Casual and Conversational Driving Tips

Now, I’ll start this application by admitting that I’m not the best driver in the world. I’ve been licensed for around a year and a half as of July and I’ve been through some…ups and downs with my license as a student driver. I made many major mistakes within the first six months of tasting the sweet freedom that is getting to run errands for your mother. I’ve hit my own mailbox, trashcans, and even backed into a car–I’ve also gotten backed into but that one was not on me. I also happened to have gotten towed for my parking. But I’ve turned my driving habits around, and I have now been safer than ever (paying for spiked insurance and a towing fee while making $12.50 at a part-time job hurts). Allow me to share with you how and why I’ve taken extra caution on the road, and what I do to encourage others to do the same.

My first rule of thumb is to eliminate all distractions. I have major focus issues and sensory processing disorder, which means sometimes, driving can be extremely difficult for me. Despite it all, to prove my competence on the road I’ve chosen to push through my psychiatric differences and make a commitment to safer driving. This is to be noted that some people at my similar level of support needs don’t have the ability to make this choice, and that’s okay. Everyone is different and some people can’t shake their thought patterns or behaviors the way that I’ve accommodated myself–but this is what I do as someone who is typically resistant to most common habit-building practices.

One way that I accommodate myself and keep myself safe is by enacting preventative measures. If I can make sure I start my day regulated, I won’t need to blast music as loud or spend so much energy driving that it saps my soul from me and makes me want to never step foot in a car again. One way that I make sure that my senses are regulated is by getting enough sleep, especially when I know that I’ll be expected to drive longer distances. Getting good sleep is essential to being alert when you’re driving anyways, but for me is extra important to making sure that I’m less likely to start my day dysregulated. Another way that I make sure my senses are regulated is through time-blocking my day. If I make sure I have enough of a time window to make it somewhere without rushing, it reduces my stress and anxiety by a tenfold which means I don’t have to blast music as loudly. Also, for days where I drive far distances, I make sure that I have enough time before and after the drive to get comfortable and recover from the intense amount of focus and energy that was exerted.

Yes, I am a teenager, and yes I perpetuate the stereotype that teens are chronically on their phone and often engage in distracted driving. I’ve been trying to beat the allegations for a while. I always make sure that my phone is on Do Not Disturb mode and that anyone I was having a conversation with previously before I started driving, knows that I’m driving. Many of my friends and people in my life would prefer that I do not text and drive so they don’t mind. I make sure I surround myself with people that care about my safety, and with people who do not endorse distracted driving. I usually don’t take calls when I’m driving, and the only calls I pick up are those incoming from my parents, but they usually get mad that I pick up the phone anyway. Sometimes I’ll get caught on my phone if I’m changing which eerily specific Spotify playlist I’m listening to, so when I catch myself in that pattern I switch to playing from my CD collection. Much less engagement with my phone so I can’t really get stuck on it. I also do not use drugs or drive under the influence!

When it comes to technical aspects of driving, I always wear my seatbelt regardless of the distance and I practice something called defensive driving to ensure mine and others’ safety. During driving school, I learned that most accidents happen not too far from your home, so even when it’s a short distance, I make sure that both my friends and I are buckled up properly and safely. My parents taught me that I should always be driving defensively. When driving, especially on highways, I make sure that I always have options to dodge/weave, or get out of a situation when need be. I have saved myself multiple times by using this strategy because for some reason, Ohioans are evil on the road, and are consequently bad at driving. I use the three-second following distance rule, and make sure there is ample space around my car when coming to stops.

I also do not speed no matter how late I am. One, I’m already late so what am I really going to do about it? And two, I like to watch people speed around me frantically trying to get somewhere only to get stopped at the same traffic light as me, as I actually go ahead of them. I think it’s really funny and is a nice pastime for me, as I get to pay attention to the way others are driving around me and I get to mentally make fun of very American truck drivers. My driving course taught me that speeding doesn’t actually make me get anywhere faster, but I didn’t really believe that until I really started paying attention to people on the road. I’m not worried enough to start zipping and revving my engine around people, it’s not like my 2007 Saturn Ion is anywhere near capable of going over 65 mph.

One thing I always make sure to do, no matter how hard it is on my focus or anxiety, is when I’m transporting other people in the car, I try extra hard to reduce all of those behaviors, more so than usual. I understand that these behaviors can be dangerous, and when I’m driving other people they are my responsibility, so I must do what I can to ensure their safety at all times. My loved ones and friends are very important to me, and I want to be trusted behind the wheel so I continue to make these efforts each and every time so that I’m just that more attentive when driving. I also encourage my friends when we are in other cars to still wear their seatbelts and drive at a reasonable pace in a way that does not make me sound like a middle-aged anxious mom. And when my friend, who sometimes happens to accidentally start driving on the wrong side of the road because she forgets to read one way signs, volunteers to drive, I smile and reassure her that I can drive–no gas money needed! (I’d rather pay for a full tank than die).

Thank you for considering my application and providing US drivers with this amazing scholarship opportunity!