Fatigued, frustrated, rushed, and complacent are the four primary “human states” (or “states of mind”) identified by SafeStart that contribute to most workplace accidents.
I will take it a few steps further.
Most human errors that result in bad outcomes in safety, quality, cost or schedule occur when the worker is in one or more of these four states. We all know that we are not at our best when we are tired or fatigued. Add a dose of frustration, schedule pressure or “boredom” and you can see the potential for error go through the roof. Unfortunately, many employees will describe these “states” as a normal day in the workplace.
Given this information, here is a test for you. Imagine that you have a scope of work coming up tomorrow that includes critical or risk-important steps. Failure will cost your company a big contract or could result in serious consequences.
What steps are you going to take to reduce your potential for a bad outcome?
I am really interested in your feedback.