Observe

Understand, Recognize, Communicate, Manage, Control.
 
Of all the words party to describing the process in which we navigate the hazards in the world around us, “observe” might just be the most under appreciated. 
 
On the surface, observing the hazards we and our colleagues might be subject to may seem simple: consider a suspended load, there for everyone to see. But observing well requires the full breadth of our knowledge of the world around us. As defined by the Oxford Dictionary, to observe means to “notice or perceive (something) and register it as being significant.”
 
That definition is worth a closer read. Observation is really a two-step process, requiring to both perceive and to register the significance.
 
Perceiving a hazard such as our suspended load might seem like the easy part: the hard part being what to actually do to ensure no one gets hurt. But thinking it’s as simple as seeing the obvious serves as a distraction to the identification of those things that aren’t, such as those not seen by the eye like electricity – or even the stairway immediately behind someone.
 
Then there’s the second part: considering it significant. It is likely the suspended load registers as significant. The stairwell? 
 
Given knowledge and experience is invaluable to observation, it might seem a fools errand to bother thinking about observing better. But it’s also a process, one that can be improved. One simple way to improve your observation process is by asking yourself questions. Ones like:
 

• What am I looking for?
• What else might I look for?
• What do I see?
• What am I missing?

Balmert Consulting
August 2024