Alive and Well at the End of the Day, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 8BEHAVIOR, CONSEQUENCES—AND ATTITUDE!

The actions of men are the best interpreters of their thoughts.

—John Locke

Chapter 6 examined the challenge of compliance: why don’t followers follow all the rules all the time? When compliance is looked at as an organization behavior or system problem, the answer is found in four categories of failure: lack of knowledge and understanding, inability to remember, failure to recognize the situation calls for following the rule, and, finally, choosing not to comply. A leader who understands these four categories can better manage and improve compliance. For example, a well‐executed work permit will identify the conditions that initiate specific requirements like those for entering a confined space. A Stump Speech for compliance can successfully “sell” compliance and reduce the need to enforce the rules. That’s a good thing for leaders—and followers.

But nothing will ever completely eliminate the need for a leader to deal with unsafe behavior at the level of the individual.

As to how often a follower would be found working hard—but not working safely, the answer depends on where in the world you are, what work is being done, and who’s doing the task. On the deck of an aircraft carrier during flight operations or when a bomb squad is examining a suspicious‐looking package making a ticking sound, the odds of the safety rules being broken are small. On the other hand, watch a tire being changed on the side of the road or your neighbor ...