In order to be courteous to a fellow driver, one first has to be mindful of them… to acknowledge them… isn’t that true? The dictionary uses the locution “consideration toward others” to depict politeness.

Let’s ponder this for a moment, shall we? The more you move on towards being a master driver, the easier it is to observe that the common denominator to defensive driving is your awareness of what’s occurring beyond your car perimeter.

Most all the issues, minus one, that can transform one into an evil driver rotate around actions inside the car. Cell phone calls, passengers, and writing email, listening to music… all this is what distracts you from paying attention.

The other part is your attitude. Think over it, if you are browned off with something, a driver’s seat is not the best spot to be and you should be self-aware enough to adjust your driving behavior till you calm down, or not drive at all. Your measure should always be politeness.

If you are courteous then a lot of good things are occurring in that CPU in your braincase. When you are courteous, you are focusing on what’s going on outside your car. You are also paying attention to other drivers’ needs, which is as decent as it gets. There are piles of opportunities on the routine journey around town to be respectful to fellow drivers. They may not invariably notice your courtesy, but they usually do. In my extensive experience those little benignities you distribute to complete strangers usually get returned to you by other complete strangers as if by magic… kind of cool actually. You out of the blue notice drivers letting you into tight places when earlier they acted up like jerks… magic I advise you.

If you will simply risk to be as respectful as possible to other drivers for five days, I foretell you will be astounded. It actually changes your whole view on driving while at the same time distinctly identifying you as a bona fide crackerjack. Who among us doesn’t aspire to be a crackerjack?

What winds up occurring, is that you soon find yourself chasing chances to give the other driver a break, which leaves you feeling great about your deeds. It also focuses you… pay attention here… focuses you beyond the bubble in your car. You are concentrating on what’s occurring out there much more, when you risk to be courteous to other drivers.

This little practice in human relations can catapult you from an average driver to an expert in no time. So… you if you wish to be an expert driver, it’s that easy… just cut the other driver some slack. Even if they don’t acknowledge it, you will be a better human being and a better driver for doing it.