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Denial Delays Decisions

Writer's picture: Mike LarsenMike Larsen

A month or so ago I had the opportunity to present some travel safety information to a group that spends a great deal of time on the road going from city to city around the US. We were in the middle of discussing how as humans we have a tendency to loose touch with our intuition and that we are the only animals on the planet that use “logic” to overcome an internal function that is intended to keep us safe. Ultimately I expressed that denial delays decisions. And ultimately we need to make decisions as to how we should react. But if we dismiss a sound, smell, or even something we see with our own eyes as not a risk or hazard, and attempt to make it more “logical” we are burning up precious time to act.

The other night this denial delays decisions concept came back into my head as we watched “Man on Fire” with Denzel Washington. Hired as a body guard for a young girl in Mexico, Washington becomes determined to improve her swimming by making her faster off the blocks and eliminate her flinch when the starting gun goes off. Through training and repitition, a process of reconditioning ultimately allows “the gunshot to set her free.” Spoiler alert, she wins her next race!


We’ve also seen more of this recently after an assignation attempt on Former President Trump where there was an obvious difference in denial. Close protection secret service members were some of the quickest to respond and shielded Trump behind ballistic curtains assessing injuries and communicating with the additional layers of security onsite. While this is certainly due to a high level of awareness, training and conditioning. There were others who acted selflessly. Retired fire chief, Corey Comperator, sacrificed his life by shielding his family from bullets. His highly tuned ability to sense danger and react under stress, processing all of the stimuli without denying the gravity of the situation, saved lives.

In the same situation we saw people not even move, there’s even video of one female taking out her cell phone to record the mayhem (insert conspiracy theory here). But I do believe this is a level of conditioning that is taking place in the world today. My last few years in the fire service we couldn’t go anywhere without someone recording it. In my opinion if your initial thought it whip out your phone to record something and you’re not in the journalism field, you are only putting your life and those in your care at greater risk (and hindering emergency responders ability to perform).

Become your own first responder!

  • Avoid denial so that you can make a decision and react in a manner that will improve your chances of survival.

  • Listen to your gut (intuition), condition yourself to react in a safe manner.

  • Get some medical training so that you can self care and treat others as needed.

  • Have a plan with friends and family that includes a rally point & communications plan.

Raven Strategic and its team regularly hear “we never thought it would happen to us” or “we never thought it could happen here”. This specific denial delays decisions to make plans and prepare for when the wolf does come knocking.

As always, Raven is here to partner with individuals, families and organizations of all shapes and sizes to improve planning, training and even provide direct support.

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