Too Close for Comfort

Do you ever have close calls? Just the other day, I was driving to the post office and suddenly grew concerned that I’d forgotten my cell phone at home. If you’re like me and use your cell phone for business all the time, a twinge of panic runs through you, right? Well, as I went to check my pocket, I looked up and realized that the cars in front of me were coming to a screeching halt. I hit the brakes hard and narrowly missed rear-ending the car in front of me. I was thinking, “Great. A risk management expert rear-ending another car because he was distracted. That doesn’t look very good!”

Even though I don’t use my cell phone while driving anymore, it still was a distraction and nearly caused an accident. How many close calls are there in your business every day? Depending on the type of business you have, it can range from very low (1 or 2) to very high (10 to 12).

It’s important to learn from our close calls if we want to avoid the disaster. For me, I need to remember that forgetting my phone is not as important as the job at hand…driving. I could always check when I pulled in and parked. How about you? What can you do in your business?

A good place to start is by making your employees aware of close calls. If you can raise their awareness about what close calls are, and how they can predict future losses, you will be in a position to avoid costly claims and injuries. The bottom line will be your bottom line! It’s time to learn from your “almost” mistakes.

Dan

P.S. Do you need help with your safety meetings? Would you like to introduce close calls to your employees? Give me a call and let’s schedule a visit for me to your business. Your employees will learn how to protect themselves from injury and you will have a safer, more efficient work environment. To learn more about my risk management consulting, click here…