Beware the unplugged coffee pot

  • Published
  • By Col. David Pollmiller
  • 436th Operations Group
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Routine is not always a bad thing. Whether the activity is a routine landing, a routine maintenance repair, or a routine medical procedure, it generally means some activity that we are familiar and comfortable accomplishing. Routine takes a little bit of the stress out of our everyday lives. It allows us to accomplish repetitive activities with a high degree of confidence and high probability of success. Unfortunately, routine activities can also dull our senses and blind us to unexpected risks or problems.

I've been out of town for a couple of months and the first morning back, I jumped right into my routine of rolling out of bed and heading to the coffee pot. A new filter, a couple of scoops of coffee, add water, hit the power button, and wait. Same thing I do every morning when home. This time I waited, and waited, and waited. I worked my way through much more of the news than usual and decided it was time to check things out. Didn't take long to realize my wife had unplugged the coffee pot while I was gone. My long perfected routine had been sabotaged by an unexpected and unaccounted for change in the activity.

Fear not, I was able to recover and successfully complete the morning brew. There are, however, far greater risks in our personal and professional lives. Routine activities can lead to complacency, and complacency can lead to injury or death. Yet, we strive to make activities seem routine. We train, practice, and exercise so the most complex task appears routine. We develop checklists and procedures so we force ourselves to do the same thing every time...we develop a routine.

Routines are good. When we find a safe, efficient, and successful process for completing tasks, it only makes sense that we follow the same process over and over. When a process or routine works again and again, we tend to expect it will always work. Beware of the unplugged coffee pot. Expecting a routine to work is the same as complacency. Routines don't work if the conditions or assumptions behind them don't hold true.

We should rely on routines to simplify our lives and work, but always maintain a healthy skepticism about the outcome of those routines. Look for differences in the starting conditions or assumptions. Look for conditions to change. Look for new or unexpected conditions to emerge. Following a routine gets our work done quickly, but a healthy skepticism during that routine can prevent complacency and help get those tasks accomplished safely.

I'd ask you to take a few minutes and think about something. How many times have you driven home, made coffee, repaired something, or interacted with a patient, and when it was done, you don't really remember any specifics? That's complacency. If you are complacent, you are not engaged...you are not looking for changes that might increase risk. We must be actively engaged in every activity we do, or someone may get hurt.

So, follow those checklists and embrace those routines. You'll get done what you need, and it will be done right. Beware though, of the unplugged coffee pot. Stay engaged, be a skeptic, and look for changing conditions. Getting the job done is only part of the answer. We have to get it done safely.