Are crashes acceptable?
We accept a lot of things in our lives as part of life. Getting a cold, a headache or the flu is normal. For a driver, is getting into a crash normal? Is it acceptable to crash? Is it part of life? If we tend to believe that certain things are going to happen, do we do anything to avoid it or do we just accept that it was a matter of fate?
I remember years ago when a friend of mine crashed his car, his dad said that it was something that was going to happen to everyone. Why should it? Our mind is a very powerful thing, so if we can use it for good, there should be a better outcome. We tend to do what we believe in and avoid doing things we don’t believe in.
I remember having a student years ago who had a difficult time checking his blind spot before making a turn if he had to wait in the intersection. I explained to him that while we were waiting for an opening in traffic that a pedestrian or cyclist could catch up to us and cross just as we start our turn. He didn’t do it because he didn’t believe in it. That is until he witnessed someone else who almost hit a cyclist when they made their left turn. He was now a believer of checking his blind spot. He made a strong effort to check his blind spot before every turn he had to wait for and only needed the odd reminder. He was working hard to avoid crashing.
My student understood at that time that he was in control of his vehicle and could avoid crashes. I also had a student that had to avoid two rear crashes on the same day! It was her final lesson with me and we had roughly two hours to complete. She was a believer that being prepared was important. Learning to trust herself was a big part of her ability as a driver. She trusted her ability to observe properly and to position her vehicle in traffic so other drivers wouldn’t affect her safety. She had a strong belief that she could avoid crashes. Will you think about avoiding crashes?
It’s never too late to change your way of thinking. Thinking positively is an important part of making a change. If you feel you will avoid crashes, then what are you doing to ensure this happens? Do you drive with space around your vehicle? Do you politely communicate your actions to other road users early enough so they can respond to you? Do you adjust your driving to the road conditions? Do you look ahead and think ahead while driving? You really do have the opportunity to make the change and avoid crashes, provided you really want to. You can, as long as you believe that crashes are not acceptable.
I believe that crashes are unacceptable. Every since I learned there’s no such thing as an “accident”, I have believed this. I even have my boyfriend calling it Collisions now! I didn’t go through a fancy driving school, but I was taught that there’s no hurry when driving. You get there when you get there. So I’m calm, cool and collected when I drive. Of course it upsets me when other driver’s don’t follow the rules, but I just keep doing what I’m doing!