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FEBRUARY 2026
AMERICAN-ALARMS.COM
(515) 266-9888
When many people think of a leader, they picture the loudest person in the room. The one at the front, calling the shots and making sure everyone knows who is in charge. For a long time, I thought that was the job description, too. Over the years, though, I have learned that real leadership looks a lot different than that. National Leadership Day falls in February, but this is something I think about all year. In my world, leadership is not about volume. It’s about being intentional. It means paying attention to what your team needs, what your customers need, and what the work demands from you when you walk into a building and a life safety system is not functioning as it should. At American Alarms, we keep our purpose simple and visible. We want to “develop servant leaders who improve the lives of others.” That line has been part of the company since my dad started it. I think the difference now is that we keep it in front of us more often. It’s not just a phrase in a handbook. It is something we talk about when making decisions. That purpose also influences how I view my own role. I am not trying to build a place where everything depends on me standing in front of the room. We are trying to build people. If we say we want servant leaders, that has to show up in our expectations, our training, and the way we treat each other. And it has to show up in how we serve customers who trust us with their buildings, their businesses, and the people inside. For me, that starts with how I show up every day. My style is not the loud, pushy version of leadership. I am pretty laid back by nature. I try to encourage people, help them improve, and give them the space to take ownership of their work. When something needs to be corrected, I believe in doing that in private. When someone does something well, I want to recognize it in front of the team. Servant Leadership in Life Safety HELPING GOOD PEOPLE DO GREAT WORK
“If our team feels supported and our customers feel taken care of, then I know we are headed in the right direction.”
Corrections in private and praise in public sound simple, but it changes how people feel about coming to work.
I have spent a long time thinking about what good leadership looks like. Over the past 30 years, I have read over 300 leadership books. I have also learned a great deal by being around other business owners and exchanging ideas with them. I like hearing what works in other companies and then asking, “How would that look in a life safety business?” In our world, leadership matters because we are always in front of customers. You have to be in the zone all the time. A technician can be great with panels and wiring, but if they can’t explain what they did or why it matters, the customer is left guessing. Part of our job is to coach those skills, pair people up in smart ways, and remind everyone that even the notes on the invoice are part of the experience.
Ultimately, I view leadership as a series of small, cumulative choices. You show up, listen, tell the truth, and do your best to back up the people around you. If our team feels supported and our customers feel taken care of, then I know we are headed in the right direction.
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LOVE YOURSELF LIKE YOU MEAN IT Your Valentine’s Day Self-Care Guide
For many Americans, Valentine’s Day is synonymous with romance. We get reservations weeks or months in advance, shower our partners in love and affection, and enjoy an extravagant date night. It’s a day filled with high expectations, and with that comes stress and pressure. If you feel like you’re always going above and beyond to impress on Valentine’s Day without getting the same effort in return, it may be time to show yourself some extra love. Everyone deserves a happy and fulfilling life, but it can be hard to achieve when work, relationships, and other pressures weigh us down. Most of us rarely take time for ourselves, so as the pressure builds, we start to experience episodes of burnout, depression, and anxiety. This Valentine’s Day or sometime close to it, take time for yourself and practice self-care. It will help you feel rejuvenated while removing any negative thoughts that have been lingering around. How you approach self-care is entirely up to you, but it almost always involves engaging in relaxing and enjoyable activities. Think about the things you love to do the most. When was the last time you played a round of golf, went on a walk through nature,
or enjoyed your favorite movie uninterrupted? Whatever your
favorite activity may be, find a way to incorporate it into your self-care day.
In addition to your favorite activities, take some time to pamper yourself. Get a massage, buy something for yourself that you really want, or take a long, relaxing bath. These actions will help you feel good inside and out! To ensure your self-care day is a success, consider turning off your phone and other devices for the duration of the day. Scrolling through social media will not help you feel any better; in fact, it will likely make you feel worse. This is a time to focus on yourself and ensure you get the attention and love you deserve. If you waste the whole day scrolling through TikTok or X, you’ll focus on everything but yourself.
Prepared Before Something Happens ARE YOUR SYSTEMS TRULY READY?
them, get your certificate, and move on. Even with required inspections and testing, there is a big difference between technically passing and being truly ready for an emergency. When we visit a building, it’s not uncommon to see “we’ll deal with that later” situations. Sometimes, it’s alarm devices that are well past the manufacturer’s life expectancy but still stuck to the ceiling. Outdated components like these can cause major issues. Older devices become more sensitive to dust and grime, resulting in more nuisance alarms. When that happens, people start to tune them out, and first responders may be called to the same location repeatedly for non-events. It causes a lot of disruption from something that could be fixed with scheduled replacements. And old, dirty, or blocked devices may leave certain areas of a building unprotected during a fire.
Being prepared requires attention to these issues. You don’t have to have a perfect building, but you should focus on the important details. That means replacing older detectors and other devices before they become a headache. It means updating notification appliances so people can hear (or see) them clearly and planning ahead for panel and communicator upgrades, rather than waiting for a crisis. It also means paying attention to rooms and corners of your building where wet sprinkler piping could freeze. The point of all this isn’t just to satisfy the fire marshal. Caring for your system proactively reduces nuisance alarms, minimizes the risk of expensive water damage, and ensures you are truly prepared for an emergency. If you’re not sure how prepared your system really is, we can take a look and help you understand the risks.
