Search
Close this search box.

firefighter situational awareness

Situational Awareness Matters!

Resilient Problem Solvers

Perhaps you’re going to think I’ve been out in the sun too long when you read this proclamation: I want you to make more mistakes! What? It’s true, I do. But before you stop reading this article out of distain for such an absurd statement, please gift me just five minutes of your time to […]

Resilient Problem Solvers Read More »

Peer Pressure Can Impact Situational Awareness

The social interaction between coworkers may not be on your mind as you think about  situational awareness. But the fact is we are all influenced by our relationships with others. We have an inherent internal desire to be well-liked and respected. We also have a very strong internal drive to avoid embarrassment. These traits of

Peer Pressure Can Impact Situational Awareness Read More »

Weather Can Impact Situational Awareness

You may recall from earlier discussions that situational awareness is formed by gathering information about what is happening in the environment around you. Then, your brain takes that information and attempts to form an understanding of what it all means. Finally, after understanding what it means, you make predictions of future events. This is a

Weather Can Impact Situational Awareness Read More »

Situational Awareness Matters!

Situational Awareness in Hoarder Homes – Guest Post

Firefighter-Paramedic Ryan Pennington with the Charleston (WV) Fire Department has been conducting extensive research on the epidemic problem of emergencies in hoarder homes. Emergencies including everything from fires to EMS calls to animal hoarding issues – the whole gamut. Ryan has also developed a knock-out program on hoarder home fires. If your jurisdiction is having

Situational Awareness in Hoarder Homes – Guest Post Read More »

Situational Awareness Matters!

Technology Can Help AND Hurt Situational Awareness

You don’t have to look far and wide to locate clever marketing campaigns that make outrageous claims to improve our lives or solve our problems. I’ve been noticing this trend now as it relates to products claiming they “create” situational awareness. I was recently at a conference and had an opportunity to have a discussion

Technology Can Help AND Hurt Situational Awareness Read More »

Positive and Negative Clues and Cues

As we train our leaders to improve situational awareness it is important the lessons include a list of both positive and negative clues and cues. In the context of developing situational awareness, positive and negative does not mean good and bad. Rather, positive and negative means present and absent. Let me explain.

Positive and Negative Clues and Cues Read More »

Positive Reinforcement of Undesirable Behavior

In this article I am taking on a topic often discussed in my leadership programs more often than in my situational awareness programs – motivation. I’m not going to get in to depth on the topic of motivation as it takes me a solid four hours in a classroom session to demystify the topic and

Positive Reinforcement of Undesirable Behavior Read More »

Situational Awareness Matters

Nine Dangerous Mindsets: Part 8 – The Slacker

Welcome to part eight of the Nine Dangerous Mindsets series. In this installment I’m going to take on one of the most challenging and perhaps one of the most frustrating mindsets – the Slacker. This mindset is dangerous to situational awareness because a Slacker does so little to ensure his or her personal readiness for

Nine Dangerous Mindsets: Part 8 – The Slacker Read More »

Nine Dangerous Mindsets – Part 7: The Superman/Superwoman

Welcome to installment seven of the Nine Dangerous Mindsets series. While these mindsets may have many dangerous implications, my focus is to bring light to how they can impact situational awareness and team safety. I have been receiving some amazing feedback so far on this series. Readers are sharing that I have struck a chord,

Nine Dangerous Mindsets – Part 7: The Superman/Superwoman Read More »