I often compare the concept of one thought away to a large
fire starting from a single spark. The irony in this has been the intense
wildland fire season Oregon and the Pacific Northwest has experienced this summer
with thousands of acres burned, dozens of structures/homes destroyed and even a
few lives lost. Due to these historic conditions the Oregon National Guard was
activated calling up three 125 person teams to respond to these emergency
conditions. As a member of the Air Force National Guard I was a crew boss for a
20 person team assigned to the Grizzly Fire Complex in NE Oregon/SE Washington
for the past two weeks. This experience shapes the thought for September:
Choose the right tool for the task at hand.
Despite extreme fire behavior causing fires to literally
“run” through the woods and jump across roads, valleys and tree tops the
usefulness of the traditional 20 person hand crew remains a cornerstone in
wildland fire suppression. With advancements in technology including large air
tankers dropping retardant and bull dozers cutting large swaths of ground for
fire line why are these crews still relied on? The dynamic nature of fire and
the topography it burns through creates a need for an equally dynamic response
with diverse resources. A hand crew cutting, grubbing and scraping fire line
may just be the best option in many cases.
These crews are
composed of different tools including chain saws, pulaskis, mcleods, shovels,
combi tools, etc. and each have their own strengths and weaknesses. Certain
tools are placed up front to cut through the brush and large branches (chain
saws and pulaskis) while other tools are perfect for putting the finishing
touches on a fire line (mcleods and shovels). A well trained team knows this
and will often rotate through tools to make sure the right tool is being used
for the task at hand to ensure maximum effectiveness. Knowing this simple
concept allows well trained teams to cut miles of fire line a day in rough
terrain to suppress wildland fires.
Connecting this back to One Thought Away Investing I
encourage lenders and those thinking about lending to carefully think about
what type of projects you choose to invest in. Treat each loan as if it is a
tool cutting a fire line around the slow creep of poverty occurring across our world.
Do you think investing in a cell phone repair shop is the best use, or would it
be better spent on a farmer needing better equipment? My hope is as we each
grab our own “tool” to cut, grub and scrape a line to extinguish the
unnecessary poverty that smolders across our globe.
Positive thought sparks positive action,
Miles
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