Drive Your Life
The way we drive a car, to a huge extent, represents the way we drive our life, and hence the trope, real-life drive.
Driving lets you digest what it means to be the driver in your own wheels versus when you’re a passenger . You’d also understand what it takes to wield such control on your way to arriving at your destination.
There’s a common knowledge that we regard our car like a baby. The main reason for this analogy is that we care for our car very much as if it were a baby. Analyzing it from this angle also lets you understand how driving a car is similar to the way you drive your life.
Questions like: are you truly a licensed driver, how well do you know your car, how often do you service it, and most importantly, are you the driver or the passenger in your own car?.
When you answer these questions above, you’re bound to draw comparisons on how we drive our car is applicable to how we drive our life.
You’ll come to find out a lot more as well – as listed below.
The Manner With Which You Drive Describes Your Personality
When it comes to driving a car, it is done by millions or even billions of people. The number of drivers seen on a particular roadmap on your way to your destination is only a fraction of the number of drivers all over that city. I won’t magnify it with how many drivers there are in the world. This tells you that you’re not alone. There are different drivers with different ways or modes of driving.
As such, if you’re a careful driver, it would show in your driving. You stick to speed limits, slow down when you encounter speed bumps, and most likely adheres to road signs and signaling. This always reflects on how much you value your car and therefore your life. You apply what you learned from your driving school to the road, thereby keeping yourself and others safe.
What this actually means in the real-life drive is that you’re a careful person or a ‘defensive‘ driver (like an Uber driver once taught me). As one, you’re in charge of your car and your life. And even though you can’t control mishaps from befalling you, at least you’re aware and prepared for what might happen.
This also portrays you as a rule stickler, which characterizes you well — for the most part, as somebody who’s willing to stick to ‘strict’ rules if that’s what it takes to ultimately achieve an important life goal.
It means that you’re not afraid to stick to the standards of anywhere you find yourself, which means you’ll easily adapt to any environment because you’re willing to find out what it takes and cooperate thus.
Or not.
You could just be a reckless driver. One who is nonchalant about safety or guidelines. One who’s oblivious to the fact that driving a car is equivalent to driving a life. One who doesn’t understand the implications of carelessness and hence, an irresponsible fellow. Someone who is unreliable, who cannot take care of another’s car or life when handed over to them. Which is antithetical to what can be said about a careful one as aforementioned.
Driving requires consciousness, likewise in our real lives.
We need to be aware of what we are up to every now and then. We need to invite intentionality as and when due to fully derive meanings (and pleasure) into our daily lives as often as we can.
When you eat, sometimes take the time to relish your meal, when you bath, take the time to get to know your body and figure ways to boost it (your skin maybe?), when you wake up in the morning or late in the evening, take the time to sit still and savor the alone time/ inner quiet thoughts.
Who knows what may come out of them.
Being the driver in your own life requires you to understand that you’re at risk; a life and death situation, if care is not taken.
When you drive and lose focus or attention, you’re bound to crash and that means you could lose your life or suffer other severe body injuries and scars from that, for the rest of your life. Your real life-drive likewise.
Take your time, be mindful of the activities that need it.
Driving a vehicle means that you are supposed to operate certain car wares; breaks, throttle, gears, and whatnot, at their appropriate times — to reach your destination.
Likewise in real life.
There are certain traits and habits that you must adopt and exercise for you to reach your goals or attain greater heights. These include; good sense of self for starters, and other self-help/improvement categories, personal development tips, personal growth characteristics — for you to continue to evolve to a better version of you while living life, even if satisfactorily, concomitantly.
The way you drive a car says a whole lot about the way you drive your body vehicle.
Just like a car that comprises different parts, your body or whole being consists of different parts as well. It also serves as the embodiment of your spirit and soul. So, the ability to learn the different parts and functions of a car for its use is the same way you ought to apply the knowledge of the parts and functionality of the different aspects to you.
This is particularly advantageous also when you have a breakdown. You would have at least had the slightest idea of what could be wrong with your car or yourself. You know that when your car is unable to start, it’s probably battery issues. When your air conditioner is unable to cool, you’ve run out of gas for it etcetera.
Likewise, when you’re having a mental breakdown, you know it’s time to take a break. Make a list of things that make you happy. Or simply refer back to the systems you set up, to catch you when you’re stuck in the vicious cycle or dilemma. Systems such as reading, writing, exercising, praying, calling up family or friends, other forms of entertainment, or creating something out from it.
