Mindset over MPH

2020
Drivers ed Essay Contest

Grace
Woelbing

Mindset
Over MPH

When
you are sixteen years old, earning your drivers license means more
than just receiving a legal card with your name and photo on it. As a
sixteen-year-old, you feel and live as if you are on the verge of
becoming an adult. Your license is one of the first pieces of the
independence that the future inevitably holds. However, the pride of
sitting alone behind the wheel, enjoying the power of a couple
thousand-pound vehicle can quickly steal away your entire future.

I
was just turning fourteen when my brother, two years older, was deep
in the process of attaining his license. I watched him as he
dutifully studied the driver’s handbook, practiced timidly on the
road with our parents, and recited countless facts and figures that
related to his online, young drivers ed course. Impressed
by his knowledge, I was determined to follow the same path as him and
learn all I could about safe driving before taking to the highway.

Within
a matter of months, I watched as his education gave way to false
confidence and his right foot pressed heavier on the pedal as the
miles and time flew by. Hands gripping the tan wheel of his shiny
black sports car, the adrenaline rushing to his head dictated his
behavior, and not the statistics I had heard him recite just a few
months previous.

Looking
back, I believe that my brother took the necessary steps to inform
himself of what it means to drive safe. I still believe that every
teenager beginning to drive should enroll in online courses that
teach them the importance of safe practices on the road and show them
how they can later apply that knowledge in their driving careers.
Education is the first crucial step, because in this case, ignorance
is not bliss. Whether a teenager decides to drive safe or unsafe, it
is undoubtedly better for them that they have the basic knowledge
they need to guide themselves out of precarious road situations and
have an example of how to implement safe driving techniques.

When
my family received the call that my brother had lost control of his
vehicle and wrecked his car, I was terrified and unsure of what would
happen next. My brother was fortunate enough to walk away from his
accident, but he walked away a different person. For him, it was
knowing the inevitable consequence of reckless driving that convinced
him to change his mindset.

When
it comes to the greater population, while education is the first step
towards safe driving, the right mindset is the second. Like my
brother, one could learn the hard way that irresponsible driving is
not worth the price one has to pay. Or, early on in one’s driving
career, one can adopt this viewpoint and realize that protecting
others on the road—including themselves and their loved ones—starts
with them. My brother’s new attitude encourages me to drive safer
and I hope to encourage others to do the same.