I became a Volunteer Firefighter 3 years ago. After 240 hours of Fire school at the age of 52, I’m engaged in one of the most satisfying endeavors of my life. The best part is driving the Fire truck. Every time I’m behind the wheel I feel like a kid again. It’s the best.

After 15 years of firefighting, I can no longer suit up and "rush inside" like I used to. But, what i have found is that often times what people need the most is someone to hug them and tell them it's going to be ok. These conversations have been the most rewarding thing for me as a volunteer.

That humility tho. He just ran off the stage like. Nope. Not accepting no applause. Just doing my part. XD

"Not everyday offers us a chance to save a person's life, but everyday gives a opportunity to effect one." greetings from Sweden

I am a career firefighter and fire officer for a major metropolitan department. And this 4min speech sums up what I tell my guys what career has taught me.

One year ago today I watched this video. I got me thinking, even though I'm only 15 (14 at the time) I can make a change. I applied at my local volunteer fire department 2 weeks later. I have never regretted doing so. From me and my family (birth and brotherhood) thank you Mark Bezos for making life-long friendships and a future career clear and in reach for me. Keep up the work brother!

I'm a career firefighter, about to leave my dream job after 15 years. You better believe I'm going to be a volley and save the shoes.

I'm only about 6 months away from being a volunteer firefighter for 20 years. I was lucky to be able to join at the age of 16. Now come my 36th birthday I will have spent some of the greatest years of my life doing something I love to do. My family supports me in my endeavors. My daughter wants to become a firefighter when she is old enough. Greatest feeling I the world I say. I'm excited to pass on my knowledge to her. This captain is absolutely right. Some times doing something so small to us means so much more to someone else. I remember treking through a field in the dead of winter in Alberta looking for a pup that ran away from the EMS crews cause it was afraid after its owner was involved in a MVC. I followed the tracks in the field for the better part of an hour trying to make sure this little guy would survive. It was minus 42 Celsius. And wind so even colder. We did find the pup. And 3 months later I got to re meet this pup. It makes me happy that the owner was able to have him back. And the smile Igot from his son just melted my heart. I keep the thank you card out in the open just to see when ever I need. Small moments mean alot to some one who is at the worst day

I can completely relate. The worst is when you arrive on scene and you're assigned the job of filling out paperwork lol

Absolutely. It was after joining a department I realized the value of a chaplain and how they have the hardest job in the fire service, and a very important one.

Be the one who runs into the flames , Not the other way around. Join your local fire department and help your community.

Well-spoken. I'd love to see more corporate workers sign up as volunteer first responders. One of Australia's former Prime Ministers, Tony Abbott, was a volunteer firefighter in Sydney. Being willing to serve in a role like this says volumes about the character of a leader.

Short. Sweet. Moving.

You forgot number 7 which is: Go on KZfaq, watch house fire videos, and criticize the fire department on their mistakes, calling them "yard breathers" and brag about how much better your dept is.

This video delivers a powerful message, "don't wait to be a hero."

If you read this and are able body, Become a volunteer firefight, we need more, something like 60-70% of our nation is served by volunteers, and to many are suffering from lack of members,

Jeff's way cooler, non-evil brother.

I am a 16 year old volunteer, thank you for all you do and thank you to everyone who puts in all on the line.

Even just sharing kind words is a way to help people every day. Hold the door open for someone, smile, say hello, good morning/afternoon/etc., listen to people. Those are just a few things you can do every day and brighten other's days as well as your own. It actually feels good to help people and be nice.

This guy said more in 4 minutes then others (in TEDtalks - also) do in 20. The other guy may have saved the dog, but he's not here.... The guy who got the shoes is. Brilliant!

This was really inspiring me, and worthy of watching, because he tells us real experience he had and never bluff anything. It was simple but powerful

This video is very interesting because it shows that being a firefighter is not always performing extaordinary missions. and helping others on a small scale is also being a hero

I was a volunteer fireman for St.helens Oregon for seventeen years and I sure miss those days and how things have changed since I was a volunteer.

