Your Emergency Navigation Tools
Screenshot this. Laminate this. Tattoo this backwards on your forehead.
Free reference cards and cheat sheets for when your life catches fire and you need answers in thirteen seconds.
Use this first
Current Fire / Firefighter Check
Pick both numbers, then use the tool that matches the state you are actually in.
EDFI
How big is the fire?
Pick the number that is most true right now. Not ideal-you. Current-you.
Gary Gradient
How is the firefighter?
Pick the number that is most true right now. Not ideal-you. Current-you.
Pick both numbers to get the next move.
A Level 2 fire with a Level 5 firefighter is not a Level 2 problem.
The Emergency Brake (13 Seconds)
STOP
3 seconds
Freeze. Mouth closed. Hands still. Don’t react yet.
DROP
10 seconds
Release the story. “This might be true, might not. Putting it down.”
ROLL
Create distance
Physical: leave the room. Emotional: “Let me think about it.” Temporal: “Can we revisit this?”
Total time: 13 seconds solo · 15 seconds with another person
PDF format · print on cardstock · keep in wallet
The 3-Tool Crisis Navigation Sequence
Emergency Brake (Stop, Drop, Roll)
When you’re on fire: creates the pause.
Your instant crisis intervention when emotional chaos becomes emotional disaster. Doesn’t solve the problem — stops the crash.
Name It, Tame It, Reclaim It
After the fire: processes the emotion.
RECALCULATE
When the route closes: determines the next move.
Your GPS doesn’t apologize when it recalculates. It just finds a new route. Accept the original plan is gone, identify the next-least-worst option, move.
RECALCULATING isn’t failure. It’s navigation.
Your Two Assessments
Rate the fire. Rate the firefighter. Navigate accordingly.
EDFI Scale: how big is the fire?
Situation intensity.
Gary Scale: how’s your firefighter?
Your capacity.
The key insight
A Level 2 fire with a Level 5 firefighter = meltdown over toast.
A Level 4 fire with a Level 1 firefighter = challenging but survivable.
Gary Check (your firefighter’s dashboard)
Name your personal signal.
The body part that always tips first. Yours, not the textbook version. Write it down.
If body score exceeds 12, your firefighter needs rest, not more fires.
All Downloadable Tools
Emergency Brake Card
13-second protocol for when you’re on fire. Wallet-sized, laminated.
3-Tool Sequence
Complete crisis navigation workflow from fire to recalculation.
EDFI + Gary Scale
Two-sided reference card for assessing fire and firefighter.
ENS Components
The 5 systems explained with quick-check questions.
Gary Checklist
Body signals decoder. Print and check throughout your day.
Complete Toolkit
All tools in one download. Everything you need for navigation.
Remember
You’ll forget this when you need it most. That’s normal.
Just STOP is enough. The rest can follow.
RECALCULATING 17 times before noon is navigation, not failure.
Your disasters aren’t unique. Everyone is fighting their own ghosts.
Progress over perfection. Always.
“Your chaos, better navigation.”
When tools aren’t enough
If you’re using the Emergency Brake ten times a day just to function, that’s data. Navigation tools help you drive through storms. They don’t rebuild the engine.
Get professional help when you need more than navigation.