Controller Union Blames Separation Errors On Poor Training; FAA Says Training OK

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is blaming poor controller training practices for a March 13 incident in which a Boeing 737 and an Embraer regional jet did not have adequate separation while on approach to Chicago’s Midway Airport. But the FAA says the current training regime is an improvement over old methods. According to a NATCA spokesman, a controller trainee was working both aircraft at the time of the incident… “Since the error occurred while the planes were flying away from each other, no accident was possible,” the FAA said…

“I think we are headed down a dangerous path of certifying individuals to be controllers before they are truly ready,” said Jeffrey Richards, NATCA’s Chicago Center facility representative. Richards argues that functional training-wherein a controller learns a new position while continuing to work shifts in the old position-offers trainees “no time to perfect the skills they have learned. This creates a situation in which the trainee could be certified at a position and then not see that position for months afterwards.” But according to the FAA, functional training is an improvement on old methods “because it pushes more classroom and simulator training to the front end of the process, eliminates redundancies, and reduces waiting time for classes and simulator training. It allows for more continuous training instead of dealing with numerous stops and starts of training over long month to month periods.”

Click here for the whole AVWEB story.

So, which side is right? Whose perspective do you see, and which side is more compelling?

The latest trend of working at home seems to be not working at home. From CNN:

Organized “coworking” — the concept of working solo alongside like-minded independents — has spread to dozens of cities.

This has apparently taken off because of the growing number of solo-preneurs. Apparently, these ‘preneurs were too accustomed to working alongside people and didn’t quite realize that ‘working at home’ meant they don’t have any office-mates, cube-mates, or colleagues that can just drop in and discuss the weather, the latest reality shows or anything else that comes to mind.

What makes you want to go to work … the work itself being satisfying or the people interaction? And how does your boss play a hand in that?

Is it the people that make your job enjoyable, or your job that makes the people enjoyable?

From the movie “Next” with Nicholas Cage

“Here’s the thing about the future. Every time you look at it, it changes because you looked at it. And that changes everything else.”

Think about it. If you knew what would happen in the future, would your perspective of today’s events change?

There has been much speculation on the differences between the democratic candidates. Is there really a difference on the issues? Or are both Clinton and Obama taking the same stance? Tony Snow, former White House Press Secretary, now a FoxNews political contributor says:

On substance, there’s not a huge difference between her [Hillary Clinton] and Barack Obama on key issues. It comes down to personality. For many Obama voters, it is “we like him.” Hillary Clinton’s trying to make the argument that he is really not quite ready for prime time. … There are things in his background that he has to rectify… Barack Obama’s figured out a couple of things. No. 1, people want optimism. No. 2, they want a sense of national unity…[click here for the Larry King interview]

If you believe there is no marked difference between the candidates, why do you choose one over the other? Why do you believe in one person’s intents and words, and not another person’s?

Think back to your previous managers, supervisors, or colleagues. The ones you were drawn to? What was the basis for this ‘pull’? Was it their values? The way they talked? The words they used? How they paid attention to what you said? How they made you feel important? How they encouraged and motivated you?

How about those managers that you did not perform your best? How did they make you feel … what did they say [or what did they NOT say]? How did they treat you? Did they support you, or did they ignore you?

What did they say to you … and what did you hear them say?

Listening to The O’Reilly Report tonight where Bernard Goldberg and Jane Hall debated on whether NBC was hard on Senators Clinton and Obama in the democratic debate last night. I missed the debates because I was facilitating my on-line Organizational Leadership class, so I have no opinion that I would like to share on this forum.

Everyone heard the same questions; these comments are from FoxNews

“I will tell you it does not get much more fun than these debates,” Obama joked Thursday. “They are inspiring events. Last night I think we set a new record because it took us 45 minutes before we even started talking about a single issue that matters to the American people.”

Clinton spokesman Phil Singer retorted Thursday that it is Obama who is leaning on character attacks, and that his new comments “are being driven by his need to cover up his awful performance last night.”

