Twenty thousand years ago , being alert was the difference between life and death.You couldn`t wander around the countryside ignoring the sound of a twig cracking behind the bush (an animal about to charge)or the sight of a plant crushed on the Ground ahead (potential dinner nearby).Well you could, but you might not have lasted very long or had much to eat. Being alert is a survival mechanism, now as ever.Women walk down the street late at night acutely aware of the footsteps behind them, and alert to shadows in the alley up ahead.

Drivers are alert to the vehicles in front and behind and mother`s are alert of their children`s movements in the playground. We are all alert to a greater or

lesser degree, because our life or someone else`s life might depend on it.Also,our future and job might depend on it and managers make sure they`re alert in meetings whilst students must be alert to what their tutors says if they want to stay on the course.

Certain jobs require more alertness than others.If a pilot, air-traffic controller or train–driver are not alert, just for a minuite, a major disaster can result.Being alert is more than vigilance and attention, like soldiers on guard. It `s about mental responsiveness, being alive in the head. Alertness extends beyond our physical surroundings, It`s about being alive to the people around us too.Can we hear the twig breaking and can we sense what people are feeling ? Alertness is not just about staying alive, it`s about being alive-on the ball, in the game, sensitive.

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