I used to work for the London Fire Brigade in L&D.  I had a great time there and learnt an awful lot about managing speculation, decision making and leadership.

I was reminded of my time there by two incidents this week.  Firstly I bumped into one of my old colleagues.  I literally bumped into them as they walked into the building I work at in Vauxhall.  It must be at least 5 years since we saw each other and I found out they’re working on the floor above mine. We immediately got back into the same routine we did years ago – finishing each others sentences, reminiscing about people we don’t see and having pinball conversations that shifted topics from music to children, old courses we ran together and how we’d both changed.  A brilliant catch up.

The second time was the day after with the London helicopter crash.  I got into the office just after it had happened and saw the state of the crane afterwards.  I also saw a well organised and effective emergency service response. It’s good to see training work effectively.