The 3 Agreements For Improved Safety Culture

It is never the safety position or title that gets respect: it is the person in the position.

3 agreements to improved safety culture

Don Miguel Ruiz authored the book, The Four Agreements in 1997. It spent seven years on the bestseller list. The book is an inspiring read and could easily teach about safety and the building of a safety culture. Ruiz’s four agreements are as follows:

  • Be impeccable with your word
  • Don't take anything personally
  • Don't make assumptions 
  • Always do your best

His point was that if you become a better person, you will make better decisions. Better decisions bring better results. It is the same philosophy for safety.

In fact, if you consider the opposite view, it is more Illustrative. The worse you become as a person, the less likely you are to make good decisions. If you choose not to self-improve, at best you will make the same decisions. Results will not improve. Circumstances will regress.

If you are not improving, you are declining. There is no such thing as status-quo. So, either you are moving forward (advancing) or falling behind.

To advance your workplace safety culture will take agreements: to yourself and your co-workers. Let’s be clear, you do not serve senior managers. You serve the front-line employee. That’s where safety culture is created - at the front-line. It is reinforced in how the company encourages and embraces safety (or not). It is especially reinforced by the daily interactions with safety managers and supervisors.

With respect to Don Miguel Ruiz, here are three specific agreements anyone involved in safety must make with themselves and their co-workers to build a strong safety culture:

1I agree to care about where I work and whom I work with. If you don’t care about your work, you won’t care if you do it safely. A job in which you are not engaged, you will give just enough care and attention to to not get fired. It is impossible to connect at the heart level with co-workers if you don’t care about the people you serve. It is easy to say that you care but can you demonstrate that you do? Employees won’t care about the job or safety until they know how much their bosses care about them. You have to make people feel how much you care before they will invest themselves to care about their own safety. You can not treat people at arm’s length and expect an attitude of caring from them. Caring about safety is more than the safety record. You have to commit to caring about co-workers as people. If you can not have deep-seated concern about their safety, at best, you’ll be a mediocre safety person.

2I agree to conduct myself with respect for my fellow employees. You can’t fake respect. Employees and co-workers are just good people trying to do good work. To view them any other way is contemptuous and disrespectful. If you do not view your people with respect, you, by default, view them with disdain. You will put your position ahead of their safety. To give anyone respect requires that you first find something to respect about each of your fellow employees. Employees will not respect anyone who does not respect them first. Truthfully, no one respects your position. It is never the position that gets respect: it is the person in the position. That’s why there can be disrespect for one manager and yet great respect for his replacement. It is people who get respect - not positions. Respect your people. Help them do good work - work that both they and you can be proud of. It will generate more respect.

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3I agree to purposely seek out opportunities to demonstrate courtesy. No great safety culture can sustain without courtesy at its foundation. Simple acts like safety housekeeping are courtesy in action. Removing hazards from a work-site is the same courtesy as holding a door open for someone. Courtesy removes struggle. Courtesy comes from being selfless. Selfless people have no ulterior motives. Safety too is selflessness. Courtesy improves morale, shows caring and respect and makes others want to do the same for you. Good people are courteous. Courteous acts change perspective and encourage more.

These three agreements are ones that you make with yourself privately. You demonstrate them to others publicly. Anyone demonstrating these three agreements will be well-thought of by their fellow employees. Then, they rise from safety managers - to safety leaders - people worth following.

Kevin Burns is a management consultant, safety speaker and author of "The Perfect Safety Meeting." He delivers engaging and entertaining keynote safety presentations for everyone: from front-line staff to senior management. He helps people see the light when it comes to buying-in to the safety program.

Topics: safety leadership, safety culture