It's hard to express the sensation of heart stopping, stomach turning dread one might feel the moment before impact in a car collision. It's even a sensation that wrenches us from our daily routines when someone cuts you off too quickly, or you notice a car just ahead has slammed on their brakes. If you're lucky, it's a brief moment of panic, followed likely by some indignant unpleasantries spoken aloud to yourself as you get back into the regular flow of things. If not, your life changes in an instant.

I myself fall into the group of lucky, as in the 15 years I've been able to drive, I've only ever been in two light fender bumps. I've also never been ticketed, despite a few times I have gotten pulled over for going just a bit too fast. According to my own math based on the average percentage of Americans in car crashes and Americans getting tickets, only 26% or so of people fall in my category of such a clean, safe history. It's a fact that still surprises me to this day (obligatory knock on wood).

But then I reflect why I've been able to stay a safe driver for so long, and the conclusions that my reflections boil down to. The facts are as follows: I never take the power and force behind a car for granted (it can be easy to forget that we are trying to control what weighs an average of 4,100 pounds). I always check twice before making a decision on the road. I do my best to plan my steps ahead before they're needed. And perhaps more important of all, is that I assume everyone else in the cars around me do not care about the price of recklessness.

Perhaps it's callous or insensitive to view your fellow man this way. But to be honest, it's not about seeing the worst in people, or forcing yourself to be on high alert no matter what scenario. It's calculating the odds and always assuming they're not in your favor.

'That car beside me...if he started to drift, what are the odds I space to accelerate, slow down, or shift lanes away without interrupting people around me?'

'There's someone in a parking spot ahead of me who's put their reverse lights on...what are the odds I keep going and he doesn't see me, and backs right into my car?'

'I'm going full speed on a highway. What are the odds I actually have enough time and space to slam on my breaks if an accident occurs right in front of me?'

Viewing these with the thought you'll always lose, you check your surroundings more. You wait for the person to pull out of the spot. You give yourself more distance. You give yourself breathing room to react in a world where, when it boils down to simplicity, only you are controlling your own car and nothing else. This safety padding gives yourself peace of mind and the mindset of being a more careful driver. These factors help you be aware of the price of recklessness. Because what people tend to forget in their day to day routines is that the reward of recklessness usually, vastly, is miniscule compared to the price.

Shaving 5 seconds off your commute could lead to paying the price of spending money on a speeding ticket.
Running a red light could lead to paying the price of getting T-boned, totalling your vehicle.

Speeding down a road in weather conditions could lead to paying the price of getting critically injured or losing a loved one.

At the end of the day, there are so many factors that can apply to how someone drives. Apathy, distractions, highway hypnosis, or just plain recklessness. Any of these factors can tip the scale in the odds playing for or against your favor. It's also something to remind the loved ones in your life when you see them overvaluing the reward versus the price. Ask them if shaving seconds off home really matters in the grand scheme of things. Remind them that there will always be more red lights to stop at even if they get through this one. Show them the results of pile ups in white out conditions or on wet roads. These conversations cause tension but always be gentle and come from a place of concern. Because the more people are kept aware of the price of recklessness, the safer we can all be when getting to our destinations.