, you know, but it I I have bought that book for I don't everybody Since I read it, I've bought it for every firefighter at more that had a girl. So much I believe in that book. Marshall Boyd: I believe in that book. I've actually bought Thank you. I bought a big stack of them and I never ha handed them out for some reason. So I I I'm gonna recommend it. the third one, non-fire service related, if questions about the Christian faith or maybe new to the Christian faith, A Case for Christ by Lee Strobel is a is a fascinating, interesting read. Yeah, Lee Strobel, a case for Christ. And that's you know, real real quick on that is he's an investigative journalist for the Chicago Tribune. his wife has a career they're killing it they're a young married couple she becomes a believer and he's like basically what are you doing Like, where did this come from? we were having we were like a fun married couple and now you're Christian. You know, like what and so rather than saying I'm going to just dismiss this because I don't really agree with it or go the other way and say, well, my wife says it's good, so I'm gonna he does what he does and he's an investigative journalist. And so he goes down this absolute rabbit hole with fascinating interviews and and stories about his his his work and career and so just a phenomenal book. I'm I'm re-listening to it. My boys are reading it right now. It's it's It's a fantastic book. So love it. Love it. There's three. Three non-serv three non-fire service books, all on Audible. You can read or listen to. And then two fire service books. It's nothing new. It's been said tons of times, both of these, but I love fire service culture and fire service history. I am a believer of understanding where you've been. And if you don't like listening to FDNY, you know, war year stories, I think there's something you know there's something wrong with you so report from engine company report from engine company eighty two and twenty thousand alarms there you go report from engine company eighty two again also an audible I don't think there's an audio book version of 20,000 alarms.

Marshall Boyd: Not that I'm aware of it. Yeah. But you know, find someone that has a copy and you know, maybe they'll maybe they'll let you borrow it or something. Maybe they'll let you yeah. Corley: Great, great, great list of books. And Orlando Zapata said Chief is always blasting John Maxwell when he's in the gym. So that's a that's the one which crazy because I think I think one of the reasons John Maxwell is so popular I mean obviously his principles are solid, but his his voice is so powerful. Marshall Boyd: It's unbelievable. Corley: He's got a magical voice. Marshall Boyd: But he has like a Kyle Romagus voice. Corley: Yes, yes. And most of his books aren't read by him, but they get somebody who sounds like him to read them. And and so it's always impressive. But anyway, sorry. That's a side note because I love John Macco's voice. I can listen to him talk. Like you said, Kyle is a perfect example. Marshall Boyd: Well, I you know, I don't think it's a coincidence that the The fire service chiefs that everyone are drawn to are John Maxwell fans. You know, Chief Scott Thompson, Chief Sandon Shannon Stone. You know, these are students of John Maxwell, which is why they seem to be so, you know, they're just, they get it. They're so plugged in, they're so dialed in. There's lots of reasons, obviously, but I can imagine John Maxwell's a part of it.

Corley: Oh dude, yeah. 21 irrefutable laws is is the gold standard. And what is the the unlocking the leader within or anyway, you get me talking about Maxwell. I love it. We have a thing we do on the scrap. You might have heard of it. It's called the Five Questions for Firefighters And on that, there are no wrong answers. No wrong answers, only your opinion. And then we give out points. The points are assigned by me with the help of the audience. And I guess we want to know is Marshall Boyd, are you ready for the Five Questions for Firefighters version 4. 0? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, I'll do my best. Let's do it. Corley: Here we go. It's you can do anything in the world. Number one, you can do anything in the world except be a firefighter. What would you choose to be? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, c can I ask you to qualify something with this question? I don't know. I hate to be this guy. Let's see. But is is is this with my current skills and and And or is this a you know a magic a magic lamp? You can do anything you want to do. Corley: You can do anything.

