You’ve certainly seen the Keep Calm and Carry On meme but do you know where the phrase comes from?
In 1939 in preparation for World War II the British government printed Keep Calm and Carry On posters they pasted all over London.
The purpose was to keep up British morale ahead of the imminent Nazi bombings.
And also to ensure when the bombing started, the Brits remained strong.
“Your buddies die when you panic”
“In the SEAL teams,” my shooting instructor said to me…
“The first and most important lesson you’re taught is that calm is contagious.”
Calm breeds calm.
“And that’s most crucial in a firefight,” he said.
If as soon as bullets go flying operators start running around like headless chooks of course more die.
We all know calm is crucial in a crisis
911 operators are taught to speak calmly which helps people in dangerous situations stay calm and convey crucial information.
Of course all emergency responders are trained this way.
On receiving a GSW patient, an ER nurse doesn’t run around screaming “AHHHHH, EMERGENCY, EMERGENCY!!”
A paramedic doesn’t tell everyone at the scene to freak out.
That’s not because the problem isn’t serious
Pros don’t live in denial telling everyone “It’s under control.”
They respond calmly in a crisis because that’s how you show up best.
And deliver the best outcomes.
It doesn’t mean everything is going to be all good.
But it does mean you respond in a way that things will be as good as they can be.
And by staying calm in a crisis you help other people stay calm too.
Because calm is contagious.
And unfortunately so too is panic
In the Iroquois Theatre fire of 1903 some 600 people lost their lives.
Many died from the fire, but hundreds were trampled to death by others escaping the fire.
As kids we’re taught to calmly walk through fire drills to avoid casualties caused by panic.
Just like SEALs in a firefight, the most dangerous situations require the most calm.
Yet the virus has bred outright panic
Looking around the world today, sadly you see people losing their lives to the virus.
Yet too you see countless others losing their livelihoods as so many of us trample for the doors.
Not wanting to understate the risk and potentially waste a good crisis…
Media, governments, and just about everyone else is responding at DEFCON 1.
They might be right that the virus is the most dangerous threat to our species since the movie Armageddon.
Yet by running around declaring EMERGENCY, EMERGENCY, EMERGENCY!!!
They’ve of course put the stock market and everyone else on a tragic ride.
Calm is part of the cure to the virus
A Chinese doctor whose treated many afflicted by the virus said that high blood pressure is a major cause of death.
Which of course is majorly caused by panic and fear.
For years we’ve been wearing the Keep Calm t-shirts.
Yet relative to the Brits losing 40,000 lives being bombed by the Nazi’s, how are we measuring up in this potential crisis?
btw, this article on conditioning your mind is getting hit a lot right now as we all know we can’t control the world and others around us, but we can control our own minds.