Rolling Backwards
- Advoco
- Feb 4, 2022
- 2 min read
A few years ago, my husband and I bought a 2004 Toyota Tacoma pick-up truck affectionally named Sandy. Sandy is a manual truck which means I had to learn how to drive a stick. I’d driven a manual once when I was a teenager, and it probably shaved a year off my dad’s life. Thankfully, my husband is a patient teacher, and he helped me to understand the balance of shifting through the gears.
I started to get the hang of driving Sandy after a month or so of practice. Except for when I had to come to stop on an uphill. I hated the moment when the traffic light turned green and the truck rolled backward while I shifted into gear. I would freak out and one of two things would happen: I would shift too quickly and stall the truck, or I would slam on the gas and peel out of the intersection.
Both situations were stressful for me and the cars around me. Over time, I gained more confidence in my driving, and I learned to expect the feeling of rolling backward. I knew that it would only last a moment and that I had the control to smoothly drive forwards.
I think this is a great metaphor for a lot of aspects of our life. We tend to become distressed when we first start to feel our life, project, or relationship rolling backward. Usually, we will either stall and do nothing, or we peel out with a loud screech telling everyone what happened. But, with experience, we learn what it feels like to roll backward, and we realize if we shift gears calmly, then things will keep moving on.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still plenty of times when I am having an off day and I stall the truck or hit the gas too hard. The same is true with other problems in life. We still have moments when we respond immaturely or decide to ignore the problem. With practice, those moments can become fewer and fewer. We learn how to calmly respond to keep things driving forward.
Until next time…we are Advoco, make every minute count.
About Irene: Irene Siemen is a Solutions Architect at Advoco. She is a graduate of Clemson University where she got her Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering. When Irene isn’t helping clients achieve EAM success, you can find her outside – hiking, biking, and camping! Have a question for Irene? Send her an email.
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