When you ask people if they are better than the average driver, 90% say yes. But this is statistically impossible. Because, you know, 50% have to fall below the midpoint. It’s how averages work. Yet there is another statistical phenomenon. People gravitate towards averages. That is on a scale of 10, most people are between 3 and 7 at driving. So, the majority of us are not perfect, and we make mistakes. Today we will look at some of the more notable ones.
The problem with minor problems
There are mistakes, which are quite significant, and then there are those that we don’t even care about. Well, we should. Many people will say that a small mistake here and there doesn’t matter. After all, it’s not life-threatening, right? It might be. Let’s take a look at the minuscule mistakes that can lead to grand consequences.
Improper driving posture
At first glance, this may seem like a rather nitpicky entry in our list. After all, isn’t driving posture a matter of preference? Only to a degree. Bad driving positions affect your spine negatively. Even if you don’t care that much about proper posture, you should care about reflexes. Back pain, which is often caused by bad posture, can lead to slower reflexes and even involuntary movements. A sudden piercing pain can prevent you from hitting the brake fast enough. So next time pay some more attention to how you sit when driving.
Forgetting to use the turn signal
It’s a growing worry of mine that people use their turn signals less and less. What baffles me more is that I can’t find one good reason about that. Turn signals are important. If you decide to switch lanes without notifying me, I cannot react adequately. And if something goes wrong, it’s that more saddening, because a simple signal could’ve prevented it.
These things are there for a reason. Even if you don’t see that reason, please use them. You may be first in line for turning the corner and may think you don’t need to signal that. You do! Because you don’t know if someone is making a life-or-death decision based on your signal (or lack thereof).
Not learning how to park properly
This is the last of the minor problems to mention today. And it’s a recurring one. But oh, is it a persistent one. And I am also guilty of it every single day. While it’s not fatal to not have the skill of parallel parking, it can still put you in some difficult situations. If you simply don’t have anywhere to park but a tight parallel spot, what are you going to do? Let’s be honest, even finding parking space can be downright impossible these days.
And too often you may irritate other drivers if they have to stop and wait for you to finish a 15-turn parking maneuver. Are they right do so? No. Will they still get angry? Absolutely. So, the only choice I and many other people have is to learn how to park properly.
The mistakes you should definitely care about
Even now you may not be convinced that my mistakes list is all that worrying. I too make them sometimes and try to justify myself by saying it’s not a big deal. But I’ve made some mistakes that are definitely big deals, and everyone should try to eliminate them from their driving.
Not putting a seatbelt on
Okay, I’m starting with this, because it’s a bit controversial. The one thing we can all agree on is that driving without a belt on is a serious risk. Even if you don’t crash, hitting the brakes suddenly can definitely cause injuries if there is no seatbelt. But here comes the problem. On the one hand, if it only affects your life and health, you should do whatever you want. If you want to put yourself at risk, that should be your right. On the other hand, many people may depend on you staying alive. You might be putting other at risk indirectly. So who is right here? I’ll leave that up for you to decide.
Forgetting to put the lights on
This problem mainly occurs when people get used to daylights (aka DRLs). These are getting more and more common nowadays, so it’s no wonder that we see a rise in failure to use nightlights. What is actually problematic is that daylights are simply not as bright. They cannot be used to efficiently light the road ahead. Additionally, with most cars turning the daylights on doesn’t do anything for tail lights. So you will be invisible to drivers behind you when you are driving at night. It should be obvious why this is a mistake that should be corrected ASAP. You can start building the habit of turning the nightlights on right away.
Not using the mirrors
I have been guilty of that for quite the long time. My relationship with the mirrors was quite problematic – I just thought they weren’t useful enough. Absolute nonsense. One thing that you learn on the road after being a driver for some years is that you can’t really depend on others. While it’s not possible that 90% of us are better than average, we should definitely drive with that state of mind.
The mirrors reflect to us constant information on our surroundings. So if someone is driving like a freak behind you, you would want to know that. Reacting to stuff happening outside your field of view is dead crucial when you are a driver.
The simple remedy for common mistakes
Don’t worry, car companies have figured out that most of us are not that good anyway. So what’s the simple fix? Just get a new car with the proper add-ons. There are parking sensors and cameras now, which are so advanced, they can do all but park the vehicle for you (and some can do even that).
If you constantly forget to switch the lights on, a lot of the modern vehicles come with automatic lighting system. It triggers when you start the engine and keeps the light levels of your headlights and tail lights at the appropriate setting.
So if you think buying a new car can really solve your problems, do it. For better deals, you can look at buying a car online and shipping it. Do you wonder how you can get a car out of state delivered to you? We have the answer! Corsia Logistics provides auto transport to and from any point in the US. You can get a free, no-obligation quote online by filling out a simple form or call us. Now you have everything you need! Drive safe and congratulations in advance on your new car!
