Hazards come in many shapes and sizes—from the physical to the behavioral and all points in between. And the efficacy with which hazards are identified to a large extent shape the overall effectiveness of your safety management system. So what happens when your personal or organizational biases prevent you from seeing things accurately and honestly?

Monday morning October 22 at the National Safety Congress in Orlando, we had the opportunity for an exclusive one-on-one, sit-down  interview with Chesley Sullenberger III. Captain “Sully” successfully ditched US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River with no loss of life after its initial climb out of New York City on January 15, 2009, was disabled due to striking a flock of Canada geese.

“When I was a young man I was given a check for a million dollars. I tore it up and went to the top of a mountain to contemplate the mistakes of mankind…one man in particular.” Joe Martin, Cartoonist.

Remember those playground and schoolyard taunts? “Nah, nah, you can’t scare me!” “I ain’t yellow!” Well, psychologist say those kids were on to something. It turns you can’t often scare people with fear tactics.