Marshall Boyd: Or is it what you would have done? You can do anything. Corley: Except be a firefighter. Marshall Boyd: Well, I'm gonna take it down the path of what do you think you would have done if you wouldn't have become a firefighter? And I went to the University of Houston, got a business degree, was obsessed with sports my whole life, Houston sports you know, phenom and my plan all through high school and college was to work for one of the Houston sports organizations. I had a internship with the Houston Texans and that I I I thought that was going to be the path but it all got disrupted you know by a few things and and one of them was you know stumbling into the volunteer fire service. But so something with one of the Houston sports organizations would have been was was kind of the goal or the dream at one point. Corley: Right on. Just administrative s the sports medicine or just I don't know. Maybe a quarterback or no no no and not Marshall Boyd: If it's what I would have done, it would have been some sort of nerdy desk job. It's if it's what I could have done if if there was no you know no parameters, then yeah, who wouldn't want to be

Corley: you know yeah okay fair enough yeah I like both answers you got Max sports yeah which I like the clarification for sure Clarification. I like I appreciate the clarification. And I may I may clarify. I may clarify. Well, it's the truthful answer. And so I may clarify it in the future to get I may give people the magic wand so I get more exciting answers Yeah, yeah. Number two, it's Job Town. It's time in route and responding. Think of the scene from backdraft, slapping that tape, into that cassette deck. What song are you playing while you're in route? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, this one's easy for me. I'm glad I'm glad Eric brought up some Some some rap music last last week. born and raised in Houston and the Houston rap scene is off the charts. So yeah, I don't have to tell you Coralie, you know. You know that. Absolutely. but but yeah, it this would be my walk-up song if I was an MLB player, so it would be my tape deck song in the fire truck, and that's Tops Drop by Fat Pat Corley: Tops drop by hands down. Fat was the Pat. Fat Pat. Now is that from the Houston scene? His name is Pat.

Marshall Boyd: Yes, yeah. Okay, okay. DJ screw, screwed up click, yeah, the whole thing. Yeah. Corley: I got my card revoked last week. You know that. Yeah, absolutely. My hip hop rap card was revoked last week. and you get max points for and I can I can only have to check with Sam. That is not currently on the Spotify playlist, but it will be added. It will be added. So there we go. Houston represent. Speaking of the University of Houston. Marshall Boyd: Close a close second Tupac. Corley: University of Houston, they made it to the Final Four slash almo. I mean they were. Like how close were you? Are you talking about NCW NCAA basketball basketball? Marshall Boyd: Yeah. They were in the national championship this year against the Florida Gators. Do you have you have a we have time for a quick Florida Gator Houston cougar story? Corley: Yeah, go. As long as you got battery. I think someone plugged you in, so Marshall Boyd: They they did, they plugged me in. So University of Houston Cougars played the the University of Florida Gayers, NCAA. We were there. Corley: We were at FBIC for it Marshall Boyd: We were at FDIC. We were in the district tap. We were watching the game, and there's this guy wearing this University of Florida's Florida jersey. just an outlandish character. And I I'm I'm sitting at the bar. I'd already talked to him about the Gators winning and me being a cougar. I'm sitting at the bar with Shay I wish I could pronounce his name. Filchowski. Do you know you know Shay? Filchowski?

Corley: I don't I don't Marshall Boyd: Oh god, there's another another name you need to so him and Jennifer Williams did an incredible Fire Nuggets podcast. You gotta check that out. But anyway, so Chief Ike comes over right before the game starts and says, you want to make things interesting. $200 on the game. And I'm like, absolutely. I'm I'm flying high. The Cougars are the better team. It's not even I'm not even worried. Well At halftime, the game swung a little bit towards you in the Gators favor. the game was really close at halftime. We've been everyone's been having fun. Chief Ike comes over way more confident than he was at the beginning of the game and he says, let's make things interesting. $400. and and Shay, who's sitting next to me, says, no, that's not what he wants. He's now speaking for me and and now he's running the the better. Corley: He's become your sports betting agent. Marshall Boyd: Yes. So he tells Chief, if the f if the Gators win, you know, Marshall will give you four hundred dollars. If the Cougars win Marshall presents a class this November at Water on the Fire. Nice. A new class you've never seen, never heard of. And he thinks about it and says, deal. Shakes my hand. Well, you know, as the story goes, the Cougars lost. They basically gave the game away at the end of the it was it was horrible. And Chief was riding high and I don't think he wore, you know, he changed from that jersey for the next next week or so.

