'IT'S ALL ABOUT ME!'

Published Dec. 20, 2010
By Paul E. Gomez
Lackland Air Force Base, Texas

Via e-mail -- I've been following your magazine for years. For many of the stories, the solution comes down to a simple concept: "It's all about me!"

Everything we do in life consists of choices, and those choices can affect one or thousands of people. Individuals need to take full responsibility for their actions. The choices I make, the decisions I make and the direction in life I travel are all reflective of the person I am and how I conduct my life. I don't want to get hurt, so safety is all about me. I don't want to hurt anyone else, so safety is all about me. I don't want to be responsible for the loss of an aircraft or damage to government property, so safety is all about me.

Is this a selfish statement? Not in this context.

If each one of us took full responsibility for our actions and thought about the repercussions or benefits of those actions, I firmly believe there would be a significant decrease in mishaps.