Do you ever wish you had a rearview mirror for your life or your career? Being able to take a quick and clear look back at what just happened or what you just missed might cement an incident or occurrence and more adeptly create a "lesson-learned" effect. Framing every experience might keep them fresher and more vivid, easier to remember, from which to learn.


Today, while driving on a lovely California freeway, I faced morning traffic that was not my friend. Ten lanes across and still the 91 Freeway looked more like a parking lot than an incredibly well-traveled major artery of North Orange and Riverside Counties in Southern California. Every so often, traffic would flow more evenly and at one point, it opened up wide in the Eastbound lanes I was traveling.

Before me lay an uprising in the road that would ease into a clear straightaway soon enough. If I looked far enough ahead I could see traffic lightened up considerably. In my rearview mirror, I could see the miles of congestion I had just made my way through. Whenever traffic picks up like this, it is a joy for seasoned California drivers; breaks like this do not occur often enough and they tend to incite greater speeds.

Looking ahead of me as the road began to flatten out, I could see a pick-up truck in the center lane, stopped, with hazards flashing. I slowed & moved out of my lane, giving plenty of clearance to avoid the stalled vehicle. As I approached and passed the truck, I eased back into my lane and looked in the rearview mirror to see if anyone was in the truck, as this was a very dangerous place to stop. I could just makeout a person in the passenger seat and wondered how they would ever leave the vehicle without getting hit by the oncoming traffic moving at 60 - 75 miles per hour.

I checked my rearview mirror once more and to my horror, witnessed several cars swerve and another run right into the backend of the truck. And then another one and another. It was a classic pile up that I had just dodged. I shuttered and drew a breath of relief that I had not been texting or digging through my bag for this or that. The rearview mirror showed me what might have been.

Lessons come in all forms, this one teaches caution and awareness of one's surroundings - always be attentive to what is going on around you. Looking back at what you missed, what you didn't say, what you should have said or done, the mess you made or avoided becomes a first-hand education. Learn from it. Make it part of your daily log, your career journal. I guess schoolin' never ends, eh?

Who's writing on your page?





by rayannethorn



.