Target Leadership is now available on Nook and Kindle

A compelling and unprecedented perspective on leadership, Target Leadership, by Jeff “Odie” Espenship, CEO of Target Leadership, Inc., has been made available for the Kindle and Nook. In just a few short days, Target Leadership has received five stars on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

In Target Leadership, Jeff “Odie” Espenship gives you a flight plan that will guide and motivate your leadership team to become Target Leaders. Being a Target Leader takes courage, commitment, and humility. Staying the same is easy and change is difficult, but where there is a will, there is a way. Where there is no will, there is an excuse. Best practices in workplace leadership and safety involve attention to detail, avoiding complacency, and making sure that how it’s done around here is exactly the same as how it should be done around here.

Reader Feedback
“This guy was a USAF pilot (A-10 Warthog) with an ocean of experience in the world’s most advanced safety culture. So, when he writes about it you can believe it’s true.”

“I also was deeply touched by this fresh, humanistic approach to what many times is dull material.”

“From the Author’s tragic personal experience with casually disregarding (what can seem to be) tedious safety procedure to break downs and analysis of some of the world’s deadliest (and avoidable) accidents this book is both gripping and informative from start to finish.”

Download Target Leadership E-Book Now
Kindle Download: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D6OESDM/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_img_sol_0

Nook Download: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/target-leadership-jeff-odie-espenship/1115541059?ean=2940016794952

About Target Leadership
Target Leadership, founded by fighter pilots and operated by fighter pilots, use their experience as fighter pilots to motivate and encourage a company’s “Fighter Pilots” (or employees) to embrace leadership safety systems in the workplace. Jeff “Odie” Espenship has become one of the highest rated leadership-safety keynote speakers with Fortune 100 and 500 employees nationwide. His motivational DVDs, sold worldwide in two languages, can be purchased online at OdieVision.com. His much anticipated book “Target Leadership: Mangers Manage – Leaders Influence – Target Leaders Inspire” was released in May of 2013 and can be purchased online at Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Whether the audience is medical, manufacturing, chemical, utility, construction, banking, team sports, or retail, their programs will motivate the workforce to accelerate to new heights in leadership, safety, teamwork, and overall operational excellence.

For more information please visit https://targetleadership.com or call toll-free at (800) 392-1544.

Competence vs. Judgement

This post references the first official aviation accident in which texting was considered part of the cause. See this link.

Competence is one thing, poor judgment is another. The texting helicopter pilot was plenty competent. You? If you passed your driver’s test the state declares you a competent driver. But one more thing is essential to stay out of the hospital or morgue: attention to the job. In the fighter pilot realm we called this “mission orientation”. That is, knowing your mission and performing that mission while refusing to be distracted by qweep.

Qweep (n.) – Anything that distracts from the mission.

Your mission might be a safe trip to soccer practice or a road trip to Montana. You can do these while listening to the radio or engaging in small talk, but some distractions will compromise safety and must be ruthlessly eliminated. If fog gets so thick you cannot drive, don’t. If noise in the car is too loud to concentrate, turn down the noise. And if a phone keeps drawing your attention from the road, turn off the phone.

A pilot must protect the mission as though it were his life—because it is—and a driver must do the same. Politeness or bashfulness cannot be allowed to ruin a life. When the mission is being threatened, the offending distraction must be dealt with immediately and without mercy.

Mission Oriented

This post references the first official aviation accident in which texting was considered part of the cause. See this link.

Psychologists have found pilots to be compartmentalizers. This can (and has) made for some difficult interpersonal relations because we need a place for everything and everything in its place psychologically. Did you ever see the movie “The Great Santini”?

A compartmentalizer may be hard to live with because they ruthlessly guard the mission. Consequently, they are more likely to survive in a high risk environment. When personal issues invade the pilot’s mission compartment, the mission is in danger and lives hang in the balance. And here is the insidiously dangerous nature of driving while texting:

Texting (even just talking on the phone) involves emotional content, intense dialogue that endangers the mission by getting into your driving compartment.

