Author: admin

As an ergonomist my work often put me in a position where others were relying on me to point out opportunities or omissions that, if addressed, could make a job or system safer or more effective.  As a younger man, new to this work, at times I held back my observations, not wanting to offend others by criticizing what they were doing, or to say something that later might prove to be incorrect.  As I matured, I accepted and embraced my role to point out opportunities and omissions and if I failed to do so I would not be doing my work well.  Therefore, I became much more vocal in sharing my observations, with always appreciative feedback from clients and colleagues.

Since retiring, I am working much less in my profession of ergonomics, but still have the same mind which easily understands systems and what humans interacting with these systems may want or need, to understand information presented or accomplish what they seek to do easily and efficiently.  And, I still have insights about products and systems that could make an improvement for users’ experience, functionality or safety, and I face the question of “Should I take the risk, time and effort to share my insights?”  “To share or not to share.”

When I do share, what I offer may relate to a challenge I encountered such as  “I was unable to figure out how to do what I wanted to do, and I would like to share the details and a suggestion of how things might be done differently to make it more clear to used like me”  or they could be more of a general or of an observational nature such as an observed safety risk.  

I try to phrase my input in such a way that I lead with appreciation and compliments, and follow this with my suggestion or request, adding the caveat that mine is one perspective and that I understand it may not address the needs of all involved.  

When I do get a response it may be appreciative and in some cases it may come with a request for more information or a follow-up exchange.  Or I may not receive a reply or receive a dismissive reply which I can only guess about where it is coming from.  I know there can be an NIH attitude (Not Invented Here) and some people may have unpleasant feelings of inadequacy brought forward when something overlooked or done in error is brought to their attention.  Some may merely not be interested in spending time to understand or learn and/or don’t have the resources or the authority to make changes, so choose not to engage. 

I am human and like to be heard and appreciated for what I contribute, yet in many cases I do not receive the appreciation I desire.  I’m generally not attached to my suggestions being implemented, but feel drawn to continue making suggestions, yet can feel disappointed when I do not receive the affirmation I desire.  And thus I will continue to ask myself whether “to share or not to share”. 

In answering this question one criteria I will apply going forward is: What possible impact could come from implementing my suggestion or addressing the issue I raise?   I will bias my answer to the positive, and give the input, if there could be a positive impact to something that matters deeply, especially for sustainability, climate, biodiversity or any of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.  

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? And if not now, when? “(Rabbi Hillel)

I have tended to be silent and listen to others, most of my life.  Except when invited to share, I rarely insert myself into group conversations to tell stories as it seems most (many) folks like to do.  As an introvert, group conversations have not been my place to shine.  Yet, I often have perspectives that others appreciate, and that I enjoy feeling heard.

It has taken me quite a long time to arrive at this awareness that my words could be welcomed and appreciated by others.  With this awareness an urge has arisen in me to share my perspectives in a public and lasting way, that they may in some way add a meaningful drop in the ocean of public discourse.

I hold no illusion that I will suddenly gain a following of readers and yet I imagine it could be gratifying to point folks to my blog where I offer bits of my understanding of this world we share and continually co-create.

Topics of my posts will be diverse as I am interested in and fascinated by many things.  I enjoy observing and thinking about small bits of the world we inhabit, exploring perspectives, and imagining ways we might want to take advantage of, or work to change, that which is real.

Most of my life, I have been afraid to share my thoughts and creations,though I have always enjoyed creating and thinking.  I have feared I might be attacked, or seen as one with nothing valuable to contribute to the discourse.  I imagine that no one will be interested in what I have to share, or that my words might be quoted in such a way as to make it seem that I have repugnant views, and that I will be ostracized because of what I have shared.

As I look deeper I fear no one will notice or care.  This last fear may prove true, but even if it comes to pass that no one reads what I write, this is not a sufficient reason not to write.

Finally, as I am no longer seeking employment or a position that might be denied me due to me being seen negatively, I can let go of my fears and follow my desire to contribute, to be seen and heard.

Topic areas I plan to explore include and are not limited to:

• Ergonomics of everyday life
• Sustainability
• Observations
• Imaginings

Ergonomics is generally applied to help optimize an operation from both the human sustainability and human performance perspectives. The human performance focus often yields operations efficiencies in ways well beyond the health and safety of the employees involved. What if “sustainability” writ large was added into our goals? What if we focused on the impact of our ergonomics interventions on sustainability as well?

How can we who apply ergonomics make a bigger contribution to sustainability? Given the importance of sustainability, shouldn’t all change efforts include a goal of supporting sustainability?

Below is the beginning of a list of ways that we can consider, expand, share and implement. The first category, that occurred to me, of ways we can contribute more actively to sustainability, is to apply ergonomics in a context where sustainability is central. By doing what we already know well how to do in these particular contexts our work as ergonomists will be valuable in an expanded way, supporting overall sustainability, as well as human well being and operational efficiency.

Given what we know today about the precarious situation of our critical life supporting systems at a planetary level, who among us would not want our work to support sustainability?

Help expand the list of ideas. Through collaboration we can do much more than we can do as individuals. Additions to the list may be contributed in the comments. From there they will be captured and folded into the main post or a new version.

1. Working “on the ground”, applying ergonomics in work environments of industries that are closely involved in the sustainability infrastructure like solar and wind energy. This involvement could include:
   1. Problem solving to address the key ergonomics challenges faced, in collaboration with those doing the work.
   2. Sharing solutions or best practices that especially benefit these industries.
   3. Helping sustainability aligned operations to identify and reduce ergonomics risk.
   4. Providing training and education to sustainability focused operations.
   5. ????
2. Usability focus on content designed to communicate sustainability important topics.
   1. Easy to use and understand energy use calculator.
   2. ????
3. ???

Let’s flesh this list out together! (Also, please add your name to the list, on the webpage, of those who wish to connect and collaborate.)

Dan Gottesman