I use to be a volunteer fireman and I enjoy listening to this. I use to be volunteer fireman for St.helens Oregon for seventeen years and I miss it

Great Video! God Bless all Volunteer Firefighters. :)

Short, sweet, to the point and FABULOUS!

Am I the only one that came to see if he was related to Jeff Bezos? No? Okay..

Who else can hear Jeff Bezos' laughing in the audience?

I served as a volunteer fire fighter for 33 years and a fire commissioner for 5 years. I know the pride that goes with being a part of the effort to help people in their time of need. Unless you have done it, you can't understand how it feels to know your effort made a difference in someone's life!

Motivational Monday Week 43 Mark Bezos: A life lesson from a volunteer firefighter “Not every day is going to offer us a chance to save somebody’s life, but every day offers us a opportunity to affect one.” I had another rough week. Allergies and plugged ears Work headaches and more people quitting Stress at home Not sleeping very well Several elderly customers having major health concerns Celebrating my brother’s 5th birthday without him Fatigue, pain and irritability I found myself quick to become irritated, complaining more than normal, emotional and taking longer to lift myself up from being negative to positive. I don’t like being in that cycle. I suffer from depression, but I can normally pull myself out of the cycle before I go too low. It’s a constant battle. I took some time for me. Focused on being off of Facebook for several days, read A LOT and watched a few happy movies. I made my to-do lists and marked them off. Maybe I was too far gone. Whatever the reason, the normal things that usually work for me, didn’t snap me out of it completely. What did help lift me up little by little, were people around me and their kindnesses. One day I had five customers thank me throughout my day at work for going out of my way to help others and make their day better. They told me they appreciated me and that I was an inspiration. When I took food out to another customer on a different day, she introduced me to her friend and shared with her the story of when I came over to her house to visit her husband when he was too sick to come into Grounds. I had an eight-year old excitedly share the book she was reading from the library because she knew I liked reading and may want to read it too. One of my older gentlemen customers who never gives anyone the time of day or any kind of pleasantries actually said good morning to me by name. An older woman thanked me for my Motivational Mondays because it makes her look forward to getting out of bed and keeps her going during the week. I was asked to participate in a surprise project for a wife by her husband. Some kids came in with their grandma, were excited to see me and gave me wonderful hugs. My Uber driver who had only picked me up twice before told me that we have to live every day to God’s glory because we aren’t promised the next. It was overwhelming at times, but all those moments and more, kept it from becoming a complete pity party. I am grateful to those who took the opportunity to say something to me. They didn’t know I was having a bad week. They didn’t know I was struggling on the inside or how their words and actions were a ray of sunshine on a very dark day. Isn’t that the way of life? We never know what people are going through unless they tell us. The cashier at the grocery store. The person waiting to cross the street beside you. One of your coworkers. The bank teller. The person holding the sign asking for food or your spare change. The girl at the bakery. If you look at them and acknowledge them in some way, whether it’s just to say thank you or you hope they have a nice day; you have just taken an opportunity to affect their life. You may not think it’s that big of a deal. To the person you just said those words to or smiled at or just made eye contact with, it is. Trust me on that. It can make all the difference in their world. Never forget you hold that amazing power within yourself to affect people’s lives positively. Rosie Hendrix

Probably one of the best TED talks ever

you inspired me in high school to do this job and this morning i fought my first real fire thank you for teaching me that being humble and not prideful is the best key to life

I have 2 call fire/rescue workers in my immediate family. It is good to see someone recognize the less glamorous work involved. They go in week after week to make sure the trucks are ready and the team is trained to respond to an emergency at a moments notice. Thank you.

I have been a volunteer firefighter for 19 years. Where we live the professional firefighters are just three. The bulk of the firefighters in our county are volunteers. The men and women of Polk County Arkansas take care of each other out of the goodness of their own heart. No one gets paid to do it. In fact it takes your own money to put gas in your vehicle to get to the fire. My family are firefighters. My myself, my husband, and my son in law are volunteer firefighters. My son is a USFS wildland firefighter. Fire. It is just what we do.

that was one of the shortest but easily one of the best speeches i've heard on TED so far

Been a volunteer for years. Please serve your communities and build yourself. Many of these departments are struggling to find people.