Reaction times for those even just talking on a phone while driving are (on average) worse than for those driving under the influence. Never text. Turn off the phone while driving. If a call is essential, pull over to make it. This is the only way to keep your driving compartment clear of deadly distractions.

Texting and Flying

This post references the first official aviation accident in which texting was considered part of the cause. See this link.

Texting and flying sounds way worse than texting and driving, but is it really? When you drive a heavy machine with lives in your hands it matters not if the machine is an airliner with 400 people aboard or a minivan with the family in back. Different degrees of devastation is all. Either machine has plenty of energy for a fatal crash.

There is only one safety device that really matters: an attentive, competent operator.

With over 10, 000 flying hours and countless hours instructing and observing pilots in action, I can summarize flying as a series of correcting small mistakes. An airplane needs constant adjustments to hold speed, altitude, and heading. And cars? We steer constantly to stay in our lane, we operate pedals to control the speed, we look ahead to react to traffic signals and we react to the actions of other drivers.

When we stop correcting these small deviations, we get bent metal, hissing airbags, and blood on the windshield. If you wake up dead—or worse—wake up having killed someone, does it really matter whether the instrument of death had wheels or propellors?

Target Leadership releases power packed DVD series with seven safety lessons

Target Leadership President and CEO, former USAF A-10 Fighter Pilot, Jeff “Odie” Espenship has released a DVD title “Safety Lessons for Superior Leadership”. This DVD is a collection of lessons Odie delivers to companies whose employees endeavor for safer work practices. This DVD is perfect for companies with employees who need to hear a motivating safety message but don’t have the resources to attend larger safety conferences.

The DVD is a full library of training material contained in seven lessons averaging eight minutes each (total of 56 minutes), suitable for inspiring training sessions at any high-risk work facility. The titles include:

  • Complacency: The Silent Killer
  • Snap Decisions
  • Pulling Through Every Time
  • Changes in Work Activity
  • Hazard Recognition
  • Knock It Off
  • Keep Off the Grass

Each of these mini-sessions address a close call or a life and death situation, and serve as reminder of how you can keep your employees safe in their jobs through attention to small details and not cutting corners for efficiency or improved bottom lines. The DVD can be used an unlimited number of times at a fraction of the cost of just registration at major safety conferences, not to mention the cost of travel.

About Target Leadership
Odie’s Target Leadership message is one of the most sought after keynotes among Fortune 100 companies such as Exxon Mobile, Chevron & General Electric. Whether the audience is medical, manufacturing, chemical, utility, construction, banking, team sports, or retail, their programs will motivate the workforce to accelerate to new heights in leadership, safety, teamwork, and overall operational excellence.

For more information please visit https://targetleadership.com or call 770-356-6240

Motivational Safety Speaker Jeff “Odie” Espenship Headlines with Keynote at GM UAW Joint Conference

Target Leadership President and CEO, former USAF A-10 Fighter Pilot, Jeff “Odie” Espenship, was invited to be the kick-off Keynote speaker at the General Motors United Auto Workers Conference this past May 2012 in Las Vegas, NV.

The purpose of the joint conference is to drive a zero accident culture through inspiring team members to apply safety principles in and out of the work environment, make individual decisions collectively, and encourage “approachability.” Odie explains “approachability” as a personal mindset that every person on every job has a piece of information that you need. He warns that bottom up approachability can be difficult for those who feel threatened or intimidated by another’s experience, skill, and knowledge. He encourages supervisors to create a culture that welcomes employees to focus on following processes, and approaching those that who feel compelled to take a short cut – “It’s a conversation, not a confrontation,” says Odie.

Odie hits home with a story about job culture, “the way it’s done around here,” and also engineering better process safety into the equipment. Odie related job culture and process safety as major causes that took the life of his former USAF instructor pilot and good friend, Captain Scott Porter. Just “one switch” out of place in the cockpit killed them both.

Every organization has the “one switch” that can hurt or kill employees. It might be a piece of equipment that is not functioning properly, poor process engineering, lack of training, or improper procedural regimen.

