This weekend I came across the term: Split-second decision-making. While in combat situations or any situation that is unfolding the need for Split-second decision-making is essential. This form of decision-making is critical that there exist Split-second decision-making drills.
These drills are designed to challenge your ability to make quick accurate decisions during a situation that is either unfolding (where a series of quick decisions are needed) or there is no time to make a single decision. Such situations can be natural disasters (hurricanes, flooding, tornadoes, etc.) or man-made disasters (fires, bombings, acts of terror, vehicle accidents, etc.)
These drills cover all aspects of data gathering, interpreting & processing, formulating a decisions, and then acting/implementing on that decision. Usually, for split-second decision making the time to collect data is constantly ongoing. Interpreting and processing is made in milliseconds as is formulating the decision, and launching the decision. This leaves little to no room for decisions to be made by committee. Usually, the decision maker is the solo decision maker in these situations, if incapacitated, someone else will have to step up.
Whoever stands up better be ready, as they will be calling up on all their critical thinking skills, training and knowledge, experiences and above all, their common sense to start making decisions. Of course, no two critical situations are alike and each will be unique in the actions that have taken place as well as the response to those actions.
I know that when Hurricane Emily (2005) was forecast to come to my neck of the woods, we were preparing for the worst. Instead, it headed south and was merely a slight rainmaker. Then last year, when Hurricane Dolly decided she was heading this way, we were preparing for the worst. However, the storm turned north and dropped a lot of rain and blew a lot of wind our way. At one point, the eye of the hurricane was less than 15 miles from my front door. Still it was not that bad and that’s a good thing.
There you go, two storms that could have done a world of damage but instead did two separate things. Decisions were made at every point of the storms' journey, arrival, and subsequent departure, which goes to show that if one is ready to lead in a time of crisis or disaster they can. Helping this process can be done by working through the situations via simulations and in some cases implementing or executing part of that split-second decision-making process as if something had happened.
...more to come
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