First responders live in what-if or worst-case scenarios. They allow us to excel at our jobs when responding to any call for help. We are not given a CliffsNotes version of what has happened regarding the call for help. That means there’s an enormous amount of unknowns. This mindset is embedded in us from our first day of training, to prepare us for a career as a first responder. We become experts in what-if/worst-case and use it in any scenario, emergency or not.
Over our career, we also develop a BS meter that helps fill the gap when what-if/worst-case doesn’t apply. Now throw in compassion fatigue, PTS, and management issues, and you have a recipe for a mind that only thinks negative what-if/worst-case.
I have experienced and seen that negative mindset firsthand. It’s a dark and lonely rabbit hole where you become the disgruntled, angry, and never happy first responder. You find others avoid you completely, or love to push your buttons to get you fired up for entertainment purposes. Others don’t care about the consequences you’ll face because of your passionate, negative mindset.
For myself, it’s a daily struggle to avoid the negative news, conversations, or thoughts of what-if/worst-case that could play out in the day. This mindset creates a deep sense of distrust and constant vigilance, with the belief everyone is out to screw you over.
Do you like living in this space? If the answer is no, there’s hope, but no magic pill or one-day class to fix it. This requires work, hard work, grace, self-awareness, patience, and a level of humility most first responders can’t comprehend.
The 5 Gs: Tools for a Positive Mindset
There are skills you can build to combat the negative what-if/worst-case thinking: The 5 Gs, which include generous, giving, grace, gratitude, and grit. Let’s be more specific:
Generous – A high level of whatever you’re doing to make it sacrificial, out of your comfort zone.
Giving – To the extent you have built up an account with others that can’t be paid back to you or be expected to be paid back.
Grace – Starting with yourself, wanting to try your best in each moment, but life happens. And life happens for everyone despite the best intentions.
Gratitude – Showing gratitude to yourself for all you do, not focused on what you didn’t do. Recognize the efforts of others and the consequences or decisions that impact you positively.
Grit – An understanding that nothing is easy, and grit and determination are unmeasurable in success. Complacency and stigma can be like an anchor, preventing growth with suffering instead of thriving.
Keep the 5 Gs in mind as a focus of intent each day, instead of what-if/worst-case.
To pause and reflect in each moment will lead to a mindset of growth instead of an anchor. Remember, a pause isn’t the same as a stop, it’s more like the California slow roll. You can let your experience and training reflect in your quick response, instead of quick judgment.
