Outthinking Yourself to Prevent another North Carolina Auto Accident
You recently got hurt in a North Carolina auto accident.
Whether you sustained massive injuries and perhaps tragically lost a loved one in the crash; or you suffered a more prosaic (but still very annoying) accident, such as a rear-end collision that gave you whiplash, you need help, resources, and courage to rebuild your life.
While a good law firm, such as the Law Offices of Michael A. DeMayo, can give you a free case evaluation and help you make serious progress towards getting a recovery, you also are probably looking towards the future. More specifically, you want to know what you should be doing (or you should stop doing) to limit your likelihood of getting into another Charlotte auto accident and maximizing your and your family’s safety behind the wheel.
Outthinking Yourself – A Surprisingly Effective Tool
Most drivers understand and accept certain road safety fundamentals. For instance:
• Always wear your seatbelt;
• Do not drive your car while under the influence of drugs or alcohol or prescription medications;
• Get enough rest before getting behind the wheel;
• Avoid chatting on your cell phone – and especially text messaging – while driving;
• Get your car checked regularly and don’t drive a broken or mis-performing vehicle;
• Pay attention to the road and other drivers;
• Etc.
But our safety knowledge often fails us!
When we get out on the road, we either willfully forget what we have learned or we “make exceptions.” For instance, maybe you go on a very long road trip – 1,000 miles – to see a relative in Missouri. You know that you should stop and take breaks, but you really want to get there in time, so you just guzzle a gallon of Starbucks, cross your fingers, and hope that your heart doesn’t explode and that you make there in one piece. You might “get away with it.” But you have taught yourself a very dangerous lesson – that it is possible to “get away with it.”
To “outthink yourself,” you need to engage in what some experts have called “meta thinking” – that is, you need to think about how you think about your driving.
There are many “thinking tools” you can use to get to the bottom of potential bad habits and behaviors and beliefs. A great place to start is a “driving journal” – a daily or weekly journal that you write in for two or three minutes a day about your driving experiences. You can use this journal to identify repeating patterns in your life (for better and for worse). You can also use positive affirmations, hypnosis, meditation, and other tools to alter how you think about your driving habits for the better.
No matter what tools you choose, however, remember that the best time to make course corrections to your “driving mentality” is not right before you get behind the wheel – it’s at a time and a place when you can soberly and critically reflect on your needs and your idealized outcomes – without any “impatience of the moment” (e.g. “I got to get to my sister’s house in time for Thanksgiving dinner, etc.”) getting in the way.
