February 2010 Safety Message

In the Blink of an Eye

We all know fate as being defined as the “element of chance in the affairs of life” and destiny is defined as an “event or course of events that will inevitably happen in the future”. We also know fate is determined by chance and destiny is determined by choice. And risk is defined as the “chance for failure and encountering a limit”.

In safety what a person thinks of themselves is what really determines their fate. And the risks they take by making decisions to neglect safe operating procedures are factors that will ultimately determine their destiny in safety. That same person who takes chances at work will be destined for some type of injury either away from the job or on the job. Something that none of us want.

The choices we make at work every day should be based on the knowledge of our past, an objective awareness of the present, and faith in the future. If we understand that when making a decision at work every time we perform a task there is a cause preceding that decision that will impact one’s fate and destiny in safety once that decision is made.

The more knowledge we all have in safety, and the more understanding our workers have in what they perform every day at work, will allow everyone to make genuine choices for a safer workplace and the greater your role becomes in your ability to influence others in those choices. It is a lack of knowledge that places one under the influence of causality that can have a safety effect. You cannot change what you cannot see, because without seeing you cannot choose.

Everything we do at work and at home always begin with a choice and end with a choice. To control our choices in decision making is to understand the outcome or predict the effect based on that choice of decision and this will help control our destiny in safety. What cannot be predicted cannot be controlled.

One’s fate and their destiny in safety can be changed in the blink of an eye trading a poor decision for a life of pain. That’s all it takes, so please make the right choice for you and others around you.