Good Habits Gone Bad

Good habits are an important part of being a safe pilot. Habits encourage consistency, which helps a pilot do the right things at the right times. But there are dark sides to habits. Even if we do the right thing at the right time, its easy to miss something if were distracted while mindlessly performing our habit. Or, a normally good habit can be absolutely the wrong thing if invoked at the wrong time. Plus, any habit done by rote without recognition or thought can be dangerous. Perhaps worst, if were performing these habits without monitoring them we can slip into bad habits.

Editorial Staff

Friday, August 01, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

While good habits are essential for pilot safety and consistency, they become dangerous when performed mindlessly, especially under distraction or in altered circumstances.
Mindless habits can lead to errors such as missed steps during distractions, or inappropriate actions when deeply ingrained routines override conscious thought, even for normally correct procedures.
To mitigate these risks, pilots must cultivate mental involvement in every task, actively thinking through actions, verifying outcomes, and using checklists thoughtfully, restarting them after any interruption to maintain situational awareness.

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Good habits are an important part of being a safe pilot. Habits encourage consistency, which helps a pilot do the right things at the right times. But there are dark sides to habits. Even if we do the right thing at the right time, it’s easy to miss something if we’re distracted while mindlessly performing our habit. Or, a normally good habit can be absolutely the wrong thing if invoked at the wrong time. Plus, any habit done by rote without recognition or thought can be dangerous. Perhaps worst, if we’re performing these habits without monitoring them we can slip into bad habits.