My kid asked me why I always check the wind twice

I was packing up after a long day on a 300-ton crawler crane in Tacoma last week. My daughter, she's eight, was watching from the truck. She asked me, 'Daddy, why do you look at that flag so much before you move anything?' I told her it's the wind, it can push the load. She said, 'But you already looked at it once.' That simple question hit me. I've been doing it for twelve years, and I guess I never really thought about the 'why' behind my own routine. Has a question from someone outside the trade ever made you stop and think about your own habits?

2 comments

2 Comments

matthewperry1mo ago

That's not a habit, that's just the job.

amygonzalez1mo ago

Actually, habits are how any job gets done day after day. The routine parts become automatic, and that's what a habit is. Saying it's just the job ignores how much of our work is built on repeated personal patterns. The line between a professional routine and a personal habit is pretty blurry in my experience.