Regardless what you feel about the Trump assassination attempt or any event really, they promote action, and invoke thought and process improvement discussions.
For some it's natural to veer toward conspiracy or wild speculation. For me, complacency is a more grounded factor at play. Maybe more alarming when it's people in critical roles like the Secret Service, but it can affect any profession, leading to injury and death.
The brain consumes much of the body’s budget, so it wants to conserve energy by going on “autopilot” or automating. This can be mistakenly labeled as a lack of situational awareness, complacency, or operational discipline. Still, it has more to do with the mechanics of the brain rather than a conscious choice by the brain’s owner. I still call it complacancy because for me, I have no better word for it. This ability to automate mental processes is essential. It allows us to save our mental energy and focus our mental processes on things that require our attention. With the number of stimuli in the world, it would be overwhelming if we did not transfer some of our actions to our automatic processes. Imagine how difficult walking would be if you had to think through each step consciously. While one might wish there were time to evaluate the minute details of our everyday tasks methodically and thoughtfully, the cognitive demand of daily life often makes such processing logistically impossible. Therefore, the brain must develop reliable shortcuts to keep up with the stimulus-rich environments we inhabit. Most human decision-making (~ 95%) is based on heuristics in the unconscious space.
Complacency is a state of self-satisfaction, especially when jumbled together with unawareness or a perception that actual dangers or deficiencies just won't reoccur or happen at all. Over time, jobs become mundane, routine, predictable.
Heuristics and automation are cognitive processes that allow us, as fallible humans, to undertake actions quickly and efficiently, often ‘without thinking.’ Using heuristics is considered advantageous as it allows for swift and efficient decision-making. In most cases, such heuristics prove to be effective. However, the flip side of this efficacy lies in the possibility of errors resulting from the disconnect between the context and the action taken, which often arises due to a mismatch in the heuristics employed.
Based on significant research, the average person makes 3 – 6 errors per hour; therefore, any system that relies solely on a human not to make a mistake is brittle (human fallibility makes it so). Consequently, we must make our systems more resilient and error-tolerant to manage risk effectively. Asking employees to avoid making mistakes or errors is not a viable solution, as it is not a matter of choice. People do not intentionally make mistakes that may lead to unexpected events.
The psychological effects of repetitive, day in day out behavior dulls senses and decreases vigilance. In roles that demand constant level of alert or focus and readiness, such as security, healthcare, and transportation, complacency is a killer.
Causes
➡️Performing the same tasks daily with little variation can leads to a false sense of security and safety.
➡️Long-term experience can sometimes breed overconfidence. When nothing goes wrong for an extended period, individuals start believing nothing will. Been 40 years or so since the last assassination attempt.
➡️ Without regular training and updates, skills can become outdated, and preparedness wanes.
➡️ Work environments that don’t encourage questioning, improvement, or accountability foster complacency.
The Impact
The effects are far-reaching. In high-stakes environments, the death of vigilance can result in accidents, security breaches, or death. For instance, in the Secret Service, complacency can mean the difference between life and death. In healthcare, it can lead to medical errors. In transportation, it can result in catastrophic accidents.
How to not be Complacent
🚨Regular training and drills help keep skills sharp and people prepared for The unexpected.
🚨 Promote an environment where questioning the status quo and seeking improvements is encouraged. Create a workplace culture that values readiness.
🚨 Changing roles and responsibilities periodically can help prevent monotony and keep employees engaged and alert.
🚨 Checklists and SOPs can ensure that critical tasks are not overlooked, even when the work becomes routine.
🚨 Leadership that holds everyone accountable maintains high standards and prevents complacency from taking root.
🚨 Regular feedback and reflective practice can help you recognize areas where people might be becoming complacent.
Complacency is the silent threat in any workplace, capable of undermining even the best of systems, processes in protocols.
Addressing complacency head-on ensures that our workplaces remain safe, efficient, and prepared for any challenge that jumps in.
Rob Report is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
