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Your Leadership Legacy: Becoming the Leader You Were Meant to Be 

Retired Lieutenant Colonel Oakland McCulloch is a speaker and the author of the 2021 release, Your Leadership Legacy: Becoming the Leader You Were Meant to Be. Based on 40+ years of leadership experience (23 years as a combat arms officer in the United States Army), Oak highlights principles that will benefit today’s leaders and inspire the leaders of tomorrow.

You won't want to miss the 2023 Leadership Development Symposium! We've got many amazing speakers lined up to offer insightful and inspirational discussions. Check out the schedule and complete list of speakers along with their leadership session titles.

2023 Schedule

2023 Speakers

If you are a Texas First Responder, learn about and enroll for a Personal Identification Verification Interoperable (PIV-I) card. TDEM staff will be at the Symposium to answer any questions and assist with enrollment. Two (2) original documents (no photocopies) for Identification are needed:

• At least one must be a valid state or federal government-issued photo identification such as: State issued Driver’s License or ID card with name, photo, birthdate, gender, height, eye color, & address
  or a U.S. Passport
• The second document can be a voter registration card, U.S. Social Security card, or certified Birth Certificate.

Symposium Information

January 9-11, 2023
Embassy Suites Hotel & Convention Center 
Frisco, Texas

No Admission Fee for Texas Emergency Response Personnel.
$150 for out-of-state attendees.

Questions about registration or hotels?
Contact Emily Peterson (979-500-6814).

Reserve your Room

Rooms at the special symposium rate at the Embassy Suites Hotel & Convention Center are currently SOLD OUT. Check back regularly to see if rooms become available.

Rooms at the special symposium rate at the Hilton Garden Inn across the street are also SOLD OUT. Check back regularly to see if rooms become available.

Creating a Personal or Career Development Plan for Success!

For some, taking charge of their own or assisting others with personal and/or career development is a natural process. For others, it can be very challenging, stressful and even confusing at times. I get it. I've been in that role of both a firefighter and engineer doing my part to train and mentor newer firefighters and engineers (all of us regardless of rank, have a duty and responsibility to "pass it on," train our replacement, build our bench strength, etc.). I’ve also been in that role of both captain and chief officer, where it was in my job description to ensure that I was responsible for my own personal and career development. 

Since succession planning and career development has long been a passion of mine, I’ve put together a five-step method that anyone can personally use or to assist others with personal and/or career development. 

1. Before we commit to or decide on a course of action, we need to have a vision that of not just today, but of the future. Without a vision, any plan may be a waste of time, money or energy.

2. Once you’ve created that vision, it’s time to do a self-assessment of where you have been and where you are today. This self-assessment, if done honestly, will help you paint the picture and give you a direction to move towards.

3. Once you’ve done the self-assessment, it’s time to create your road map. The road map will consist of goals and objectives, and should truly be all encompassing, having taken into account as many options as may be available.

4. Now comes the hard part: doing what you want to do (walking the walk, not just talking the talk). Many things are easier said than done, and it’s easy to come up with excuses for not implementing your road map. Don’t let that happen to you.

5. As you go through your personal and/or career development journey, one of the most important phases is the need ensure you are continuously evaluating your progress, your setbacks, your experiences, etc., while always focusing on continuous evaluation & quality improvement. 

Whether you are a formal leader in a promoted, supervisory position or rank, or an informal leader at the boots on the ground level, you have a duty and responsibility to be the best you can be in your current position as well as do your part in training and mentoring others. The old phrase, "that’s not my job," should not be in our vocabulary if we truly believe in service above self and understand the commitment we agreed to when we raised our hand to accept that oath of office.

Steve Prziborowski, EFO, MS, CFO, CTO, LP
Deputy Chief (Ret.)
Santa Clara County Fire Department (Los Gatos, CA)

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