IB-004 - Situational Awareness | Intelligent Curiosity
CL: CUI
Non semper ea sunt quae videntur
Intel of Note
Situation Awareness & Intelligent Curiosity
What is Situational Awareness
Situational Awareness(SA) is a crucial survival skill. SA is best explained by using Cooper's Color Code, a framework developed by former U.S Marine Jeff Cooper to assist with refining what he viewed as the "Most important survival tool," the mind. The code consists of four different levels symbolized by the colors white, yellow, orange & red. Below are descriptions of the 3 conditions that are relevant to this discussion:
White - In this condition, the observer is unaware of their environment and the (f)actors that control it, they might as well be asleep. It is advised to never be in this condition barring being physically & mentally asleep.
Yellow - Consider condition yellow as Homebase, a state of relaxed awareness. Condition Yellow requires that the individual be hyper-aware of their operational environment(OE) but not to the point that causes fatigue to set in.
Orange - Condition Orange is a state of "heightened awareness." Think of it as a pre-engagement stage before the potential activation of the final condition, Red. This stage is resource-heavy as it requires sizeable amounts of processing power to determine the appropriate response(s) to whatever initially elevated the awareness level from yellow to orange.
Having the appropriate level of awareness for the situation and circumstances can be the difference between life and death.
What is Intelligent Curiosity?
Intelligent Curiosity(IC) is similar in concept to Deliberate Practice from the previous briefing. It is a strategic and intentional approach to an act that, under normal circumstances, is handled by the Automatic Mind. Use of the automatic mind is standard practice once a habit has formed. Using curiosity as a strategic tool can lead to new ideas, connections & opportunities that otherwise would not have formed under normal conditions. Employing this tactic opens doors that previously went unnoticed.
Intelligent Curiosity - A supplement to/launchpad for Situational Awareness
IC widens the focus of being aware of surroundings from just the environment itself to the forces and factors that can affect, change or otherwise influence the situation. Think of this concept as version 1.1 of SA. Individuals with adequate awareness of their surroundings can augment that skill by adding a small curiosity and speculation to the mix. Look for the factors that influence a given situation and generate theories about them. Pay special attention to patterns that are observed in the OE:
Are there specific actions, factors or events that take place in the OE that always trigger another reaction, factor or event to occur?
Can any of these items give you an advanced warning of another taking place?
Those without sufficient awareness skills can utilize IC to take their observational skill level from 0 to 1. Seeking out this extra information about a situation forces the individual to observe and interpret the aspects of a given OE. A tactic for those looking to establish their observational skills can start by taking inventory of how many people are in condition white in a given situation. This tactic can be easily modified, to suit the individual style of the observer and the environment. The objective of IC is to find the dots that need connecting by observing your OE.