Episode 4 with Tim Anderson (Professional Firefighter for 12 years and Co-Owner of Original Strength.)

1. Tell me a little about yourself and what did you do in the fire
service? How long have you served? I was a professional firefighter
for 12 years. My rank was Engineer. In my department, that would
have been equivalent to a lieutenant. I told people I drove fire
trucks. Fast…     2. What was the hardest time of your
life? What tools did you use to get through it? My wife got sick.
Really sick. The day after we celebrated our 30th birthday (we are
about a week apart in age), we found ourselves in the ER. She had
contracted a rare micro-bacteria in her lungs. Long story short,
she almost died. She was in the hospital for almost a month, and we
had two babies at home, a one and a two-year-old. It sucked. I
spent a lot of time reading Isaiah 43 those first few days in the
hospital. I found it very comforting.     3. What are
your greatest successes? Honestly, I’d have to say, my family. I’ve
been married for almost 20 years, and I have two wonderful boys.
They make me smile.     4. Now that you have experienced
life a little, what would you tell your 20-year-old self? Change
majors and study something you are passionate about. I was always
passionate about fitness and exercise. As a result, I naturally
decided to major in Statistics. I was just at school to be there.
Now, I would actually want to be there to learn...     5.
Who is your greatest role model and why? It would have to be John
Brookfield, the creator of Battling Ropes. He took me under his
wing and taught me so much about the power of the mind and what the
body is capable of. He also taught me that it is okay to follow
something greater than the crowd.     6. What were the
tours that you have been on? Any particular stories that stand out?
I’ve been on some decent fires. But the calls that stand out to me
the most are the medical calls. I’ve been on some of those that
will stay in my brain forever. They stand out, but not in a
feel-good way.     7. If you had a chance for a "do-over"
in life, what would you do differently? Or would you keep
everything the same? Now that I'm more “mature,” I believe I would
keep everything the same - minus telling my 20-year-old self to
change majors! Ha! But really, the experiences I’ve had are the
ones that helped me get to where I am today. And where I am is a
place I would have never expected. I’m living a real adventure now.
And I’m not sure I would be on this adventure (family, OS, OSI -
any of it) if I tried to do anything over in my past.    
8. What do you feel most proud of? Professionally, Original
Strength. I get to see peoples lives change in amazing ways from
remembering how they used to move as children. It’s wild.  
  10. What do you want your tombstone to say? He changed the
world!     11. Why did you join the fire service? I
joined the fire service because I had a new wife, a new house
payment, and an opportunity to seek further employment somewhere
else when the company I worked for got purchased by another
company. That was also the same time I began personal training.
    13. How do you spend your free time? I watch
superhero shows with my boys. We are fanatics.     14.
Who do you admire the most in life and why? I don’t know that I
have a “most’ person. I have several people I admire: Chip Morton,
S&C of Cincinnati Bengals - I admire his patience and love for
his seven children. And the kindness he shows and gives to his
athletes. John Brookfield - I admire his boldness in talking about
his relationship with God. Dan John - I admire his ability to keep
things in life simple and his ability to always help someone in
need even though he is probably the busiest person in the world. He
always MAKES time for others. Dr. Dan Barrows - he is one of the
greatest teachers I have ever met. He teaches through kindness and
humility. I understand the “gift” of teaching when I hear Dan
teach.     15. What are you most afraid of? Doing
nothing. Being nothing.     16. What was your most
embarrassing moment? I once pulled off my