The Stupidity of Drivers: 5 Life Lessons Learned from Directing Traffic

(Note: This is a guest post from Chris who is not a blogger or personal development guy. He’s a police officer, a deacon, a good friend, and a guy who likes to read my blog and write a lot, and he sent this over to me. Enjoy!)

I have been directing traffic since I was fifteen years old.  Being thirty-eight now, that means that for about twenty-three years I have been “playing traffic.”  This summer I have been particularly busy at road jobs (this is when the officer directs traffic around road construction sites) on just about every main road and off-road in the city that I work in.  I am amazed that, in the twenty-three years or so of directing traffic, drivers have not gotten any better at dealing with the inconvenience of traffic.

Just as Avish takes lessons from certain aspects of life and applies them to his motivational techniques, I would like to share what I have learned from dealing with traffic in construction sites which parallel with Life in general. 

1) Read the Signs 

At proper construction sites there should always be signs alerting the public.  Signs that read Caution Road Work Ahead or Road Closed Ahead should make it clear that something around the corner or down the road is coming up.

This means to slow down and pay attention.  If there is a turn arrow, then follow where it leads.

So many people disobey these signs.  I ask why they went left when there was an arrow sign pointing right with a simple cone pattern to follow and I am often told “Because I need to go left”.

Unbelievable.

I expect that answer from a four year old, but not an adult.  Signs are given to us in life for reasons.  Some of them are obvious, like Do Not Enter, others are not, like, “my girlfriend has been unusually quiet this past week.”

If we are unwilling to notice and follow the obvious signs then we will be unable to recognize and respond to the signs more difficult to notice, which are usually much more important and life changing.

Lesson: Pay attention, read the signs, and then follow them!

2) Use the Tools that You Have 

All cars and trucks come with at least two sets of turn signals.  These allow other people on the road, i.e. construction site officers, to know where you want to go.  So many times I see people stop their cars with frightened deer in the headlight gazes and begin pointing either at me or somewhere else.

I point at them and shake my head (I am not fluent in pointing language, yet).  They point more vigorously and I get more confused (and a bit entertained).  Then one of two things will eventually happen:

1. They drive away in a huff
2. They roll down their windows and ask if they can turn, annoyed that I did not know which direction they wanted to go.

Use the tools that you have.  Cars have turn signals.  Use them.

This goes equally for me.  I have to equip myself with the proper reflective vest, not because I look so dashing in fluorescent green, but because it makes it easier for driver’s to see me.  If I have cones, road block horses, a patrol car with shining emergency lights, then I have to use them to increase the chances that my road site will be easily recognizable and therefore that much more safe.

Lesson: Make sure you are equipped with the proper tools you need, and then make sure to use them!

3) Ask Questions 

If you don’t know, ASK!

This is what I tell all of my new recruits under my tutelage in the Department.  I cannot know their doubts, fears, or inquiries if they don’t voice them.

Likewise, I cannot know if a person is lost or needs help if they don’t ask.  A person driving through a construction site throwing her hands up in the air at me as she drives by is not asking for directions.  She clearly needs them, but instead she would rather raise her arms in the air.  This does not help.

This summer I could not allow cars to turn left onto a major cut through because new pavement had just been laid across.  However, the drivers could go forward one block, do a U-Turn and then enter the same street without hurting the new road.  Anyone who drove past shaking their heads or throwing their arms in the air (seriously, what is that?) had to find another way.

Those who rolled down their windows (please, this is necessary because so many people leave their windows rolled all the way up and looked confused at why I can’t hear them) to ask me how to get around were so very happy about the answers they received.  They realized they were okay, smiled, thanked me, and went on their ways merrily.

Lesson: Just ask.  Ask always.  It works. 

4) Know a Second Way Home 

Always know a second way home.  I am amazed at how many people either don’t know a second way home or a second way to work.  How does that happen?

In life if a detour is thrown in front of us we need to have the adaptability through past experiences to help us get through the inconvenience at hand.

I tell my children that “all roads lead to home”.  Yes, I mean this as a metaphor but I also mean it literally (unless you live on a dead end off of a dead end then, well, you got me).

But seriously, there is always more than one way to get to wherever you want to go.  And going back to “Use the Tools You Have,” it has become almost impossible to get lost nowadays because of G.P.S.  If you don’t know a second way home or to work go out and just drive, or take a walk, and discover all the different ways back.  Be a little adventurous, it is part of what makes us human and not robots.

Lesson: Have alternate plans, be flexible, and be adventurous (.e., “don’t be a robot!”)

5) Don’t Panic 

Don’t panic.  Nothing is worth panicking over, especially traffic.  So many people become flustered to the point where they can’t drive.  They literally stop driving and cannot go forward.  Others become so enraged that they yell, beep their horns, and swear.  I have been called every name in the book out of shear frustration and panic by people.

One man, an elementary school teacher, swore at me more furiously than some of the worst people I have arrested.  The road he need to drive on was closed (Know a Second Way Home) and he was late.  All he had to do was turn down the road to his right, take a quick left and he would have been right where he needed to be.  Instead he drove off screaming in the opposite direction going who-knows-where?  I would have told him where to go, direction wise people, but he forgot step #3: Ask Questions. 

There really is never a need to panic.  All this does is take oxygen away from the forebrain where our proper decision making comes from and the midbrain takes over.  That is where the fight or flight response resides.  Tunnel vision thus occurs making it difficult to see anything that is not directly in front of you and sensory deprivation (like not being able to hear the officer yelling “Stop!” as he dives out of the way) takes over.  Simple breathing techniques return the oxygen to forebrain allowing tunnel vision and sensory deprivation to dissipate.  This technique is very useful in all aspects of life that are stressful.

Lesson: Don’t panic. Pause, breathe, think, and then take simple and effective action to move forward.

Remember these five simple rules not only in construction sites (which will keep all those workers safe) but also in your own personal life.  Nothing is permanent.  Road construction (as much of a pain in the rump it can be) is a minor inconvenience with long lasting benefits like having a brand new paved road, or better sewer systems, or underground fiber optic cables.  The few minutes spent in your comfortable car is not worth panicking or getting upset over.  Save that for the important stuff like famine or natural catastrophes.

Like Chris’s post? Then be sure to say so in the comments!

Also, click on the Facebook “Like” button at the top of this page to let your friends know about it too!

***
Do you want help making better long term decisions? How about help figuring out what exactly it is that you want? Or maybe you know, but your problem is that you don’t know how to put together a plan to get you there?  Or perhaps you have a plan, but never feel motivated to follow it? Or you jyst get easily derailed when things go wrong? If so, than the Smart Ass Success! Learn the 7 Steps to Getting What You Really Want – Even If You Have No Idea What That Is! FREE E-Book is for you! It addresses those questions (and more) to help you get on the path towards figuring out what you really want – and then getting it! Don’t let another year pass you by. Click here to download your free copy now!

About

By Avish Parashar. As the world's only Motivational Improviser, Avish uses techniques from the world of improv comedy to engage, entertain, and educate audiences on ideas around change, creativity, and motivation. Connect with Avish on Google+

• Mail
|
• More Posts (483)