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Sunday, December 21, 2014

Of Two Videos


Today's Thoughts. By Jeff Head 12/21/14 Of Two Videos

I shared two videos today on Facebook. One was the dash cam video of a truck driver minding his business traveling down the road when a vehicle stopped at a stop sign decides to just pull out in front of his truck at the last moment.  The second video was also of a vehicle pulling out in front of a truck travel down the highway at the last moment.  In both videos, the truck being pulled in front of acted professionally and saved the life of the person that pulled out in front of them.  What was the difference between the two videos you might ask, the driver that messed up?  In one video, it was the driver of a car while in the second video it was the driver of a truck.

All too often, I will hear stories of how car drivers are doing this in front of me.  Then from the other side how truck drivers are doing that.  What I have come to understand from all of this is no matter what we drive from tricycle to super hauler, be it a man or a women, we all have one thing in common, we are human.  Each and every one of us at some point in our driving life will eventually make a mistake.  We will run into the kitchen table and bump our head or we might find ourselves sitting in what used to be our vehicle wondering what in the heck just happened.  Not the first one of us will ever be picture perfect their entire driving career.

 

So where does that leave us, what can we do?  Every day we share the highways with thousands of drivers just as imperfect as we ourselves are and understanding that fact is the first step to keeping our highways safe for everybody.  You see if we adopt the attitude that I am always going to be prepared for when that driver does pull out in front of me.  I am not going to tailgate because that driver in front of me might get pulled out in front of.  I am going to slow down here because a child might lose control of their tricycle and come out from those parked cars.  In short, drive in such a manner that of all the things I think could simply never happen right now, that I am prepared to handle when they do without warning.  Then just as the professional truckers in the videos I shared this morning, I will find that once again I saved the life of another person that simply made a mistake and almost took mine.

 

It is all about attitude.  It is all about our willingness to keep those we share the highways with safe and alive, just doing our number one jobs as truckers.  At this time of year with everyone traveling around thinking about having their Merry Christmas, keeping our minds on the road is more important than ever.

Keep it safe folks.  Have a Merry Christmas.

 

 

God Bless America

#rlbjeffhead

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Books By Jeff Head

Running Legal Blues

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Saturday, December 6, 2014

Bullwhip And Chair


Today's Thoughts. By Jeff Head 12/6/14 Bullwhip And Chair

I remember a story I heard many years back about a man paid a million dollars to run a steel plant.  The reason he was paid this amount was not so much that he knew all that much about steel, but more so because he knew how to handle people.  One day as he was walking through the plant he noticed three employees standing inside under the no smoking sign smoking their cigarettes.  As he walks up to them, he asks how their day is going, about their families and their favorite sports team.  After he chats with them for a bit, never saying one word about the rule they were breaking, he reaches into his pocket and hands them each a cigar.  He then tells them that he would appreciate it if they would smoke them outside in the designated smoking area and walks off.  He never seen those employees smoking inside again and they maintained a great working relationship as time went on.

Where I work now, with a company at a company, I see many bosses and their employee's interact with each other all day long.  Many contractors come onto the property with their employees as well as many truck drivers delivering and picking up loads. My job as a spotter has me interacting with many of these people, some just occasionally, others many times each day.  The one thing I have noticed about all of this is just how true the story of the man who was paid a million dollars to run that plant.

It does not take long to figure out just whom it is you want to approach when a problem arises. Those that demand respect, then crack that whip are generally ignored and receive very little respect.  People hide their mistakes from them, problems go unsolved and the work and relationships suffer.  On the other hand, those I see taking the time to talk, ask questions and then bring the other person in on the solution are looked up to.  People seek them out when a problem arises instead of hiding in fear of a crack from the whip. 

As truckers we often find ourselves meeting and working with people all of the time.  The people we work with on a daily bases or those we meet and never see again in just a few minutes all  have a affect on how our day goes.  Building a respectful and trusting relationship is essential for us to be able to do our jobs as safely and legally as we can. 
I always found that lending a sympatric ear to my long time friends went a long way while with those I will only know for a few short minutes making them laugh would usually do the trick.  What I always loved was a rude trucker in front of me so that when they stormed off, I could side with the other person and they would tend to my needs first letting the rude trucker sit and steam.  I learned early on in my career that handing out cigars was a lot better way of dealing with people then picking up a bullwhip and chair.

 

 

God Bless America

#rlbjeffhead

Be sure to add me as a friend if you like "Today's Thoughts"

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Books By Jeff Head

Running Legal Blues

Drive Safe