What makes a great Firefighter?
The interviewer wants to see what qualities you think makes someone a great Firefighter. You most likely possess the same characteristics that you identify in your answer, so the interviewer can get a glimpse at the type of employee you will be.
Some of the traits fire departments look for in their Firefighters are honesty, integrity, strong work ethic, team player, excellent communication, compassion, and empathy. The interviewer wants to determine if you have the notable characteristics of a Firefighter and if you would be the best person to hire.
If you review job openings for Firefighters, you will see many companies use the same keywords in their job requirements. Before your interview, review the job announcement for this position to see what qualities the department is looking for in a candidate. Then, choose three or four of those traits and explain why those qualities make a great Firefighter. If one of the qualities is honesty, you can explain that honesty makes a great Firefighter because the public and crew trust them to do the right thing.
"There are many aspects to firefighting that make someone great in their field. Continuing education and training consistently improve a Firefighter's skills. I think it is important to strive to be better constantly. I also strongly believe that empathy and compassion make a great Firefighter. We see individuals on their worst days, and we must be capable of putting ourselves in their shoes, trying to experience how they are feeling."
A great Firefighter is not simply one who uses the firefighting skills and knowledge they possess. While that is important, Firefighters must have soft skills that make the community trust them. They must have integrity, morals, interpersonal skills, sympathy, and excellent communication with the public and their crew. You should mention these soft skills in your response.
You should also avoid answering with a few characteristics that make a great Firefighter without expanding on the reasons why. For example, you should not say that experience and compassion make a great Firefighter and leave it at that. Instead, explain that great Firefighters must have training and experience responding to different types of emergencies. Firefighters are working with people experiencing crises, and they must show respect and empathy during these situations.
"I believe great Firefighters are honest, have a strong work ethic, are dependable, and have excellent interpersonal skills. Firefighters must be honest because their crew and the public rely on them and put their trust in them. They must work hard in the worst conditions and never give up. Excellent interpersonal skills are essential because they need to actively listen, be patient, communicate well, and use their problem-solving skills. In addition to these soft skills, years of experience, training, and being mentored by senior Firefighters make a great Firefighter."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
A great firefighter needs to be reliable, trustworthy, physically fit, kind, understanding, and ambitious. They must also be able to be critical thinkers, have a hard work ethic, and have a good knowledge of firefighting sciences, strategies, and tactics.
Amanda's Feedback
You've listed several key qualities, skills, and characteristics that make a great firefighter. You can make this answer stronger by explaining that these skills or characteristics are valuable to firefighting because they contribute to building healthy thriving teams, help ensure your team stays safe, enable you to fight fires as effectively as possible, and help you to keep the public safe when the worst happens.