Just like a car that you’d call a mechanical engineer, vulcanizer or other kinds of car specialists for, when you’ve tried to remedy the fault and it isn’t working, make sure to take good care of your body vehicle as well and call up a doctor or other respective professionals when it becomes too overwhelming to handle.
Bear in mind forthwith, that being able to decipher what you can handle and can’t handle is a good indication of how well you know yourself and maximize your time of getting better fast — as a car would after a breakdown.
Knowing when to let go of trying to fix your car but rather calling for help, minimizes the time you waste in getting to your destination.
A good driver knows they can’t wait until their car is broken down before they take the initiative to constantly maintain it.
When you own a car, normally it’s referred to as your ‘baby’. So, that means there’s nothing wrong with tending to it like you would a baby. This involves constant maintenance then. Regular check-ups and ‘fixings’.
Likewise in real life, we can’t wait until we’ve reached our wit’s end, burnt out and ‘out of it’ before we understand that we ought to maintain our systems. Through regular mental checkups, physical checkups, spiritual checkups, emotional checkups, and their cleansing afterward. This also involves engaging in activities that will help us evaluate each of these dimensions of our lives. Reading or yoga for the mental, exercising for the physical, praying, meditation, or other religious activities for the spiritual — you name it.
And frequently so. Because, the more, the greater the agility in those respects.
What about you as a passenger?
Well, that sucks!. For me though.
When you’ve driven for so long and can confidently and at the same time haphazardly confirm that you’re a good driver, it becomes somewhat daunting having to be on the passenger’s seat. Even for the best driver in town or the like-minded drivers like you, you’re bound to exhibit at least a tad bit of apprehensiveness.
Know why?
Because it’s a different ball game when you were operating as the driver. As the person in charge. The one who controlled the speed, navigation, and somewhat the entire journey.
Unlike the passenger, who may not necessarily like most or all of the style the driving and constantly complains about one thing or the other — to the end. Because they’re the ones driven and hence, do not have that much control of anything but to sit still.
There are many life situations that put us in those ‘redundant’ dreadful passengers seat. This is when you let your work or job dictate how you live your life. When you let your family dictate how you should be treating your spouse. When you let your friends lure you to living an exorbitant lifestyle that is hard to maintain. And the list goes on…
In such situations, you’re plainly sitting still. Going with the flow. And with the orders from the driver(s).
It feels preposterous to be comparing our body or whole being to that of an inanimate object such as a car, truck, or others alike. But we forget that it doesn’t really matter what figurative speech we use as long as we drive the point across, which is similar to and can be detrimental to our ‘real’ lives — if left unattended.
Therefore, I took the instinctive surge and went out of a limb to express the grave importance of driving our bodies well with all they come with — to achieve optimum satisfactory living.
Reemphasizing that driving our lives by ourselves is inherent in wheeling our lives the way we envisage it to be, without regrets.
Regrets can amount to several other major life hiccups such as depression or general unhappiness. When you wish you could have done one thing or another to make or change the course of your life but you couldn’t.
When you’ve been taught how to drive — just like our parents and caregivers brought us up to, learn to take the risk of driving. Like actually driving on your own. Your body, mind, and soul. Learn all the other few tricks to it that no one else could ever teach you. Make your mistakes and learn from them. Be conscious, focus, and be attentive when you drive your life. It’s paramount to how you’ll end up in the future. Make sure to learn the other different parts to it and embrace them all. The good, bad, and ugly.
Don’t forget to indulge in the regular checkups and if worse, still, call a doctor or a professional to assist you. That’s the beauty of driving. You’re not alone. There’re many other drivers on the road with you. Call for help when you can’t handle it alone. Don’t try to fix what you can’t. It wastes your time and can endanger your life. Call a specialist. But first, take care of yourself. Indulge in regular maintenance for the different aspects of you for strengthening and agility purposes.
But don’t ever be a passenger to your own life. You might allow that in your own inanimate car, once in a while.
When you’re the passenger, you lose independence and surrender to the will and control of the driver, which by now, if you truly value who you are and want the best life living on your own terms, you’d rather not.
Be the driver in your own life, the captain of your ship or boat, the pilot in your own aircraft. Whatever you like.
Don’t give that power to somebody else. It’s not worth it.
