Can you learn by your mistakes?
There’s an old saying that I know we’ve all heard before. Actually, I’m pretty sure there’s more than one old saying, but this one is a good one. I’m referring to “I learn by my mistakes”. I’ve learned many things by my mistakes. More importantly, I’ve learned what not to do many times over. That’s part of it, isn’t it? When you make a mistake you now know what not to do. You don’t always know what to do. However, sometimes you just have to weigh your options and can eventually figure it out.
While I was approaching an all way stop recently I noticed a driver approaching the intersection from the right after I had already stopped. They were approaching quickly with icy roads so I decided to see what they would do before I entered the intersection. After all, I only have the right of way if someone gives it to me. But that’s for another time. The driver on my right finally stopped but only after they slid completely into the crosswalk. Why would you drive fast and brake late when the roads were icy and snowy?
After the driver stopped and looked my way, I decided to continue through the intersection and up the road. The anxious driver continued immediately after I went through the intersection and was following closely behind me. Seriously? What didn’t they get about the slippery road conditions? Didn’t the fact they had slid through the crosswalk the last time they attempted to stop teach them anything? Each time I had to stop at a stop sign I ended up having to brake early so it was a gradual stop and not a somewhat harsh stop. I needed to control the driver behind me because they couldn’t learn from their previous mistake of sliding on a slippery road surface.
What would it take to teach this driver? Is there any hope for them? For all the times I’ve taught new drivers at Young Drivers of Canada to drive I’ve tried to use their experiences to make them think about counter measures to their actions. For example, if they slid slightly approaching a stop position on a slippery road, I ask them what they need to do differently to avoid making that same mistake again. I also ask them what could happen if they slide like that again. For the most part, my students hit the nail on the head. They explained that if they slowed late and slid into a crosswalk next time they could hit another vehicle, or worse, a pedestrian walking through the crosswalk. Did the driver who I saw ever think about those consequences? Doubt it.
Take a moment after you make a mistake and think about what you should do next time to avoid making that mistake. Think about what you should do to keep your vehicle under control. Think about the positives. If you keep thinking about the mistakes, you’ll just reinforce the mistakes since that’s what you’re thinking about. Driving takes thought – positive thoughts so you can actually do something positive about your mistakes. This way, you can actually learn from your mistakes.
Of course they didn’t learn. Impatience and Patience are directly related to Stupidity and Common Sense. I also am not impressed by the Snow Impairment of the vehicles pictured. There is no excuse to leave that on, EVER. 2 minutes to brush it, could be a life saved that you were able to see in time. It is a disease, only caught by people dumb enough to be lazy. I’ve even seen instructor vehicles like that, pathetic.