THAT GOSH DARN CRYSTAL BALL…

What superpowers do public safety telecommunicators have? 

If it qualifies as a ‘superpower’ a dispatcher sure has it!

Multitasking (check- no explanation needed)

Active listening (check- we hear what is loud, sometimes even paralyzing noises, but then we can hear those miniscule voices and sounds that make all the difference)

Invisibility (check- especially when you have to bring the portable into the bathroom with you and leave your console unattended)

Super Strength (check- lifting up your coworkers and complete strangers)

Ultimate Linguist (check- from understanding panicked toddlers, the scared little old ladies, terror stricken adults, and grown adults totting a gun and shiny badges that still do not understand where to hold a microphone for proper communication)

Telepathy (check- come on we are pros!)

Time travel (check- it’s like we never leave!! In the blink of an eye you are off and back on duty before anyone ever even knows you are gone!)

Shapeshifting (check- on any given day you are a babysitter, mother, nurse, negotiator, referee, detective, social worker, teacher, do I even need to go on?)

Agility (check- I mean how else can you explain opening doors, answering multiple phones, keying up radios, and writing down important information at the same time)

Heat ray vision/ Magic (check/ check- you know your food that gets heated up 4+ times then you magically inhale the provisions and you can almost believe that it was hot in the first place!)

Superhuman tracking (check- well thank goodness for modern technology for GPS)

Freezing (check- we all have at least that one dispatcher that is a pro a freezing out the rest of the office)

Empathy (check- what I think is the greatest power we all have towards ourselves, coworkers, and the public)

What superpowers do you WISH you had? 

I have been dispatching for almost 8 years and the superpower I wish for most is to be able to repair crystal balls or obtain a working crystal ball! 🙂

For as long as I can remember, dispatchers have been in need of this mind-reading apparatus to help citizens and sometimes even our own.

It has always been a running joke in the agencies I have worked at that answers would come much easier if we had a crystal ball to see into the future or to read the minds of those around us.