Alertists are always on the watch. (TM)

Many years ago it be came apparent to me that some people just seem to "see" everything.  Later I read of them referred to as "alertists."

In your organization you need alertists.  Generally the more you have, the better your organization.  I authored the following a number of years ago to help emphasize to our staff members the importance of paying attention.  As you may have noted, I have trademarked the title.

_____________________________


Alertists are always on the watch.  They almost cannot help themselves. They seem to see things around them whether they want to or not.  They are the ones who walk through a room and notice that a clock is 10 minutes fast.  Or they see the dime on the edge of the floor and stop to pick it up.  (Unless they are at the National Farm Machinery Show where those pranksters from Richway have super-glued another one to the floor, just so they can watch people try to pick it up.)  Alertists just seem to see things the rest of us often miss.

Seemingly without thinking about it, they find the spelling errors in a newspaper.  Walking along a trail, the alertist notices fresh deer tracks in the mud, or the poison ivy at the edge of the path.  At the movie, they notice immediately that an actress’s earrings change in the middle of a scene.  It is just like I said.  Alertists are always on the watch!

Sherlock Holmes, the famous fictional detective, once solved a crime because he noted “a curious thing.”  The dog did nothing during a night-time crime, which led Holmes to conclude that the dog must have known the criminal well.

On the job, alertists are the ones who just seem to sense when something is not right.  They notice that parts are a slightly different color.  Or the alertist realizes that a parts order has parts for two different markers and questions whether there may have been a part number error.  When producing parts, they recognize almost immediately when something in a process is different.  Always on the watch!  And then, they are the ones who ask the questions.

Most people are not true alertists.  But with training and practice, they can improve their skills.  With conscious thought and practice, you too can improve your skills.