Einstein Was Wrong…

Einstein’s famous quote, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” might apply in many areas, but when it comes to safety—specifically unsafe behavior—he missed the mark.

As an OSHA-authorized instructor, I’m constantly comparing notes with other instructors and safety professionals about how unsafe behaviors lead to accidents. It seems obvious, but when was the last time you heard an accident victim say, “I’ve always done it this way, and nothing ever happened”? Rarely. Yet we all know, both intuitively and anecdotally, that this is the case.

I learned this lesson working as a carpenter and property craftsman on the Fox Studio Lot some years ago. I befriended a carpenter who installed skylights on the weekends. He could make a lot of extra money by installing several skylights in a single day, and to save time, he removed the blade guard from his skill saw. When I questioned him about the safety risks, he waved it off, saying he’d done it this way for years without a single issue. The extra cash from cutting corners seemed worth it—until it wasn’t.

Soon after, he suffered a serious injury on one of his jobs. I never saw him again.

This is the hidden danger of complacency in safety. When unsafe behaviors go unpunished, they create a false sense of security—until the consequences catch up. Small shortcuts, designed to save time or increase profit, can lead to devastating outcomes.

The key is addressing unsafe behaviors before they become incidents. As trainers, we need to foster a culture of prevention, not reaction. By drawing on data, sharing experiences, and questioning unsafe habits early, we can break the cycle of complacency. Einstein might have been wrong about safety—but we don’t have to be.

?#SafetyFirst #WorkplaceSafety #Prevention #OSHA #StaySafe

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