By Dawn Haynes
While I’m glad they’re finally over, I love the fun and festivity of the holiday season–the shopping, the parties, the presents. And even though I always feel like the holidays are one big whirlwind, I like to take a little time during the season to reflect as I begin the process of refocusing for the New Year.
Many of you have been in this process of refocusing as well, ushering in 2014 with a renewed sense of purpose, direction, and enthusiasm. You’ve been evaluating your business practices to determine what is working and what’s not. It has almost become second nature to evaluate certain aspects of your business—accounting, sales, customer service, etc. for places to make refinements—but when was the last time you evaluated your safety practices? When was the last time you actually gave them any thought at all?
To be clear, while things like security, violence prevention, and things of that nature fall under its auspices, workplace safety is much more encompassing. Here’s some food for thought – Did you know that something as seemingly insignificant as workplace incivility is impacting your bottom line in ways ranging from employee productivity to your health insurance premiums? The good news is that you, the small business owner, can (and should) take control.
Whether you are a solo practitioner or are responsible for over 1,000 employees, small business safety begins with you. So start with you. Begin by asking:
- Are the demands of my business placing demands on me and possibly my employees that may be unnecessarily putting our safety at risk?
- Am I coming in early or staying late in a virtually deserted building and even more deserted parking lot or garage at a time when NO ONE would see anything if something were to happen?
- Am I in the habit of overloading myself with gear—computer, files, briefcase, etc. in my day-to-day travels? If you’re not diligent in these things now, you’re just making yourself a much easier target.
- Look at things you may take for granted. If you work in or frequent an office building, are you familiar with the on duty security personnel, what services they offer, and how you may access them?
- Does your building have periodic emergency evacuation drills? If so, are you and your employees participating?
- Do you have an accountability partner?
These are just a few points to ponder to get you started. We will devote more time to these and many other workplace safety issues in the coming months. Start today by looking at your own practices and pick just one thing at a time to work on. Over time, you’ll enjoy the cumulative effect of your efforts not only in your own life but also in the lives of your family and any employees. Wishing you continued small business success—safely!
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Dawn Haynes, the Toolbox Diva ™, is the principal and lead trainer for 2EmpowerU, (formerly Fight or Flight Self Defense). You can contact Dawn by email at dawn@2empowerU.net, by phone at 713-298-6301, or visit her website at www.2empowerU.net.