Teaching people to “approach” others with ideas about how to improve in “the way it’s done around here” attitude is strong way to move towards a zero accident culture.

About Target Leadership
Odie’s Target Leadership message is one of the most sought after keynotes among Fortune 100 companies such as Exxon Mobile, Chevron & General Electric. Whether the audience is medical, manufacturing, chemical, utility, construction, banking, team sports, or retail, their programs will motivate the workforce to accelerate to new heights in leadership, safety, teamwork, and overall operational excellence.

For more information please visit https://targetleadership.com or call toll-free at (800) 392-1544.

Motivational Safety Speaker Jeff “Odie” Espenship to Speak at IADC Leadership Seminar in Amsterdam

Target Leadership President and CEO, former USAF A-10 Fighter Pilot, Jeff “Odie” Espenship, is presenting at the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) Annual European Health, Safety and Environment Conference in Amsterdam this September.

Odie first presented to IADC in 2009 and received a 99.8% approval rating from over 400 participants. His presentation addresses how leaders influence worker behavior and maintain job culture. He warns leaders to watch for the phrase “I’ll be careful” because it usually means someone is about to something dumb, dangerous or different. His approach can be described as “Edutainment” – a message peppered with knowledge, humor, humility, and entertainment.

Target Leadership, founded by Odie after the loss of his brother in an aviation accident, refers to a company’s employees and staff as “fighter pilots.” Target Leadership speakers use their aviation background and experience as fighter pilots to motivate and encourage a company’s “fighter pilots” to embrace company leadership safety systems using real life and death experiences and examples.

About Target Leadership
Odie’s Target Leadership message is one of the most sought after keynotes among Fortune 100 companies such as Exxon Mobile, Chevron & General Electric. Whether the audience is medical, manufacturing, chemical, utility, construction, banking, team sports, or retail, their programs will motivate the workforce to accelerate to new heights in leadership, safety, teamwork, and overall operational excellence.

About IADC
IADC has represented the worldwide oil and gas drilling industry since 1940. Their conferences are industry-driven events focusing on drilling technology, well control, health, safety and environment, training and industry economics and financial outlook. The organization has offices worldwide including locations in Houston, TX, Washington, DC, Nijmegen, Netherlands, Dubai, UAE, and Bangkok, Thailand.

For more information please visit https://targetleadership.com or call toll-free at (800) 392-1544.

Deadly Distractions – The Crash of Eastern 401

This is a rare picture of the Lockheed L-1011, Ship# 310, that crashed into the Everglades. This picture was likely taken just weeks before the crash.

It is almost midnight, December 29, 1972, when Eastern Airlines ship #310 began her final approach to land at Miami International airport.

The captain, called Miami tower on the radio:

“Miami tower, Eastern 401, just turned on final.”
The captain then instructed the copilot to lower the landing gear,
”Go ahead and throw ‘em out.”

When the landing gear handle was lowered, the pilots checked to make sure there were three green lights, indicating that all three landing wheels are safely down and locked (as shown).

Both pilots stare in disbelief. This is the final exchange between two highly skilled, very competent pilots (operators) who became so distracted by a 20 cent burned out light bulb, they crashed into the Everglades.

“We did something to the altitude,” said the copilot.

“What?” answered the surprised captain.

In complete bewilderment the copilot said, “We’re still at two thousand, right?”

“Hey, what’s happening here?” These were the final words spoken from the captain as the cockpit area microphone picked up the sounds of Ship 310 flying itself into the Everglades. 101 fatalities.

Science is clear, humans are not as good at multitasking as we think we are. When someone tells me they are good at multitasking, I know they are good at doing multi-jobs poorly. Unplanned interruptions and distractions in the workplace are common. Employees must recognize these as leading indicators that can lead up to an incident or accident. We are essentially being forced to multitask.

Discuss possible situations and scenarios of where you and your people are most likely to face unwanted distractions. Have a plan in place when something unplanned pops up. Hindsight is always 20/20, but having foresight is 20/20/20. That means every 20 minutes, take 20 seconds, and look 20 feet around you. You might be surprised at what you see.

