“When it comes to your health, always take less sugar. Exercise often. Eat a balanced diet. Avoid being stressed about the things you cannot change or are outside of your control. Learn the skill of ignoring small things. And if you can afford, go and enjoy it. Life is about creating experiences, one day at a time.”
You have probably heard about the above advise. It is your guide to manage your health risks and live a good life. To achieve your vision or ambition, your first objective is to live a longer, happy life. You want to impact your community and the world.
There are three key stages of risk management – risk identification and perception, risk analysis and risk management or control. Study figure 1 and write a few notes about each stage.
Figure 1: Risk management process – source internet photo.
As you drive or are driven, you must stay alert of what is happening around you. Use both mirrors, in case of a trailing motorcycle or car. Keep looking at the dashboard for any changes or warning lights. As a passenger, do not just fall asleep when you board the car. Be on the lookout. Is the driver awake? Is the car moving stably on the road?
That is what is called risk perception. You are alert to your surroundings (context). What is in your environment? Is it how it should be? Is there anything out of order that could go wrong? Effective risk perception is a result of risk awareness and helps anticipate danger before it materialises.
Is the perceived risk a false alarm or not? Can the risk materialize? Try to investigate carefully without causing any danger. Step two is about risk analysis – taking a quick assessment of the surrounding is vital to prevent problems before they happen.
And lastly, take the appropriate steps to manage risks. There are 4Ts of risk management as per ISO 31000:2018 – transfer, terminate, tolerate, or treat. Can you transfer the risk to a third party? Can you terminate the risk, or you can tolerate it and accept it or you can implement controls to minimize it?
The ultimate objective is to keep the car on the road running until you reach your destination safely. Good luck with driving safely.
Copyright Mustapha B Mugisa, Mr Strategy 2021. All rights reserved.
