Every person wants to be recognised for his or her contributions in their work. And now, as a passionate person with interest in safety, I am faced with a dilemma. People who defuse a crisis we hoist on a pedestal (rightly so, because that is a difficult task!), But people who manage to prevent crises often receive little #recognition.
Settling a crisis on which 120 billion euros is spent is praised, because the 'real #leaders' show themselves, but people who have managed to #prevent a #crisis from occurring at all, are noted for notification. And most people don't even know how to name these heroes a few days later. Suppose they make it to the media at all. The media (and therefore the readers of it) is much more interested in misery. And how that misery is treated than in the prevention of drama. That is not news.
The same applies to safety in the field of government and organisations: if projects go according to plan without significant #incidents, then that is normal; as it should be.
The responsible people just did their job. No #glory.
The misery that people, countries, organisations have to go through after a pandemic or other crisis evokes so much emotion that those who decisively avert it are placed on a #pedestal. But the prevention of this misery is the most natural thing in the world, and we are getting back to business as usual.
Wouldn't that preventive effect become much stronger if we could give its recognition? I think so because it encourages #preventativethinking and working. #Intrinsically driven people don't work for glory. But could it help if preventive work is recognised more often?
How could the potential disaster that has been prevented get more #attention and the people who have done it get recognised for it? Consider, for example, the prevention of attacks, but also, at a smaller level, the proper assessment of risks, taking appropriate preventive measures so that a potentially severe accident (or worse) is subsequently avoided. However, this joy never stands as an equal opposite to the misery experienced by the people who were in that crisis or even killed it.
Wouldn't interest in the field of preventive safety grow much more significant if it were recognised and appreciated? In short, how can it be better?