Overview

I started this book at the request of my publisher long before the recent rash of mass shootings. I am a conniving, opportunistic little troll, but even I wouldn't sink so low as to capitalize on the epidemic of carnage that has plagued us recently. The 24-news cycle brings tragedy into our homes daily, and it's easy to believe that workplace violence is at an epidemic level, but that is not the case. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, workplace homicides rose by only 2% in 2015 while shootings overall had risen 15%. Even so, while gun rights advocates and opponents alike can argue over the extent of the problem, that is not the intent of this book. I grew up on a farm and around firearms and while I do not own firearms, I firmly believe that the mere availability of guns is not the root cause of this problem. The availability of baseball bats is far more common and yet we seldom see a person grabbing a bat and heading to the workplace to bash some skulls (although some of us may feel like it from time to time). This is not a subject about which I should be glib, but most people seem to forget about the extent of the problem so perhaps an emotional kick in the gut is what we need to take this issue more seriously. And it's certainly worth noting that while we all might feel the urge to choke out our bosses or a coworker from time to time--most of us don't and won't--but to be on the safe side, if I put food in the refrigerator (even if I don't put my name on it) if you have any sense of self-preservation you won't eat it. And frankly, why would you? You know it isn't yours. Fortunately, I go out to lunch, but it's little things like this that can fester into real conflicts and add mental illness and alcohol into that mix and you may just get a violent outburst. Seriously though, what kind of person eats someone else's lunch and thinks that it's okay? You may have noticed that I use humor a lot in my writing and some people are put off by it. This book is no exception. I find that making a joke before or after making a serious point tends to help people retain the serious points. And this book is about a serious issue, so serious in fact, that were I not to lighten it up once and again it could become so depressing that I would struggle to write it and you would struggle to read it. If you can't handle that, might I suggest a nice coloring book or perhaps The Little House in The Big Woods it's not funny and won't help you survive a workplace shooting but then there's always a trade-off. The resulting tome would be good for killing the occasional centipede or for use as a doorstop but would be useless for its intended purpose, which is, to act as a guide and a handbook to any and all of you who want to protect your workplace from single shooter events. So I won't apologize to you if my use of humor offends your delicate sensibilities or neurotic compulsion to be politically correct because the points that you remember through the lens of your righteous indignation might just save multiple lives.

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"""I took time out of a busy schedule to read Phil LaDuke's latest book -- Lone Gunman: Rewriting the Rulebook on Workplace Violence because I knew it was important. Women are very often the victims of violence and the workplace is no exception. I know the problem; what I appreciated as a small business owner were the ideas about how to identify people and scenarios that could become problematic. A good read."" -Paula Talarico, Attorney and Women's Rights Activist ""Chris Rock once said: ""You can only offend me if you mean something to me"". Phil's writing doesn't pull punches and may be a bit like someone swinging a bag of broken glass in a crowded room but if his words cut deep and gouge a lot of nerves it's only because he has the insight and courage to articulate what many of us are thinking and, for the rest, still struggling with weird feelings, he puts his gnarly finger right on it. People love him because he has empathy and vents on their behalf, people hate him because he has figured them out, exposed them, challenged their worldview and sent their cognitive dissonance into meltdown. Either way, Phil's writing means something to everyone. He has inspired and completely changed the trajectory and style of my own writing. In the words of another safety literary legend and fellow Phil Fan, the late George Robotham: ""It would be a boring world if everybody agreed with me"". --Dave Collins, Creator, Editor, and Publisher https: //safetyrisk.net/ ""Phil's passion comes through in virtually everything he writes. He is an outspoken advocate for employee engagement and respect for workers"" --Dr. Paul Marciano, Best selling author of Carrots and Sticks Don't Work: Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles of Respect and Super Teams: Using the Principles of Respect to Unleash Explosive Business Performance ""Phil La Duke is an original. After Phil they broke the mold. Certainly his thoughts and ideas on workplace safety and health fit no mold. Phil is no safety drone. His writing is provocative, sometime blunt, sometimes insulting, sometimes raw. His is an outsider's take, almost an outlaw's take, on what is good, bad and ugly about current workplace safety thinking and practices. It's a perspective you won't find anywhere else."" --Dave Johnson, Editor. ISHN magazine ""Phil La Duke has devoted his career to industrial safety. He knows the importance of doing an unglamorous job well and what goes terribly wrong when people don't. He is angry about all the right things. --Peter Page, contributed content editor Entrepreneur magazine Phil LaDuke truly shatters the decades-old mindsets of safety professionals that have mired the profession in ideological adherence to accident safety practices, while stifling the introduction of innovative approaches. Provocative as Phil is, he brings a refreshing counterbalance to the safety conversation and makes us think. Indeed, Phil is the ""Dirty Jobs Mike Rowe"" of the safety profession. --James E. Leemann, Ph.D."