Corley: I I paid him up and we laughed about it, but it was it was one of the highlights of the trip for the his reaction to the game. You put some drama to it. Everybody in the district is in on it. It was fun. It was a good time. Marshall Boyd: So much fun. Yeah. Corley: Derailed the same thing. Derailed the five questions. Back to number three. Number three. So far, two for two, max points. Tomorrow morning, you wake up. You are the chief of department and you can do whatever you want. What is the first change you are making? This could be a fictional fire department. It could be one of the two you work at. Marshall Boyd: Okay. Yeah, I think I'm gonna I I think it's gonna be less fictional, more reality. And again, these answers are are terrible. So here's another cheesy answer. It's It's just driving morale and culture even more. So it's it's goofy things like we're gonna issue department hoodies And it's gonna make guys happy and it's not a big deal, but that's something I would do as the fire chief. We're going to employ and deploy an an engine truck deployment model. Guys are gonna come to work and they're gonna know what apparatus they ride on and it's not gonna change back and forth. There's not gonna be cross-staffing and things like that. So those are probably the first two moves I make is is ink in the engine truck, the riding assignments. the the apparatus assignments, station assignments, hoodies, and then then take a breather

Corley: Marshall, you had me at Culture and Morale with Max Points and then you gave your answer and it was awesome. But I want to know, I'm just digging in and asking this, is do you do you feel like you you give those answers because you you hear and understand what your people want? Or is those things that just you want? Marshall Boyd: No, I feel you know I'd like to think I want and feel the same things that the guys I work you know forward with want and think. And so yeah, I I know those are those aren't things that would cost a whole lot of money, but I think those were things that the guys would have you know, would appreciate. Corley: I wish I could I think is it Abersoff and it's your ship? I don't remember. I I might be getting it wrong and turn the ship around and and David Marquet. But He said if it if it improves morale but and it doesn't cost a lot of money, just do it. And you just said it doesn't cost if it's gonna improve morale and it doesn't cost a lot of money, just do it. It's not that hard to figure out

Marshall Boyd: It's like I I I heard a fire chief say once he had this list of four or five things. It's like, is it illegal? Is it good for the city? Is it good for the fire department? Is it good for the am I gonna you know it's like if it meets all the standards? Is it affordable, yeah. Corley: Just do it. Just pull the. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, just like why are we talking about it? Corley: Yes, man. And that's that's called shared values and and a vision. But I wish more departments had those. three for three max point and you got me talking all through the five questions here number four is this one this is on the clock so we'll we'll be we'll be better here you got one minute to answer You are riding backwards. It's a four-man engine or truck, your choice, four-man apparatus. You're riding backwards. You get to pick your dream company to ride with. One driver, one officer, and one firefighter. Hmm. Marshall Boyd: Okay. I I don't I know what direction I'm going with this. There's so many that I could. I'm terribly indecisive and I already mentioned the guys that I really enjoy hearing them speak and teach. they they just speak in a way that speaks to me. And so we didn't get to it today in the podcast, but you know, transitioning at one point from the front right seat to the battalion chief buggy is a lonely position. So in this made-up game, I'm getting back on the engine with four guys I would just love to be chatting with nonstop, and that's Fields, Papa, and Bonifield. Woo! Doesn't even matter. You're not even giving them a yes, you're not even saying who's what I'm not giving them riding positions. We we might we might rotate. I I don't even know. But it's gonna be an engine and hopefully Nick is okay with that and Yeah, we're gonna go do some things.

Corley: I love it, man. Fields, Papa, and Bonnefield. Marshall Boyd: And I don't know these guys, by the way. I've never even talked to them. But they have they've talked to me, you know. Corley: So I think they've got about six or seven scraps between them. So it's yeah, right. They're they're yeah, they I I'm I'm a fan, I'll put it that way. I love it. Max points four for four. You're killing it, Marshall. And this is the final one. It will never change. Heavy fire. Searchable space. Would you rather be assigned to the nozzle? Or first in on that window initiated search. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, this is easy for me. It's the nozzle. It's I wanna I wanna be it, I want to s I want to be there, I want to see it, I want to feel it. I want the GoPro to be recording it. I, you know, I want yeah, on the nozzle, 100% Corley: Easy answer. Max points. Five for five. Marshall that officially puts 319 scraps in the books. Thank you, first of all, for spending your evening at Fire in the Sky when you could be out there hanging out with firefighters, hanging out with us, the scrappers. And I cannot thank you enough for doing it. If someone wants to get more info from you, if someone wants to ask some questions What's the best way to get a hold of you?