Obama thinks he heard irrelevant questions for the first 45 minuts.
Clinton spokesman thought he heard character attacks from Obama.

How about this:

Obama later told the North Carolina crowd that the debate was good practice for the general election.

“If the Republicans come at me, I will come right back at them. You know — I’ll be honest with you … I’ll be honest with you — it’s a little harder to do with a fellow Democrat because you know, I’m trying to, you know, show some restraint. You know I won’t have this much restraint with the Republicans.”

Why did Obama say, not once but twice in this sentence, that he will be honest with us?

What did you get out of the debate?

It isn’t what they said, it’s what you think you heard.

From http://www.despair.com/compromise.html

Is that how you would define ‘compromise’?

Over the weekend I had a problem with my phone [the red one on the left pictured above]. My battery was on yellow [red means it is nearly completely depleted]. I connected it to the charger and walked away. Several hours later I checked on it and found out it could not be charged. I knew the battery had to be reset, but I couldn’t figure out how to get the back cover off!

I called customer service and told my sad tale of woe to the customer rep. He told me to turn the phone over and, by the hinge, there was a place to push in to unhook the clasp to get the back cover off. The only thing I could find was a circle close to the ‘vent’ to push in. I confirmed that that was what I was to push. He reassured me it was.

Here I was, using a pen to push in this little circle [seen above on the upper left corner of the black phone], trying to push in and remove the back of the phone. I pushed and pulled and tried to move, using not only the pen tip but also a small butter knife and a h’ors d’oeuvres fork! All to no avail. The customer service rep was oh-so-very-patiently waiting.

I finally, after nearly breaking the phone, found the right area to push. It was not at all close to where I was pushing. There is a small silver area about 1/2″ [on the back of the phone] from the camera eye on the front of the phone. Once I clicked that, the back panel came off with no problem!

I reset the battery and now the phone is completely charged.

Let me ask you ….. was what he said what I heard?

It wasn’t what he said … it was what I think I heard.

So communication must be easy, right?

In watching Bill O’Reilly’s ‘conversation’ with Karl Rove centering on China and the Olympics, Mr. Rove stated “The goal ought not to be the process, the goal ought to be the end result of the actions. That is to say you ought to be focused on bringing about change, not focused on …”

Typically, those managers that are not experienced in delegating will focus on the process. They will focus on micro-managing to insure the task is done ‘correctly; [translation: their way]. Think of the message it sends: no or very little trust, incompetence, little or no ability to complete the task.

I have seen occasionally a manager that will focus on the end result of the actions. Unfortunately they will not give enough detail to insure the task is completed up to standard. The person and the project are both doomed to fail.

In your discussions, delegations and leading, are you focused on the process, or on the end result?

It isn’t what you say, it’s what they think they hear.

Words …. they have already been a hot topic this political season. Do we ‘own’ words … just because we said it does that mean that someone else cannot use those same words?

Are there any new ideas in the world? Many people will tell you that there is not, there is simply different ways to say the same thing. It’s our perspective, and our way of relating to the listeners and audience that makes the difference.

Why does it matter what words we use when we talk to people? Or why should we pay attention to the words that people use when talking to us?

Respect is the answer to both these questions. Think about it … how do you feel about the person if they mispronounce your name, either your first name or your last name? The first time, you may correct them. If they continue to do it … well let’s say you may not be as receptive to them as you would be if they pronounced your name correctly. When you make an effort to call someone by their name, and pronounce it correctly, you are showing respect for them.

Think about the words you use … aren’t they a direct reflection on how you think? Do you analyze, calculate, think things through? Or do you energize, thrive and excite? If you are the type that speaks your mind, would you appreciate being called ‘cooperative’? If you are a pensive person, how would you react to being called ‘dynamic’?

There are words you can use in your conversation that show you not only respect your listener, you also want to build a relationship with them. Those words …. aahh they are for another blog.

Remember It isn’t what you said, it’s what they think they heard.