For those of us who work in a high risk work environment, it is imperative we keep our situational awareness congruent with reality. There is nothing more dangerous than someone who is clueless and doesn’t know it – yet. As an operator (airline pilot), anytime an unplanned interruption comes my way, I use the acronym SLAP to help me remember to stay focused:

S top the current path / work / progression while using Foresight 20/20/20.
L isten to others, gather information about the interruption.
A ssess the distraction. Decide to either discount, delay, or redirect the issue.
P roceed with the plan or rebrief a revised plan. Never assume everyone understands what you want. Be clear and concise. Ask probing questions.

By doing this, hopefully you will never allow a small distraction to become the main attraction.

Free Study Guide

Every high-risk enterprise MUST have a culture of safety to minimize accidents, and that kind of culture is developed through personal responsibility, procedural compliance, and appropriate leadership at every level. This study guide based on the “Pulling Through” DVD provides a framework for developing that kind of culture.
The study guide may be used alone, but will be greatly enhanced by viewing the DVD entitled, “Pulling Through Every Time” available from Odievision.com and under the product link of this site. In this video, Jeff “Odie” Espenship describes events surrounding the loss of his brother in an aviation accident.

Your company could benefit from this study guide and optional DVD if:

  • Teamwork and personal responsibility matter,
  • You cannot afford shortcuts in procedures,
  • You need to set and maintain high standards of personal conduct in daily operations.

If you need to develop an effective half-day session on improving the workplace safety culture, this study guide is an excellent resource.

-Audie O.

Active Listening Builds Trust and Saves Lives

After personally interviewing Capt. Bob Bragg, the last surviving pilot involved in what still stands today as the “worst aviation accident in history.”, I am reminded that active listening saves lives.  Capt Bragg was the copilot on board a Pan American 747 jumbo jet when a KLM 747 jet collided with him on the runway on the island of Tenerife in 1977.

The runway was shrouded in fog as the captain of the KLM aircraft advanced the throttles for takeoff.  He refused to listen to his crew members when they first protested by saying, “we don’t have clearance,” then followed up by asking, “is the Pan Am clear?”

The KLM captain emphatically stated that Pan Am was clear.  History clearly shows otherwise as Copilot Bob Bragg saw the KLM abruptly appear out of the fog, and attempt to fly over the top of his aircraft.  They didn’t make it, and 583 people lost their lives as a result.

Time and again we see errors in communication, misunderstanding, and assuming.

In complex operations, changes in work activity happen all the time, yet hazards abound.  At the top of the list is having a leader in charge who refuses to listen to others before making a decision that directly affects other people lives.  These leaders feel their situational awareness is good, yet their perceptions of reality vs actual reality is incongruent.  Only by actively listening to others can these leaders make correct decisions.

The Tenerife disaster has clearly taught us that everyone, no matter their rank or experience, has a piece of information that might be the critical piece, the last chain link, or final domino in a chain of events that prevents disaster.

As an airline copilot, I had the pleasure of working with a senior airline captain who embodied active listening.  When the flight operation was being hampered by bad weather, or mechanical problems, or passenger issues, before he made final decisions that affected the lives of others, he employed these three active listening techniques in sequential order, to solicit information from his team:

1) “What I Heard You Say Is….”
2) “Did I Get That Right?”
3) “Is There More?”

For example, when the captain finished listening to critical information, he made the statement, “What I Heard You Say Is…” and he would proceed to parrot back the information without putting his spin, thoughts, or opinion on the subject.  The captain then followed up with, “Did I get that right? “.  Once the captain heard the answer to number 2 as, “Yes,” he would move on to number 3 by asking, “Is there more?”
I witnessed many amazing transformations in body language and tone of voice when he employed this methodical listening process.  It was especially effective with upset passengers.

As a safety professional, anytime communication is turning from conversation to confrontation, try using this captain’s proven listening technique before making critical decisions.  This technique even works well with teenagers.  Although they may not like your decision, they are far more likely to support you because they have been heard, and being heard builds trust with leadership.