Do You Have the Soul of a Firefighter?

By: Ian Fortey
Estimated Completion Time
4 min
Do You Have the Soul of a Firefighter?
Image: Colin Anderson Productions pty ltd / DigitalVision / Getty Images

About This Quiz

There are roughly 1.2 million firefighters in America serving in over 27,000 departments across the country. Every day, those men and women wake up knowing that they could be in a life or death situation before the next sunrise. Every day they still get out of bed and head to work, because they know if they don't then someone very well could die. If they don't do what they do, people get hurt and homes are destroyed. They go to work every day because it makes the world a safer place to be. It's a heroic sort of thing to do. And it's definitely not the right job for everyone.

The soul of a firefighter is the soul of someone who puts others first as a way of life. Someone who doesn't let fear stop them from doing what needs to be done. Someone who will put their own body through the wringer to make sure the world is a little bit safer than it was the day before. That's admirable and pretty amazing when you think about it. If you're not sure whether or not your soul is up to the task then all you need to do is answer a few questions and see!


Question 1
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Have you ever had the misfortune of being caught in a fire before?
I had a close call once.
Yes, it was a bad one.
Never
I have.

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Question 2
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If you see a fight break out between strangers, would you intervene?
I'd call for help
Definitely
No, I don't like confrontation.
If it got out of hand

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Question 3
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How often do you work out anyway?
On the weekend
Daily
Wait, what?
A couple of times a week

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Question 4
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Have you ever been badly burned?
Not badly, no
Pretty bad once, but I'm OK now
I have not.
A small one

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Question 5
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Part of being a firefighter is saving lives. Have you ever saved someone's life before?
I've helped people, but I don't know about saving lives.
A few times
Never
I have.

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Question 6
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Has anyone ever called you a hero before?
Not that I know of.
I don't think of myself that way.
No
I wouldn't know.

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Question 7
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A firefighter needs to overcome fear. Have you ever been crippled by fear before?
Maybe once
Never
It happens sometimes.
I don't know about crippled, but I definitely feel fear sometimes.

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Question 8
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How are you at working with others?
I do alright.
I thrive on a team.
Not the best
I think I'm pretty good.

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Question 9
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How often do you do volunteer work in and around your community?
A couple of times a year
All the time
I don't really volunteer.
Maybe once or twice a moth

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Question 10
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Have you ever put yourself in harm's way to protect someone else?
Once or twice
More than once
Never
It's not a regular thing, but if I can help someone I will.

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Question 11
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Are you afraid of heights?
I get a little edgy up high.
I love heights!
You bet I am.
Nah, I'm good.

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Question 12
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Do you ever wake up in the morning and just think "not today" then call in sick for work?
I haven't done that in a long time.
I'll go to work even if I really am sick.
Yeah, sometimes.
No, I wouldn't do that.

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Question 13
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Which instinct is strong in you, fight or flight?
Depends on the situation
Fight and fight again
Flight
I go with fight but I still feel flight sometimes.

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Question 14
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Do you feel like some people deserve to have bad things happen to them?
Bad people do
No one deserves bad things.
A lot of people do
That's not my decision to make.

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Question 15
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If you had to choose between you feeling physical pain or a complete stranger feeling that same pain, would you take it for them?
How much pain are we talking about?
Without hesitation
Why would I do that?
Probably, yeah

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Question 16
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Do you have a large group of friends?
I have a few good friends.
Yes, I do.
I just have a couple.
I have a good circle of friends.

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Question 17
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The life of a firefighter isn't all adrenaline. Are you willing to climb a tree to save a cat?
Sure, if it's part of the job
Heck yeah!
They don't really do that, do they?
That sounds like it'd be fun.

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Question 18
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Do you need the stability of a 9-5 job?
Well, it's better than night jobs.
I'd hate that.
I'd prefer that.
I like things a little more unpredictable.

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Question 19
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Are you able to drop everything at a moment's notice to do your job if you need to?
Well, not everything.
That's how it works, right?
Work takes place at work and that's it.
I can probably do that.

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Question 20
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Can you be honest with people you care about even when it hurts?
I'd rather spare someone's feelings.
Honesty is the best policy.
Not always
I like to think so.

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Question 21
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Are you an adrenaline junkie in your downtime?
I can be.
You better believe it.
No, I'd rather relax when I have free time.
I do like a thrill.

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Question 22
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How do you handle it when you realize you've made a pretty bad mistake?
Put it behind me
Do everything I can to make up for it
Pretend it never happened
Try to learn from it and move on

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Question 23
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If firefighting was out of the question, which of these jobs would be most appealing to you?
Truck driver
Police officer
Pharmacist
Astronaut

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Question 24
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Firefighters are real-life heroes, but who's your favorite superhero?
Iron Man
Superman
Batman
Captain America

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Question 25
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Is everything in the world right and wrong or is there a gray area?
Mostly right and wrong but definitely some wiggle room
Right will always be right.
It's all gray area.
There's right, wrong, and a big gray area.

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Question 26
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What are your thoughts on having some friendly competition with coworkers?
As long as it stays friendly.
That's half the fun of the job.
I don't see the point.
It's a good motivator.

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Question 27
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How are you when it comes to making split-second decisions?
As long as I have all the info I need
I can make decisions on a dime.
Pretty weak, actually.
I can make a decision on the fly most of the time.

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Question 28
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Are you always right?
As right as I can be
No, but I try to stand behind my decisions and fix my mistakes.
Hardly
Yes?

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Question 29
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Pick your extreme sport!
Surfing
Skydiving
I'm not really an extreme sports person.
Bungee jumping

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Question 30
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What would make you want to be a firefighter the most?
The notoriety
Making the community safer
The money
Saving lives

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You Got: