Know Thy Self

[MurrayM]

One facet of situational awareness is knowing ones strengths as well as ones limitations. One hundred percent confidence can be a dangerous thing.

Was cleaning out some desk drawers and came across this quote:

"When anyone asks me how I can best describe my experience in nearly forty years at sea, I merely say, uneventful. Of course there have been winter gales, and storms and fog and the like. But in all my experience, I have never been in any accident...or any sort worth speaking about. I have seen but one vessel in distress in all my years at sea. I never saw a wreck nor was I ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster of any sort."


Captain Edward J Smith, RMS Titanic

 

[MurrayM]

New York Times article, containing more of the quote, from 1912:

https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/disaster-at-last-befalls-capt-smith.html

 

[Comodave]

It only takes once. Arrogance can get you in trouble.

 

[HiDHo]

It reminds me of the “ Peter Principle “ rising to a level or station of incompetence.

 

[GoneFarrell]

Experience is what you get 5 seconds after you needed it.

Good judgment comes from experience.
Unfortunately, most experience comes from bad judgment.

 

[rgano]

Couldn't resist

https://youtu.be/_VrFV5r8cs0

 

[psneeld]

An intelligent person learns from their own mistakes, but a genius learns from the mistakes of others.

Author: anonymous
​

 

[KnotYet]

Do I wish I hadn't run my first boat onto a reef, totaling it? Yes.
Did it make me a more prudent and, I hope, better sailor? Yes.

 

[MurrayM]

An intelligent person learns from their own mistakes, but a genius learns from the mistakes of others.

Author: anonymous
​

"Good artists borrow. Great artists steal"

Picasso (who 'invented' cubism after seeing West African ceremonial masks)

 

[MurrayM]

Coste Rocks in Douglas Channel rise almost vertically from 600' on their east side...but...there's a section which dries at lower tides on the south side. The first summer with our boat I went over the drying section and was shocked to suddenly see rock through green water a couple feet under our keel. Yikes!

A couple years ago a 49-ish foot Meridian went over the same spot at speed which resulted in major damage. Got towed to Kitimat and sat in the yard for a looong time.

Simple dumb luck on my part. Lesson learned.

 

[psneeld]

"Good artists borrow. Great artists steal"

Picasso (who 'invented' cubism after seeing West African ceremonial masks)

I can see how you relate the 2 quotes.

 

[MurrayM]

I can see how you relate the 2 quotes.

Want to flesh that out? You may be romping down a vastly different road than I.

 

[Seevee]

The price of the seminar is cheap when training and learning from others.

 

[Wayfarer]

One facet of situational awareness is knowing ones strengths as well as ones limitations. One hundred percent confidence can be a dangerous thing.

I've taken Bridge Resource Management courses a few times over the years now. This is something that should probably be more heavily emphasized. I think it's hard for some people to look at themselves objectively, and give an honest assessment of strengths and weaknesses, but it's something we should all try to do. I've had to learn some of my own weaknesses the hard way. I've found that it's pretty easy for me to get complacent, but now that I know that, I'm better able to recognize it, and stop it from being a problem.