When we moved into our current office, I learned the building used to belong to the Boy Scouts. That seems pretty fitting for what we do. Scouts are known for their motto, “Be Prepared.” In life, safety is important. Our job is to help people get ready before something gets very dangerous. The problem is that many people still think of fire detection and security systems as something you can simply set and forget. Most of the time, fire and security systems run quietly in the background. You install
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Dream Equality Festival Groundhog Hearts King
Lincoln Muffin Pancake Rabbit Roses
When an alarm goes off in your building, you hear the noise and see the flashing lights. On my side of the industry, I see something different. I see a signal move through a system that must work in the correct order every time. It usually starts with a device doing precisely what it was designed to do. A smoke detector, pull station, waterflow switch, or tamper switch activates. That triggers the panel, which then decides what kind of event it is looking at. From there, the panel sends the signal where it needs to go using whatever communication path is available. That might be phone lines, internet, or even a radio communicator, but cellular networks are most commonly used today. For a fire alarm, the signal is transmitted to the monitoring center and then to the fire department. For security signals, it may be reported to the police or follow a different set of instructions, depending on how the system is configured. By code, that entire process has to get a signal from the panel to the dispatch center within 200 seconds or less. With our monitoring center, though, we usually see it happen in under 30 seconds. At the monitoring center, the operator’s job is to read the event correctly and get the right people moving. They call the local emergency dispatch for fire, police, or EMS, then work through the contact list for the account until they reach someone. What most people never see is how much reliability depends on the information that was programmed long before any problems arose. When we set up a system for monitoring, we enter details into the panel and the zone list at the monitoring center so we can tell first responders which floor, wing, or unit is in trouble. On a large property, this can save a lot of time. If the signal is vague or mislabeled, it can slow everything down at the exact moment you need clarity the most. You may only notice the sounder and the strobes, but a whole chain of decisions and signals exists behind them. Our job is to make sure that chain holds when it matters. From Detector to Dispatch THE HIDDEN CHAIN BEHIND AN ALARM SIGNAL
Honey Mustard Pork Chops
INGREDIENTS
• 4 thick, boneless pork chops • 3 1/2 tsp garlic and herb seasoning, divided • 1 tsp sea salt • 1 tbsp avocado oil
• 1/4 cup stone-ground mustard • 1/4 cup fresh honey • Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. 2. Pat pork chops dry before seasoning them with salt and 1 1/2 tsp of garlic and herb seasoning. 3. In a large, oven-safe skillet, heat avocado oil over medium heat. 4. Sear pork chops in hot oil for 1–3 minutes on each side. 5. In a medium mixing bowl, combine mustard, honey, and remaining garlic and herb seasoning while the pork cooks. 6. Remove pork chops from skillet. Add honey mustard mixture to the skillet and mix. 7. Place pork chops back in skillet and cover with sauce. 8. Place pan in oven and bake for 15–20 minutes, until pork reaches 145 F. 9. Set oven to broil for the final minute to allow the tops to caramelize and enjoy!
Inspired by LoveFromTheOven.com
American-Alarms.com · 3
Complete Fire Alarm and Security Service In Iowa And The Midwest, By A Local Veteran-Owned Company American-Alarms.com (515) 266-9888
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
1659 E Euclid Ave, Ste. B Des Moines, Iowa 50313
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
1. Supporting Teams the Right Way
2. Reclaiming Valentine’s Day for Yourself 2. Staying Ahead of System Failures 3. Inside the Alarm System Response 3. Honey Mustard Pork Chops
4. Less Clutter, More Clarity: The Rewards of Spruced-Up Storage
From Chaos to Calm The Surprising Power of a Hall Closet Makeover
Hallway closets can be the odd cousin in home decor, evolving into a catch-all for everything from coats and shoes to linens, craft supplies, pantry items, or necessities for your bath or office. The clutter these storage areas often attract can cause major stress for homeowners who are embarrassed every time they open the door. With a bit of forethought, these black holes for stuff can become orderly receptacles for life’s essentials. Here are three strategies for accomplishing a hall closet makeover. A Multipurpose Solution Creating a simple organizing system can turn a single closet into a multipurpose space. To counter a shortage of bathroom storage space, consider dividing a hall closet into separate, functional storage areas for bedding, towels, bath supplies, and cosmetics. This will work best if you create zones and label the shelves in a pleasing color and script.
The key to making a storage plan work is to train all users to return everything to its place after they are done. Consider making your closet space more appealing by giving the inside a coat of high-gloss paint in bright white or another color for a clean, minimalist look that sparkles. Expand Capacity Placing large wicker or cloth baskets or plastic bins side by side on closet shelves will increase the closet’s capacity. Alternating lacquered pastel pink or green baskets with white ones can lend a fresh, clean look, and labeling the baskets across the front can save you time hunting and searching. Sort items by category and keep the most often-used items on lower shelves. For smaller items, such as mittens and scarves, consider installing back-of-the- door hooks or over-the-door organizers to maximize every cubic inch of open space. Hang hard-to-store items, such as brooms
and irons, on the walls. To convert a hall closet near the kitchen into a pantry, consider installing sturdy lazy Susans on lower shelves for easy access to oils and other ingredients. A Space for Fun Some hallway spaces offer special challenges, such as narrow, deep closets beneath stairs. If you don’t need the space for coats, consider converting it into a reading nook or quiet cave for kids. Invite the children to help choose colorful pillows, chairs, or bean bags, or include stuffed animals, textile hangings, and a soft area rug for added comfort. With a little time spent decluttering and organizing, you can ensure every storage space in your home works for you, rather than against you.
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