A safety inspector called me out on my hand signals and honestly I needed to hear it

I've been running a tower crane on a site in Austin for about 4 years now, and I always thought my hand signals were fine. We had this old safety inspector come through last month, and he pulled me aside after my morning lift. He said my signals were too loose and that I was mixing up the 'boom up' and 'boom down' motions when I was tired. I was kinda pissed at first, but I watched my own footage from the site cameras and yeah, I was sloppy. He showed me a better way to keep my elbows locked and my movements crisp even when I'm rushing. I've been practicing it every day since, and my ground guys are actually commenting that it's clearer. Has anyone else had a veteran operator or inspector call out a habit you thought was fine?

2 comments

2 Comments

oliverhernandez1mo ago

Stiffen up those elbows and slow down your movements when you feel rushed.

robins831mo ago

Honestly, this is one of those tips that sounds simple but actually takes real practice to get right. When you're under pressure in a game, your body naturally wants to tense up and rush everything, which makes your shots go wild. Ngl, I've had to force myself to focus on my elbow position during timeouts just to reset my muscle memory. Slowing down your footwork too helps keep everything connected, not just your upper body. It's like when you're tired and start slouching - you lose all your power and accuracy. Tbh, keeping those elbows tucked and tight has saved me more times than I can count when the defense is closing in.