One of the most dangerous things that many people participate in every day is driving. But because we drive so often without running into issues like consistent car accidents, it’s common for people to feel like they’re almost invincible behind the wheel. That is, until they slam into the car in front of them because they were too busy doing or thinking about something else.
With all the distractions in the world around us, it’s important that we’re able to find ways to minimize those distractions at the most vital time: when driving. So to help you in doing this, here are three tips for eliminating distractions when you’re behind the wheel.
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Get Everything Situated Before Leaving Park
By taking just a few moments to ensure you’re completely ready to start driving before you take your car out of park, you’ll be much more likely to give your driving all of your attention.
To best do this, Michelle Little, a contributor to Reader’s Digest, recommends that you do things like get your music playing, figure out any issues with your GPS, and ensure that you get any controls situated with your car. If you’re able to take care of these things before you even start moving, you’ll ensure that you don’t have to address these issues while you’re also trying to drive yourself wherever you need to be.
Don’t Plan To Do Anything But Drive
For some people, they view the time they spend in the car as time that’s wasted. With this frame of mind, you might be tempted to spend some of your time behind the wheel accomplishing tasks other than just driving.
The problem with this, however, is that any task other than driving requires you to take part of your attention off of the actual task of driving, which is what keeps you safe when you’re in the car. Because of this, you shouldn’t plan to do anything but drive when you’re in the car. According to Liza Barth, a contributor to Consumer Reports, this means that you take care of all your grooming before you leave the house and that you eat prior to getting behind the wheel.
Make Your Cell Phone A Non-Issue
Cell phones are one of the biggest distractions for people when driving. While you might think that you can safely look at your phone for just a second or two without any harm being done, this is proven to not be the case time and time again.
To eliminate this distraction for you once and for all, AARP suggests that you put your phone on “silent” and keep it out of arm’s reach while you’re driving. By doing this, you won’t be tempted to reach for it while you’re behind the wheel and you won’t be distracted by any beeps or buzzes you might hear.
If you recognize that you need to take part in fewer distractions when you’re driving, consider implementing some of the tips mentioned above the next time you’re behind the wheel.