Your team is in a panic during a crisis. How can you effectively convey safety protocols to them?

In the event of a crisis those taking or forced into a leadership role must remain calm. The team looks to its leader for guidance and stability. The leader is task with setting the direction of the team(s) and stabilizing its mission to overcome the crisis. The leader draws from his/her experience and training to establish safety protocols for the team to follow. The leader should speak clearly with a strong voice in simplified terms to ensure team member are focused and grasp individual duties. These protocols and directions should be repeated as necessary to ensure everyone is clear on their assignments. Each leader must remain steadfast in their charge to the team members to eliminate chaos.

Maintain a cool and forceful demeanour when communicating safety rules during a crisis. Gather the crew in a secure area and thoroughly describe the safety protocols. Use basic, plain language and visual aids as needed. Assign explicit roles to team members to ensure they understand their obligations. Encourage enquiries and give straightforward answers to ease anxieties. Reiterate crucial ideas and confirm comprehension with quick, focused talks. Maintain open communication and reassurance to help people feel in control and safe.

Yes, be the center of the hurricane! My GM would always tell me " you have to keep the team centered and focused on the crisis, you can't freak out! ". Know your team, if they hesitate, panic or are looking for " brownie points " during an event, move them to other responsibilities. Personality traits show early in smaller incidents such as fire alarms or elevator issues. These are good training events and are very good at revealing SWOT items for personnel and procedures.

Stop. Drop. Roll. Pull. Aim. Squeeze. Sweep. Stayin Alive, Stayin Alive. If you can simplify, then people can more quickly remember and act. Maybe you need to have details, so boil down your 20 page ERP into a 1-page Fast Fact Sheet, then post it at the doorway. Make a "Texas-Sized" sign and put the key messages with picture, even go with dual language if needed. You need people to react quickly, so give them the right mental tools.

It is important to it only practice drills based upon what you know and have done, but to also see what others have gone through and look at their successes and learn from the challenges others have faced. Look to change your perspective so that you do not look at everything from only discipline. If you work in law enforcement, try to look at problems like a fire fighter, and apply how they would respond or what concerns they will bring to the table. If you problem like a nail you will only use your hammer to try and fix the problem.