Keynotes & Training Programs
Powerful, results-oriented, high-impact, experience-based safety and leadership programs using interactive, adult learning techniques.
For 25 years Dr. Richard Gasaway has been delivering content rich programs for first responders, business leaders and industral workers ranging in size from 10 to 5,000 throughout the United States, Canada, England, Hong Kong and Australia.
Situational Awareness Programs
Decision Making Programs
Your brain on drugs: Understanding how stress impacts high-risk decision making.
Keynote or Plenary Session
30 minutes
60 minutes
90 minutes
Half day
Symposium, Breakout or Workshop
One hour
Two hour
Half day
Full day
This program is appropriate for individuals and teams working in environments that are high-stress, high-consequence, time-compressed with changing conditions/information. This may include, but not be limited to:
- Military
- Aviation
- Security
- Financial services
- IT Professionals
- Health care
- Governmental agencies (non-public safety)
- Retail
- Sales
- Agriculture
- Manufacturing
- Transportation
- Security and protective services
- Construction
- Oil & Gas
- Utilities
- Sports & recreation
** The content can be customized to fit a specific audience
Recommended Class Size
Minimum: 15 (preferred)
Maximum: None
Program Description
Your brain on drugs: Understanding how stress impacts high-risk decision making.
The results of the research are in! Stressed brains don’t function the same way as non-stressed brains. Actually, this probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise. But what may surprise you is how significant the impact of stress can be in your high-risk decision making. You may be familiar with a few of these impacts, like tunnel vision and fight or flight response. But there’s more.
This fast-paced session well review the fascinating process of how the stressed brain functions and how these changes influences thinking and decision making.
Then you’ll learn how your thinking – and decision making – can be impacted by stress-induced neurological changes.
Have you ever noticed that, under stress, some people seem to act without thinking? That’s because they probably are. You’ll learn about the risks of automaticity and how to break the cycle.
Are you a good multi-tasker? You may be surprised to learn that it is biologically impossible to multitask the act of paying attention. We’ll debunk the myth of multitasking and explain why multitasking is so dangerous in high-risk environments.
Does your state have laws that require hands-free use of cell phones? Laws like these are an example of what happens when legislators do not consult with brain scientists before enacting a solution. You’ll learn about the impact of distraction on cognitive function and decision making.
Did you know you actively hallucinate every day? It’s true! And it can have catastrophic consequences in high-risk decision making scenarios. You’ll learn about how your brain confabulates realities that can be FAR from reality.
The best decisions are made using logic, right? Wrong! Emotions play a critical role in decision making. You’ll learn how emotions can trigger intuition, can improve your access to stored knowledge and improve your decision making.
Have you ever heard an instructor say “practice makes perfect” on the training ground? To some extent, this is true. But shortcuts and missteps during practice can also load cognitive and muscle memory scripts that can have tragic consequences. You’ll learn how your brain uses stored scripts that drive decisions and actions under stress.
Learning Objectives
Participants will learn the difference between logical and intuitive thinking.
Participants will learn how stress impacts brain function, thinking, and decision making.
Participants will learn best practices for reducing the cognitive impacts of stress.
Participants will learn tips improving high-stress decision making.
Think Quick. Decide Quick.
Keynote or Plenary Session
30 minutes
60 minutes
90 minutes
Half day
Symposium, Breakout or Workshop
One hour
Two hour
Half day
This program is appropriate for individuals and teams working in environments that are high-stress, high-consequence, time-compressed with changing conditions/information. This may include, but not be limited to:
- Military
- Aviation
- Security
- Financial services
- IT Professionals
- Health care
- Governmental agencies (non-public safety)
- Retail
- Sales
- Agriculture
- Manufacturing
- Transportation
- Security and protective services
- Construction
- Oil & Gas
- Utilities
- Sports & recreation
** The content can be customized to fit a specific audience
Program Desription
Think Quick. Decide Quick.
Have you ever wondered how firefighters can arrive on the scene of a building on fire and within a few minutes develop and implement an action plan designed to save lives and property?
Here’s a hint: They don’t form committees to study and analyze the problem and then advance their recommendations up the chain of command for senior management consideration.
Life and death fire ground decisions are made, on average, in 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
How do they do it? This program reveals the secrets of how fire commanders make high-stress, high-consequence decisions under time compression with changing conditions.
The presenter served 30+ years as a first responder including 22 years as a fire ground commander. In addition to the lessons founded in his practical experience, he will share some surprising findings from neuroscience he uncovered while completing his doctoral research on first responder situational awareness and high-risk decision making.
Leadership Programs
The Leader’s Toolbox:
Best practices for leadership success
Symposium or Workshop
Half day
Full day
This program is suited for:
- Front-line employees/members
- Front-line supervisors
- Middle managers
- Senior staff
Recommended Class Size
Minimum: 10
Maximum: 50
Program Description
The Leader’s Toolbox:
Developing leadership based on best practices.
The Leader’s Toolbox is lively and fast-paced, interactive facilitated discussion designed to address the challenges of leading people. The program will focus on traits of human behavior that will help you understand why people do, and don’t do, what you want them to.
The program also looks at various leadership styles and behaviors, in a non-threatening way – intertwined with humor, to help you understand how your behaviors and beliefs toward others can influence their attitudes and performance. You’ll be introduced to best practices that are used by successful leaders in all walks of life and understand why some people can make leadership look so easy and effortless while others struggle with it daily.
Come prepared to discuss some of your most difficult leadership challenges and leave with leadership tools that work! Topics are participant-driven based on the challenges they are facing. Popular topics include:
- Teambuilding
- Communications
- Problem solving
- Conflict resolution
- Difficult co-workers
- Leading change
- Coaching
- Motivation
- Leadership
- Followership
- Counseling and discipline
- Performance improvement plans
- Accountability
- Compromise
- Collaboration
- Mission
- Vision
- Core values
- Time management
- Persuasion and influence
The Courage to Lead:
Doing the right things, in the right ways,
at the right times, for the right reasons.
Symposium or Workshop
One day
Two day
This program is suited for:
- Front-line employees/members
- Front-line supervisors
- Middle managers
- Senior staff
Recommended Class Size
Minimum: 10
Maximum: 50
Program Description
The Courage to Lead:
Doing the right things, in the right ways,
at the right times, for the right reasons.
Success requires great courage on three levels.
First, it takes great courage to lead yourself – to do the right things for the right reasons and never waver from your principles.
Second, it takes great courage to lead others – to inspire greatness in your followers and to do your part to ensure the right people are in the right positions for the right reasons and they are held accountable for their contributions.
Finally, it takes great courage to lead an organization – to do your part to ensure there is a culture of excellence, guided by a mission, vision and core values that are purpose-driven.
This program uses adult facilitated learning techniques (no PowerPoint) to reveal the motivation that compels or prohibit courageous leadership. Participants will be challenged to identify ways to overcome the fears that prohibit to courageous leadership. We will also discuss ways to support the courageous followership and how to create a courageous organization using core values and mutual accountability.