So, this is the new blog format, I find it strange and am not sure I like it yet. I find it quite plain and don't like all the white background.
As a dispatcher you spend a lot of time thinking. Thinking about issues with equipment, issues that callers have had, and hoping things go well for them and their family. You think about things, it just comes with the job. Don't lose me here yet, I am not going off on a tangent of emotions associated with dispatching. It takes a toll on you over time, but you get used to, or do you ever really get used to it? I always go home and sleep, but that doesn't mean I don't think about how a call went or wondering how I could improve. I think that is what makes a great dispatcher different from a good dispatcher. I don't consider myself great. I feel I am still learning after only a few years. There comes a time when you cross a point where dispatching becomes just like any other job and you don't enjoy or have goals any longer. I don't have goals, exactly but I want to improve. I look over and replay how incidents go down and look for areas to improve. I try to provide more than is required with the job. I try to add a personal touch to things.
Dispatchers come in all shapes, forms, sizes, ages, and both male and female. Some have compassion, others have a job they come to work and don't want to do more than required. The stress associated with dispatching can overflow into your personal life and create conflicts over even the most minor thing. You may find yourself defensive about something tiny, or defensive about someone picking on your method of call handling.
I have been complimented and griped at by officers on how I handle situations. I may have mentioned it then again I might have dropped it, but an officer not to long ago called me up after I sent him on a call advising me he was not the only one on duty. He later came to apologize for his actions saying he was having an issue at home. I understand that, but if you are having a bad day and you take it out on the dispatcher, what about the dispatcher taking that home, to his family, and then his family taking it out with them. The cycle continues. I try to have a calm and rational head when I come to work. I try not to let small things get to me, and I try not to take things home with me, not that it would matter because when I get to bed I am wore out and feel like sleeping. So to my family's benefit they are in bed, and I don't talk about my day right after it ends.
A partner I worked with back in EMS, said everyone in EMS had their way of dealing with the stress of the crazy hours, and rough life, whether it be alcohol, parties, being permiscuous, or what ever it be. I guess that is with any job. I don't really have anything I do to calm down. I am just a good relaxer at times. I can handle stress better than most, and not break down. I might have a melt down where I get tied up on what I need to do, but a few seconds later I have things running.
Wow is it me or do my blogs really bounce all over the wall with ideas and no organization? Looking and thinking back about this one, I think I need to write down notes ahead of time and keep them as a guide.
I am going to try and get more active with them, I keep saying that but what else am I going to do to keep busy? Everyone keep it safe and say a prayer for the law enforcement, fire fighters and their dispatchers tonight. We can all use it for us, our forces and our families. Especially as agencies continue to attempt to lay off employees, and downsize. They fail to look at how it affects those in the field and those calling in incidents.
As a dispatcher you spend a lot of time thinking. Thinking about issues with equipment, issues that callers have had, and hoping things go well for them and their family. You think about things, it just comes with the job. Don't lose me here yet, I am not going off on a tangent of emotions associated with dispatching. It takes a toll on you over time, but you get used to, or do you ever really get used to it? I always go home and sleep, but that doesn't mean I don't think about how a call went or wondering how I could improve. I think that is what makes a great dispatcher different from a good dispatcher. I don't consider myself great. I feel I am still learning after only a few years. There comes a time when you cross a point where dispatching becomes just like any other job and you don't enjoy or have goals any longer. I don't have goals, exactly but I want to improve. I look over and replay how incidents go down and look for areas to improve. I try to provide more than is required with the job. I try to add a personal touch to things.
Dispatchers come in all shapes, forms, sizes, ages, and both male and female. Some have compassion, others have a job they come to work and don't want to do more than required. The stress associated with dispatching can overflow into your personal life and create conflicts over even the most minor thing. You may find yourself defensive about something tiny, or defensive about someone picking on your method of call handling.
I have been complimented and griped at by officers on how I handle situations. I may have mentioned it then again I might have dropped it, but an officer not to long ago called me up after I sent him on a call advising me he was not the only one on duty. He later came to apologize for his actions saying he was having an issue at home. I understand that, but if you are having a bad day and you take it out on the dispatcher, what about the dispatcher taking that home, to his family, and then his family taking it out with them. The cycle continues. I try to have a calm and rational head when I come to work. I try not to let small things get to me, and I try not to take things home with me, not that it would matter because when I get to bed I am wore out and feel like sleeping. So to my family's benefit they are in bed, and I don't talk about my day right after it ends.
A partner I worked with back in EMS, said everyone in EMS had their way of dealing with the stress of the crazy hours, and rough life, whether it be alcohol, parties, being permiscuous, or what ever it be. I guess that is with any job. I don't really have anything I do to calm down. I am just a good relaxer at times. I can handle stress better than most, and not break down. I might have a melt down where I get tied up on what I need to do, but a few seconds later I have things running.
Wow is it me or do my blogs really bounce all over the wall with ideas and no organization? Looking and thinking back about this one, I think I need to write down notes ahead of time and keep them as a guide.
I am going to try and get more active with them, I keep saying that but what else am I going to do to keep busy? Everyone keep it safe and say a prayer for the law enforcement, fire fighters and their dispatchers tonight. We can all use it for us, our forces and our families. Especially as agencies continue to attempt to lay off employees, and downsize. They fail to look at how it affects those in the field and those calling in incidents.