There is always a role for you to find as volunteer depending on your ability not all are upfront many are in support behind the scenes they are all needed

Nice I went to the academy at age 65 because I was missing the camaraderie I had with my team mates in the military, that and after having a career a need to continue to serve the community We have a great gym at the station so I stay in pretty good shape for a 76 year old interior guy, but I’m stepping back from that just finished an EMT course and hope to pass the exam just to help out on QRS all that said, yes it’s a great brotherhood I only wish more younger would get into it BTW I send a short TED Talk video from Mark Bezos it’s a great inspirational 4 min vid based upon his volunteers fire service career

He's a really good public speaker

5.5 years of being a firefighter recently promoted to Captain. I understood every level and word he explained.

A very outstanding and interesting ted talk. I fully agree with the speaker. Any help is important, be it helping in the garden, helping parents around the house, smiling, opening the door to someone

A short but great talk!! I love the delivery... the message, even more so. :-)

I watched this video for my teacher’s advice,and was impressed by his speech! He have very good and attractive delivery!In addition,the content is entertaining. In future,I want to follow him and make many exciting speeches(*´꒳`*) From Japanese student

3:23 I just cried...beautiful words...

Just a question here. Last night in my town there was a snowmobile on fire in a yard. The sled was about 15 feet from the house. The fire dept is about 1500 feet down the road from the fire. Across the street from the fire lived a volunteer ff for the town. He ran from his house to the yard and started to shovel snow on the fully involved sled. I asked if it would be better if he went and got a firetruck because the sled was so close to the house. He said no because it has a full tank of fuel. As he was throwing snow on the sled the flames grew and the fire was being pushed towards the gas tank on the sled. Now about 3 more volunteers came with their personal vehicles and started doing the same. The fire whistle was blowing off now for a good 6 or 7 minutes with now about half dozen ff's there. No firetucks yet just their own cars all shoveling snow on this fully involved sled. Keep in mind it was very very hot and the sled could have exploded at any time. Now about 9 minutes have past and a fire truck finally rolls up from down the street with two guys in it. I feel that if these said ff's that came to the fire in their own cars went to the firehouse first and got the right equipment I think it would have been less likely to catch the house on fire and even worse killed about a dozen people who all had to be 5 feet from the sled because they wanted the birds eye view. My question is, aren't volunteers supposed to respond to the station upon receiving the initial call? I can see them pulling up to the scene in their own cars after the trucks have gotten to the scene. I was also wondering if the trucks can roll out with only one or two guys? Its a small dept but fire is fire. I was thinking of joining this dept but after last night and seen how a house was almost lost and possibly lives because of some major major mistakes I feel I want to join in the next town. I am all for volunteers but the guys that got there last night and acted the way they did left a very bad taste in my mouth.

A great Ted Talk about acts of kindness and their importance in our everyday roles.

This talk was outstanding. One of the best talkers I have seen. Well done.

I want to be a volunteer firefighter but can’t find a department near me that’s taking volunteers. I live near UT Dallas for reference...

Trying to help people can be incredibly draining and discouraging too. You have to just do your best and take care of yourself so you can do your best again.

A good example how successful person don’t hesitate to make small acts of kindness.

WORDS OF WISDOM, good storyteller, funny, exiting and with a great message. greetings from fire dep. LAHOLM SWEDEN.

19 and just became a volunteer firefighter

Oh man I still can't get the image of Lex Luthor as a fire fighter out of my head!!

This is the only TED talk in existence that I like

Good advice.

After 30 yrs as member of a fire department support unit.I'm retiring.And moving to Oregon from California.

The 2nd best TED talk I have yet seen.

Wonderful how humour inspires

@rock3tcat out of curiosity, whats the first?

Volunteers where I started and I still respect it

Anyone know what fire company hes on?

