So There You Are!

I have been wanting to write this for a while now... something happened and in that moment there you are (there your organization is and so on). Things leading up to or they should have or the wrong turns are no longer relevant. It is in this moment, this critical point and junction where the true element of disasters come into play. (Sound of imminent, threatening music in the background).

Wind back the clock a little from above.

In any operation, there are a series of choices, an operational philosophy, a myriad of decisions that play into any outcome. This operational viewpoint and philosophy define the very things (I am staying general on purpose) that shape and outline consequence. I have often stated, to those around me in operations, that many times it does not seem to matter until it matters and then it is everything. Redefined as, many people do not take notice of the corners they take or the philosophy of their operation until they are in the midst of there we are.

Now to the main point. Regardless of where you were you are here now, at this problem point and it is here that I would like to insert a critical thought process to engage these problems (meaning I am trying to help, regardless of what choices led to So Here We Are). A pilot once told me, long time ago, that there were three useless things (to a pilot, stay with me): Altitude above you, Fuel on the ground, and Runway behind you. This simple little discussion taught me much about engaging these problem situations. You focus on the things that can deliver something and work on the side other things you need (again staying extremely vague and general). Cockpit management is a critical skill taught to pilots (especially airline and fighter pilots) to fight the problem and use what they do have. Airspeed is a tool and a critical one at that for pilots. When pilots lose focus on fighting the problem, they can influence they can end up losing the aircraft to simple things. Disasters are no different. When you look at the monsters of our past, such as: Chernobyl, Bopal, Deepwater Horizon, Hindenburg, Peshtigo Fire (we could go on). There was a moment in each of these, before an even worse spiral that ends up defining that moment.

Concluding thoughts. The way you prepare (small or large operations, does not actually matter) is to build not just critical thinking but the ability to assess and move and make decisions despite what may be happening around you. I purposefully study some of these disasters as well as small accidents (kind of morbidly small aircraft crashes) and walk through the moments (where data is available) what the problem was and how/what was being done. You begin to see patterns and relationships between amazingly simple things (again whether talking extremely complex systems (like a Nuclear Reactor Accident) or a little Cessna airplane navigating a valley in less than ideal conditions. The reason you ask? My answer is because you do not want the experience by having to live through mistakes - especially if you live in the world of higher consequences. It doesn't always rest with the employer to teach critical thinking because I do not really think in the end it can be effectively taught without the individual taking the time to learn it for themselves first. There has to be an internal desire to be more... The End.