I took time out of a busy schedule to read Phil LaDuke's latest book -- Lone Gunman: Rewriting the Rulebook on Workplace Violence because I knew it was important. Women are very often the victims of violence and the workplace is no exception. I know the problem; what I appreciated as a small business owner were the ideas about how to identify people and scenarios that could become problematic. A good read. -Paula Talarico, Attorney and Women's Rights Activist Chris Rock once said: You can only offend me if you mean something to me . Phil's writing doesn't pull punches and may be a bit like someone swinging a bag of broken glass in a crowded room but if his words cut deep and gouge a lot of nerves it's only because he has the insight and courage to articulate what many of us are thinking and, for the rest, still struggling with weird feelings, he puts his gnarly finger right on it. People love him because he has empathy and vents on their behalf, people hate him because he has figured them out, exposed them, challenged their worldview and sent their cognitive dissonance into meltdown. Either way, Phil's writing means something to everyone. He has inspired and completely changed the trajectory and style of my own writing. In the words of another safety literary legend and fellow Phil Fan, the late George Robotham: It would be a boring world if everybody agreed with me. --Dave Collins, Creator, Editor, and Publisher https: //safetyrisk.net/ Phil's passion comes through in virtually everything he writes. He is an outspoken advocate for employee engagement and respect for workers --Dr. Paul Marciano, Best selling author of Carrots and Sticks Don't Work: Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles of Respect and Super Teams: Using the Principles of Respect to Unleash Explosive Business Performance Phil La Duke is an original. After Phil they broke the mold. Certainly his thoughts and ideas on workplace safety and health fit no mold. Phil is no safety drone. His writing is provocative, sometime blunt, sometimes insulting, sometimes raw. His is an outsider's take, almost an outlaw's take, on what is good, bad and ugly about current workplace safety thinking and practices. It's a perspective you won't find anywhere else. --Dave Johnson, Editor. ISHN magazine Phil La Duke has devoted his career to industrial safety. He knows the importance of doing an unglamorous job well and what goes terribly wrong when people don't. He is angry about all the right things. --Peter Page, contributed content editor Entrepreneur magazine Phil LaDuke truly shatters the decades-old mindsets of safety professionals that have mired the profession in ideological adherence to accident safety practices, while stifling the introduction of innovative approaches. Provocative as Phil is, he brings a refreshing counterbalance to the safety conversation and makes us think. Indeed, Phil is the Dirty Jobs Mike Rowe of the safety profession. --James E. Leemann, Ph.D.

Author Information

Phil La Duke is the author of the popular book on workplace safety, I Know My Shoes Are Untied. Mind Your Own Business. A self-described provocateur La Duke has poked and prodded the world of worker safety for over a decade. In this work, La Duke takes on an issue that is personal to him: workplace violence (no he didn't shoot up his workplace.) He has worked at and with companies that have experienced workplace violence. His work will advise you, provoke you, inform you, and infuriate you, but when the dust settles the points he makes, and practical tips he offers will stay with you and gnaw at you like a rat until you finally act and make your workplace a safer and more secure place of employment.

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