Decision Making

These are the first responder situational awareness and decision making issues and opportunities related to decision making.

Episode 183 | St. Charles Fire Department Near Miss – Part 1

This episode is part 1 of a 3-part interview with two members of the St. Charles Fire Department (Missouri) discussing a near-miss where four firefighters were overrun by rapidly changing conditions at a residential dwelling fire. Length: 56 minutes Click the YouTube icon to listen     _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding […]

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Episode 182 | Colorado Springs FD Interview – Part 2

This episode is part 2 of an interview with three members of the Colorado Springs Fire Department discussing recruit training, using science to teach firefighting and more. Length: 50 minutes Click the YouTube icon to listen       _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to

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Competing Goals Can Impact Situational Awareness

  Arguably,to accomplish a mission, it would be very beneficial to have a shared set of goals that everyone understands and everyone is working on together in a unified way to accomplish. Shared goals can contribute to shared situational awareness – a common understanding of what is happening and what the plan of action entails

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Episode 181 | Colorado Springs FD Interview – Part 1

This episode is part 1 of an interview with three members of the Colorado Springs Fire Department discussing recruit training, using science to teach firefighting and more. Length: 55 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen  

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Come down off the high perch of judgment

At the start of the Flawed Situational Awareness program I share a story about my early years as a company officer and subsequently as a command-level officer. Even in those days (more than 30 years ago), I held a deep desire to learn from failure and catastrophe. I read every near-miss and casualty report I

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Episode 179 | Coordinated Actions

This episode explores how coordinated actions can improve situational awareness. Length: 29 minutes Click the YouTube icon to listen           _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to a higher level, check out the Situational Awareness Matters Online Academy. CLICK HERE for details, enrollment

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Chatty TSA Agents

It is possible that while you are attempting to pay attention to something, you can be drawn off your task by distractions or interruptions to your workload. A distraction is something that pulls your attention away by accident (like a reflex look in the direction of a loud noise). An interruption is something that pulls

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Episode 178 | Explaining Tunnel Vision

  This episode explores the impact that tunnel vision can have on the development of situational awareness. Length: 31 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen           _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to a higher level, check out the Situational Awareness

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Buildings are Disposable

Buildings are disposable. People are not! This guest editorial contribution is provided by Chief John Buckman III, Director of the Indiana State Fire Training and Certification System. Chief Buckman posted this piece on Facebook and, with his permission, it is being reposted here. The message is short and powerful.

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Episode 177 | Time to Task Completion

  This episode explores how knowing the time to task completion can aid in the development of situational awareness. Length: 30 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen         _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to a higher level, check out the Situational

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