THE ROAD™ Road Rage: Take Action

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THE ROAD™
Road Rage: Take Action

If you often get angry on the road and frequently believe that you are justified in your anger then there is something that you can do about it.

Do you recognise yourself as holding one or more of the five beliefs? If you do, then the first step is to start by understanding that most of your anger on the road stems from these beliefs.

The second step is to reduce your anger by fashioning new beliefs that will compete for your attention with the old ones exactly at the point where the provocation occurs. Do this by memorising the five attitudes that lead to anger and the five alternative attitudes that lead to joy.

The third step, the changing of the old beliefs, will happen automatically within the context in which you perceive the provocation; your attitude towards that which previously provoked you will also change so that you will react more calmly.

All that is required is that you accept the validity of two points of view. As with the Necker cube, your brain will automatically switch from one to the other. That is inevitable. The driver who was aggressive was stuck in only one point of view could not see and believe in any other point of view. Now that he or she is present with an alternative, the switch will occur automatically to the belief with the least stressful consequences.

Once the process begins it can only continue. You will spend more and more time driving and viewing things from the alternative point of view. Why? Because it is more pleasurable and enjoyable, and you can, can’t you?

Do this for one month and after that time you will notice that your anger and aggressive driving occur much less frequently. Those who ride with you will comment on how your driving has improved. As your anger diminishes, you will be pleasantly surprised to notice that your relationships improve and you feel better both on and off the road.

You can confirm how much progress you have made by retaking the Driver Stress Profile.

Acknowledgement: The content of this training is based on Road Rage to Road Wise by John Larson, MD (Tom Doherty, 1999 paperback)