What Your Car Horn Says About You!

We've all experienced this. We accidentally get in people's way or make a mistake on the road and all too often the drivers we inconvenience, let us know how they feel about it. We hear a long drawn out honking of the horn that says, "You've got in my way and I'm going to show you how I feel about it."

Don't get me wrong. There is a time and a place for a well-placed horn but does it happen routinely when you are out on the road? Does it happen routinely when there is the least bit of an inconvenience? We might want to think about how we act and react on the road.

We take driving so personally and when people get in our way or inconvenience us we sometimes feel that they woke up that morning looking for trouble. We may conclude that they possibly have diminished mental capabilities by the way they drive or that their driving skills were developed in a bi-gone era of no stoplights or motorized vehicles. Whatever the case, how we use our automobile horn probably says more about us than it does about the driver for whom it is intended.

In the mid 80's, I traveled to Thailand for a conference and spent a lot of time in Bangkok. It was unbelievable how many vehicles were on the road. All the drivers were using their horn as well. It didn't matter if it was a car, motocycle, tuk tuk or a bicycle, the owners constantly used the horn. It was a different type of usage, though. It was more of a "I'm coming through and I hope that you see me." It wasn't annoying and it didn't seem to make the other drivers angry. It made them more aware.

To get a better perspective we must realize that most of the vehicles there were half the size of most American car models. In fact, the sound of the horns really fit the size of the vehicle. Instead of having a "train-like" horn, all you heard was the beep beep of a little car or the bell of a bicycle.  It was hard to get up tight about that feeble-sounding horn when it was bleating at you.  Maybe that's the secret! Take the annoying sounding horns away from the offenders. "I'm sorry, sir, but you can't responsibly use your automobile horn any longer -- here take this bell!"

Of course I'm jesting because would that really solve the problem? Would taking away instruments of disruption (in many cases) really help that person or other people involved in the exchange? I don't think so. We must learn to control our emotions on the road and become helpful drivers not drivers with an attitude. Setting up excessive rules and guidelines doesn't change our personalities. We change when we control our emotions and put a rational thought in our minds instead of jumping to irrational thoughts or actions.

Assigning motives to drivers we don't know and may never see again is a bit juvenile when we stop and think about it. Put yourself in the same situation. Do you want to be insulted every time that you make a mistake while you are driving? I don't think so. We all make mistakes while driving and it is how we react to our mistakes and other's mistakes that is important. Lingering anger and resentment can only lead to other mistakes as our minds are not on the task at hand - driving our car responsibly.

The next time you are about to lay on the horn because someone has inconvenienced you, stop for just a moment and think about what you car horn really says about you. Does it describe an angry and impatient attitude or someone that is trying to help?

How you respond goes a long ways in identifying the attitude that is behind the action.

Until next time,

Jerry de Gier