As a volunteer firefighter and aspiring career FF, dont fall for the notion, that only career FFs are the "real" firefighters. Everyone has its place on scene. The guys inside are nothing without water on the line. Career departments can only put up so much manpower and many scenes need just so many more. Volunteers cover up rural areas, where no career FD is present. In cities, volunteers are the second wave, the people who help the first wave to stay in battle. And volunteers know no shifts, they are avaiable 24/7, no matter what.

one of the best TED talks ever! don't wait to make a difference - get in there and save the shoes.

I'm listening this because of ENGLISH HOMEWORKKKKK!

very inspiring story and convincing performance! just learn a great lesson from you, thank you!

I am civil defence.volunteer firefighter from 2017 at 50.even today as told I become an 18year old whenever I respond 2 a firecall the body jumps n pumps into action.

이거 교훈이 정말좋은것같아요

This person deserves respect, as well as everyone of us who does good deeds!

I helped a family bury their dog. They will remember it. Shows humanity and is good for PR at the department. His name was "hercules" and a small terrier type dog.

You are really cool. This video inspired me! I think, people like you can change this world!

now imagine if an entire society functioned like this, if there were no jobs, only volunteers serving each other and being proud of doing so.

God created man equal. And some become Firefighters. -UNKNOWN

Thank you guys , happy Thanksgiving

1:11 Part 1 2:56 Part 2

A short clip with a brief lesson...

I hate to say this but I have not been able to escape this perception. Most people think professional fire fighters are better than volunteers. They are not. They are not even more experienced. Don't ask them though. I have several really good friends that are professional. They are good. I admire them. But I have many friends who are volunteers that can put out a fire as well as anyone in the world. Fire fighting is fire fighting and being part time is not a detriment.

I really liked it. Extremely instructive video

It really is the small things. Really enjoyed his humor :)

Ставлю лайк этому волонтеру. Он крутой

Fire fighters with a good sense of humor is a dam good trait

Cultura Inglesa - ATIN 1❤️

Only a volunteer firefighter could speak so eloquently. Full time guys mostly just grunt.

I been a volunteer Firefighter for almost eight mouths and I am about to going into firefighter 1 but even though I am not trained yet I feel like I have already made a differents in my coummite

AWESOME SPEAKER

I have to do a ted talk to pass my English course, what theme i should take?

All it takes to be proud of yourself is to help someone out when they really need it

A decent man, I'm proud of him

I like the the way which Mark Bezos chose for give us clear example how we can make our world better.

I like this story, especially his conclusion

This was great I to am a volly and loved this

@NIGHTMAREuki I think i seen the guy lol no seriously its always a blast making others unexpected smile. And what better way to have a laugh with your friends than to go making others laugh too. I bet your buddy feels good about it too. I bet someone has seen him and laughed about it. And a few times again that day too. It would make me smile on the way home from a stressful day at work. Even if someone thinks i'm nuts, who cares, its all good.

Awesome talk.

@trinitymike I think the point is moot, because the dude lives in Bangalore. I think if you commented in Kannad, or Telugu, you might find yourself slightly misusing a word or two also, and from your overall demeanor, I bet you would prefer not to be rudely corrected for no real reason. As for your assumptions about others, you might wish to examine them, they kind of make you out to be a hostile sort of person. Good day.

Let's just hope this doesn't happen to me again... Me after watching: "Wow, that was really inspirational. Now I'll read the comments and see what other people thought." Me after reading comments: ._.

He has the same hair style as Jeff.

Good message. I'm betting the people in Japan would appreciate others servering as an example right now.

Mr. Bezos looks quite genuinely at ease in his firefighting gear and the obviously genuine humility and humor he conveys is consistent with all the truly great firefighters & paramedics I have had the privilege to have known. It is a composite of these specific traits that are in the commonly shared personas of these men & women. Few jobs love you back the in the manner this one does. As previously stated Mark looks right at home in his gear and it suits his manner. A compliment to the man and his suit of honor. Lucky men these Bezos guys. Both rich! Mike Kirwan - Kenmore, WA

Great video

great video!

hahaha I was the slippers guy once, I was happy to get the old lady something to wear as it's such a small thing but in that moment to get her something as simple as slippers meant a lot.