Marshall Boyd: Yeah, there's I mean they could shoot me a text call or send me an email and I can you know, I can send that number and email out however you want it or say it right now. I don't even know what what what what it is that completely up to you makes the most sense yeah but you can you can text or call at 832-605-4093 or shoot me an email at mboyd at websterfd. com. Corley: Mboyd at websterfd. com. Beautiful. Alright, brand new thing we've been doing. Well, it's brand new for 2025. A challenge, a scrap challenge. Some a challenge from Marshall Boyd. to the scrappers that are listening and that will listen to the podcast to get done before next Tuesday's scrap. Marshall Boyd: Yeah, so this sh this should be pretty simple. I think we all have I mean we probably all have more than one person, but at least somebody that we know, we care about, we think about, but we don't talk to regularly for for some reason a relative, a relationship that's drifted away, a friend or family member. So the challenge is re reach out to somebody, reach out to that person that maybe, maybe you think about way more often than you talk to for whatever reason. take take a minute and make a phone call, reach out to someone. Maybe it's taking that first step toward

Corley: mending a or you know a strained relationship. Marshall Boyd: I love that. That's the challenge. Corley: You got me thinking right there. You just challenged the host. Yeah. Great, great challenge, brother. I loved it. so there you go. Reach out to someone that you've been thinking about that you know you should talk to more. I'll encapsulate it. and finally, the the final question, you know, within reason. Who should be on the scrap? I'm always always trying to grow the network. Who should be on the scrap or back on the scrap? Marshall Boyd: Yeah, I think the name has probably been thrown around recently. recently at least on in the chats and stuff, but the answer tonight for me is easy. It's Dave Quick from Manchester. the guy is if you haven't heard of him, you're going to. He's gonna be a household name. He's an engine company guru and a vertical stretch guru. So yeah, he's he's like a like a fifth or sixth generation fireman too. He's And you know, you know those guys I mentioned riding around in the engine with? Dave's one of those guys. So articulate, smart, so experienced. but yeah, you gotta have him on. He's he's incredible.

Corley: No, no, and I need to. He is absolutely I've known him since I think I met him at at a Dagum. it was a while back. The hose nerd Yeah, absolutely. And the thing is, is Snap Tite's one of my sponsors, and he also is a consultant for Snap Tite. So it's kind of one of those things I don't want to be like, oh Oh, they're having they're having the the guy that's the that works for Snaptide on the scrap. So that's one of those things where it's like I I want to keep it pure as possible when you have sponsors, if that makes any sure, you know, for sure. It makes sense in my head Marshall Boyd: But no, well that's why that's why I'm in the corner of a giant ballroom, you know, instead of all the vendor tables and fl you know sponsor flags everywhere. It's like yeah, I don't want to be that guy, you know. Corley: Just collect money. Yeah. No, I love it, man. And no br day absolutely great, great, great. Now they need to get him booked. beautiful. Thank you. Housekeeping times. Go to patreon. com slash the vigilantes Marshall mentioned it earlier. The Discord is where it's at. The vigilantes are awesome. The talk on Through the Lock that Marshall posted today, that's just One of many things that's going on. The other stuff we're doing is like the vigilantes are going to pick the winner of the FDIC pay it forward, David Rhodes, the first one given out. And we're announcing that on October 7th. So go become a part. Patreon. com slash the Vigilantes. It's worth it because you also get to come to the after party, which is going to be fun because Every time there's there's actually a roast, usually when it's a vigilante, there's been on the scrap. And Marshall is an active vigilante. And so that means he's going to get roasted. So it's going to be fun. Next week it is Helden Pierre. He is coming on. First things first. He is coming on. And then two weeks from tonight, it is Brendan McDonough. And you do not want to miss that. Again, October 7th, Anthony Castros coming back on, and we will be announcing the winner of the PayPal Forward recipient. Let's get to the after party. Thank you once again, Marshall Boyd, for spending your evening with us.

Marshall Boyd: Appreciate you. Appreciate everybody. Corley: Audience, I say it every episode. I will say it again tonight. Thank you so much for tuning in, for asking questions, for supporting the scrap, for supporting the guests. Mainly, thank you for fighting complacency. I mean it means the world to me. And I hope the tones stay silent unless it is burning. This job is not safe, so stay smart out there.