The Three Temptations on the Road

You might want to listen to this while you are driving.

There are three temptations on the road.

The first temptation is to switch lanes when you are trying to go faster. Maybe you are late, maybe you are impatient, or maybe you just don't like the idea of being behind someone else.

You might even switch to a slower lane to get ahead, because you think some idiot is driving too slow on the fast lane.

And then you realise that a big truck is in front of you—so what do you do? You switch back to where you once were.

Now the traffic light is red.

Contrast this to another driver who sticks to the lane, drives at the prescribed speed limit. The music is on.

How much time does that person actually lose?

How much peace does that driver gain?

From our perspective, everyone else is either driving too fast or too slow.1

That is the second temptation. Judging others.

The third temptation: thinking that none of the two temptations applies to you.

It's tempting to "do something different" when we are trying to improve the situation. Novelty often gets the better of consistency, even though consistency wins the long game.

We are all trying to get somewhere.

Crossing Between Worlds is now available in all formats (paperback, ebook, audiobook) and in all good bookstores. You can also buy direct if you wish to support my work. Big thanks.

Daryl Chow Ph.D. is the author of The First Kiss, co-author of Better Results, and The Write to Recovery, Creating Impact, The Field Guide to Better Results, and the latest book, Crossing Between Worlds.

If you are a helping professional, you might like my other Substack, Frontiers of Psychotherapist Development (FPD).