In June 2013, 19 elite firefighters from the Granite Mountain Hotshots lost their life battling the Yarnell Hill (Az) fire.  It is the greatest loss of life of firefighters since 9-11.  Led by an all-star cast, Only The Brave tells the story of these brave men and their surviving families.  This is an important movie and should be seen by everyone.

Civil servants and our military personnel are heroes.  God has uniquely placed them in our lives to serve and protect us.  Only The Brave reminds us of the respect they are due.

The end of the movie, particularly the gymnasium scene, is very emotional.  For those who may be concerned, there is some language but no sexual situations.  This is a great movie.

The following are 17 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Only The Brave:

  1. It Is A Mistake For Leaders To Not Trust Those Closest To The Information – Leaders should gather information at one level and THEN make decisions at another.  Early in the movie, team captain Eric Marsh, played wonderfully by Josh Brolin, was on the ground giving advice to leadership about how to combat a forest fire.  He was ignored costing hundreds of homes and millions in damage.
  2. Everyone Gets Better With A Coach – Duane Steinbrink, played by the soothing Jeff Bridges, serves as Marsh’s mentor, coach and guide throughout the movie.  He continually gave him great perspective and advice.
  3. You Cannot Microwave Success.  It Must Be Crockpotted – Steinbrink said, “Doing something that’s never been done before takes time.”
  4. Your Attitude Determines Your Altitude – When picking between two equally matched candidates, always pick the one with the best attitude.  Your attitude will determine how high you can go in an organization.  Steinbrink gave Marsh some good career advice, “Attitude costs you friends.”
  5. Steinbrink said, “Two things make a man move – fear and greed.”
  6. Leaders Must Always Prepare For The Unknown By Building In Margin – Steinbrink’s wife, Marvel, played by Annie McDowell, told Eric’s wife Amanda, played by Jennifer Conley, “Having your eyes wide open doesn’t mean you can see everything that’s coming.”
  7. Desperation Is A Gift – Desperation forces us to make difficult decisions.  Desperation causes us to sacrifice.  Desperation causes us to grow up.  After having a baby, getting arrested for larceny, and getting kicked out of his house because of drug use, Brenden McDonough, played by Miles Teller, grew up fast by taking a job as a fire fighter.
  8. You Can Use Mistakes In Your Past To Help People In The Present – As you discover later in the movie, Marsh was a recovering addict himself.  Therefore, he could relate to McDonough and gave him a job.
  9. Great Leaders Give Their Teams Hope – Marsh told his trainees, “If you can breath you can survive.”
  10. Great Teams Train With Real-Life Situations – The Granite Mountain Hotshots were an elite and nationally-recognized group of firefighters.  They developed these skills through intense, real-life training scenarios.
  11. Leaders Must Be Willing To Make Hard Decisions – When being evaluated for certification, Marsh put the entire team at risk by firmly standing his ground on a difficult decision.  He turned out to be right but it could have cost him and his team their careers.  If you are going to make an unpopular leadership decision, just make sure you are right.
  12. Everybody Loves A Winner – Earlier in the film, bouncers threw McDonough out of a bar for drug use.  After the Hotshots rescued the town of Prescott from a fire, people were buying McDonough drinks in the very same bar.
  13. Your Family Is Your Top Priority, Not Your Job – Amanda told Eric, “You are 90% Hotshot and 10% mine and that’s not enough.”
  14. Addiction Has Long-Term Effects – Eric and Amanda were both recovering addicts.  While clean, they were still dealing with marriage issues because of the difficulties in their past.
  15. Smart Leaders Determine Their Proper Priorities – Steinbrink said, “What can I live with?  What can I die without?”
  16. Trouble Can Arrive In An Instant – While they thought they had planned well, a shift in the weather conditions cause Yarnell Hill fire to reach historic conditions in an instant.  This instant shift ultimately cost the firefighters their lives.
  17. Heroes Are Still Desperately Needed – The world needs people who will run into fire while the rest of us are running away from it.  This movie does an incredible job of honoring these brave men and their families.  We should all do the same.

Once again, Only The Brave is a fitting tribute to the 19 firefighters who lost their life.  Go see this movie!

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