What a fire alarm on a Zoom call taught me about System 1 and System 2
2022-02-22
Last year, a presenter's fire alarm went off during a Zoom meeting. They were in the zone and lived in a multi-tenant building, so they brushed it off and kept going.
My brain's System 1, the fast and automatic one, instantly pattern-matched and mirrored the presenter's inertia. My System 2, the slow and deliberate one, said "No Harm." That is a safety mantra, philosophy, and culture I learned at Noble Energy, acquired by Chevron in 2020.
I interrupted and encouraged the presenter to verify the alarm was false.
Thankfully there was no fire, and everyone was safe.
Please take fire alarms seriously, and help others take them seriously. Periodically test your smoke and CO detectors, and make sure your fire extinguishers are charged and ready.
Thanks to Marc McGill, Ron Jordan, and Bob Bemis for role-modeling how to leave no safety stone unturned.
Until next time, I wish you a safe future.
First published on LinkedIn, 22 February 2022. Lightly revised. Original post.