No, this is not a post about Dave Brubeck...sorry jazz fans.

This is a post about safety...

At a place I worked one of the businesses had developed a notepad with Take 5 emblazoned on the front. It was a checklist of four sections (the first four listed below).

The "take 5" concept was to go through five steps when approaching a task (especially relevant for tasks you have not tackled before) with the fifth step being the "do" part...

(1) THINK THROUGH THE TASK
Do you know what you are doing?
Are the tools and equipment in good order?
Do you have the correct PPE?
Do you have a clear plan in mind?

(2) SPOT THE HAZARDS
Will I be operating equipment with the guards removed?
Does the task involve hazardous materials?
Will I be working at height?
...you get the drift.

(3) ASSESS THE RISKS
Is the risk to personal (or other's) saftey extreme or high?

(4) MAKE THE CHANGES
Are any hazards left uncontrolled?
If yes then rethink how you do the task - go back to step (1)

(5) DO THE TASK SAFELY

It sounds like common sense doesn't it? But as someone once said " there is nothing common about common sense ".