Paying Attention

I don’t know you. You are a stranger sitting in cyberspace, and we will possibly never meet. However, I know something about you that you probably have never thought about. For most of you, the most dangerous thing that you will do today is to get behind the wheel of your car and start driving. It will be the only thing you do today that will put you life at risk. How are we doing it? For many, we try to accomplish this task with blinders on, slits for eyes, while we are thinking about anything but driving.

Just imagine that I hand you a running chainsaw. As long as you are holding that chainsaw and it is running, do you think you will be paying attention? My guess is yes. Routinely, we get behind the wheel in a big rush, concentrating on everything but driving, planning on speeding, and riding with two kids in the car. This is a recipe for disaster.

The more stressed you are, the more attention you must pay to your driving. Take a couple of deep breaths, and realize that arriving a couple of extra minutes earlier is not really worth getting into a situation that could turn into a matter of life and death. Focus on the task at hand. If you are backing out of a parking space, take a look behind you, and then, take another look. If you are so upset or distracted that you can’t even see behind you, stay where you are until you can calm down.

Every time you drive, you put your life and body at risk. If there was ever a time for you to be attentive, this is it. Don’t risk your life trying to shave seconds off of your travel time, and remember, the more stressed you are while trying to drive, the more danger you are in. You don’t pay attention to try to help someone else on the road. You pay attention because, while driving, it’s your butt on the line.

To schedule your defensive driving workshop, call 817-306-5421 or email Ric today.