When should a person prioritize situational awareness over routine actions?

Prioritizing situational awareness at all times is crucial for maintaining personal and collective safety. Situational awareness involves being attentive to your surroundings, understanding the context of your environment, and recognizing potential threats or risks. By always being aware, individuals can detect unusual behavior, assess potential dangers, and respond promptly to evolving situations, which is essential in preventing and mitigating incidents of violence or terrorism.

In contrast, the other choices suggest limiting situational awareness to specific circumstances, such as feeling unsafe, during work hours, or only during drills. This restricted approach can leave individuals vulnerable to threats because dangers may not only arise when one feels unsafe or during designated times like safety drills; risks can occur unexpectedly at any moment. Hence, adopting a mindset of constant vigilance helps ensure that individuals are prepared to react appropriately, no matter the situation.