You Are, How You Drive!

The first mention of the phrase 'You are what you Eat' came from the 1826 work Physiologie du Gout, ou Medetations de Gastronomie Transcendante, by the French author Anthelme Brillat-Savarin. A modern twist to that saying is, You are how you Drive. The way one drives gives a clear sense of their character than many other parameters. Every time we are stuck behind a slow moving car, my GoodMan will claim, "I know that some old age person is driving that car." When we get a chance to go past it, he proudly says, "See didn't I tell you."

Years ago, I remember overhearing my finicky but intellectual aunt claim, "You can easily judge a person's character by the way they drive. The true colors of every man are most evident when he drives. If he is short tempered, there is no way he can drive calmly." At that time, I didn't quite believe in it. I thought driving is probably like walking, almost indistinguishable. I had never experienced much of a difference yet. I was possibly very young to judge people and personalities and assumed someone being angry behind the wheel is just as having a bad day.

"You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive." - Unknown

With time I have come to learn that there is more to being a responsible driver than being able to drive. On the very first day of my driving lessons, my driving instructor announced, "The first weapon we get in life is a car. If we do not understand the potential of a car in motion, we risk our lives and of those around us."

If we compare the ride between point A and point B by any two given drivers, both can possibly have contrasting opinions. Satisfied and content people almost never seem to come across jerks on the road. People who are having a rough day feel like others drivers have come on their route simply to annoy them. All the men in our neighborhood, vouch that one particular friend among them always gets a green light throughout the journey when they carpool in his car to go to the movies. There is no scientific evidence to this but there may be a simple personality trait. He is known as being soft-spoken, kind and altruistic. His driving style is completely in line with his character. His attitude probably makes the journey smooth and relaxing and that is the only explanation. The one time my brother gave my mom in-law a ride home, she came back and requested, "Please don't ask me to go with him again. He was waiting for the car to lift off and spread wings! I had my heart in my throat." My brother defended, "But I did get you home safely :)" We all are good advocates for ourselves.

"Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?" - George Carlin

Bad drivers are everywhere. Aggressive driving is emotionally impaired driving. Driving style also depends on where you are driving. Almost all drivers in India are agitated all the time. The life struggles they live through puts them under unimaginable stress and driving is like going to war. They are frustrated and hence drive without any lane discipline or any courtesy for other traffic laws.

Men should beware that many women list being a “bad driver” as a deal-breaker in relationships. If some bad driving habits are revealed early in a dating journey, with or most likely without a conversation, that strike against him is likely to become the impetus for ending a courtship. If self-driving cars become commonplace there will be at least one unintended consequence: it will eliminate a good way to assess the true character of a coworker, colleague or companion.

Let's look at the observations on how driving habits reveal character and personality:

• Rolling Stops: People who don't come to a full stop at a stop sign can't be trusted to handle details. They literally and figuratively cut corners, both on the street and in the workplace.
  

• Tailgating: People who tailgate are unimaginative. They assume that nothing can go wrong and overconfident without logic or facts.
  

• Road Hogging: A road hog insists on going either below or at the speed limit rather than pulling over and letting a line of cars pass them. These are the ones who become roadblocks towards any development, change and growth.
  

• Finger Salutes: People who feel it necessary to express profanity at other drivers (especially while driving away) are usually frustrated and a bit cowardly lacking self confidence.
  

• Over-honking: These are people who honk longer than necessary, like a full second (rather than a polite tap) at a driver who hasn't noticed the light has changed. Mostly habitual nagging and overly-sensitive to being criticized.
  

• Texting: Anybody who texts or emails while driving is a dangerous fool and cannot be trusted with any responsibility whatsoever, at work or anywhere else. Remember better unread than dead.
  

• Speeding: They don't really care about other people and they don't think the rules apply to them. At work, they are the hyperactive that make everyone else miserable.
  

• Not using Lane change indicators: These individuals assume it's nobody's business to know where they are going. They believe they are not answerable to anyone.

Considering that whenever you get behind the wheel of a car you take your life and the lives of everyone around you in your hands, being thoughtful is essential. But one rare incident or mishap cannot define anyone alone. My esteemed sister in-law experienced the Finger Salute on her way to Boston from New Jersey years ago. She confessed she changed lanes totally missing her blind spot so she understood the frustration of the fellow driver and didn't take it personally. She regretted and apologized virtually right away.

Undoubtedly, people who drive recklessly usually don't behave responsibly in other aspects of their lives. People who drive nervously tend to lack confidence in their other abilities. People who get angry and frustrated at other drivers usually don't work well with others. People who drive safely and confidently tend to be the most reliable in other things as well.

In complete honesty, I wish I could say that my driving style is a role model. Over the years, I've been personally guilty of many of the faults noted above. However, as I've worked to improve my character (becoming a mom made a huge difference), my driving style has cooled down too. I'm certainly not perfect, but I'm trying to be more vigilant.

"Why do they call it rush hour when nothing moves?" - Robin Williams

Everyone can agree, the best kind of people tend to be courteous when they drive and when confronted with bad drivers on the road simply tend to shrug it off. No one can drive u crazy unless you give them the keys!

~ MG