Psychology in the Workplace

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Like an athlete, you can visualize your performance.

It starts by changing 'me-first' mindsets.

Tension is the source of change for safety performance, writes Bob Veazie.

Here's how to bring out the best in behavior-based safety.

Have you ever suffered from something called "premature cognitive commitment"? I'd like to explore this concept, taken from Ellen J. Langer's book, "Mindfulness," as a follow-up to last month's article on how to increase mindful behavior to prevent injuries.

Do you work with someone who gets hurt often? Many times a small percentage of your workforce will account for a large amount of your injuries.

So how do we become more mindful of behavioral routines that could lead to injury, either to ourselves or to others?

If you look closely at your accident statistics, you know that out of all your employees, the most likely to get injured are "new employees."

I've been doing my formal behavioral safety audits for about six months now and it doesn't always feel like I'm adding value," said the health and safety manager for two of our divisions in California. "Are you sure this process is worth us continuing?"

I hear this question often. In fact, I've asked it myself on a few occasions. After all, I'm championing a safety process where 90 percent of the time audits show employees are working safely. So what's the point?

Safety-related conversations often come across as confrontational. One person tells another he or she is working unsafely and needs to do something about it. This points out that people expect the worst when safety feedback is offered. If you confirm those expectations, you'll have trouble being an effective safety coach. Here are five ways to avoid potential problems.