Pressure (Stopped By A Cop)
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I got pulled over by a police officer the other day. Before I tell you why and how it turned out ...Have you ever been pulled over before? How did you feel when you first saw those lights flashing behind you? Were you nervous? Did you start sweating? And then were you wondering why you got pulled over in the first place? Or did you already know why and for what you were stopped for? And if you did, did you find yourself formulating a response? Did you find yourself thinking about what to say as the officer was walking up? And then how did it go? Did he believe you? Did you get a ticket? Did he haul you in? Or did he let you go? "Bye. Have a nice day."
Most people don't do well under pressure. (Except you?) It's "pressure" when you get pulled over. (Ya think?) Of course, there are other things in life that are worse and exert a whole lot more pressure than a traffic stop. (If you're in real estate, try doing a "short sale.") And if we're ever gonna be successful in business or otherwise, we need to do well under pressure. And did you ever have anything turn out right when you lost your cool? (I'll bet not often.)
As I was pulling over to the side of the road with the police car's lights flashing behind me (in my "beater" 1987 Mazda with 150k miles on it, the license plate in the window, the windshield cracked and the transmission almost gone) I determined in my mind that whatever was gonna happen "was gonna happen." And so I was completely relaxed. (This is not my normal response, btw.) The cop said, "Do you know the speed limit?" I said, "Yes. I have an old beater car and unless I get a good start up the grade I can't get very much speed." The cop said, "Have you been drinking?" I said, "No. I just got off work. I drive once to work and once back." He kind of chuckled and said, "Drive carefully." I said, "Don't you want to see anything?" He said, "No," and off he went.
And I guess you could say that "pressure" didn't get the best of me this time. I'd love to say that's always the case (that I'm always calm), but I'm still a work in progress. How 'bout you?
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posted by Unknown at 8:28 AM
3 Comments:
Mike,
Trish doesn't think it's your transmission. She said she was following you going the same slow speed the other day, only this time you were going down hill. Remember, the right foot is the gas and the , hum right foot is the brake, maybe that's the problem. Hey I'm glad you didn't get a ticket.
I just pulled in for gas, on an extremely hot afternoon in Southern California. My daughter, who is four, was in the back. I proceeded to pull out to enter the left turn lane, and I saw the cop with the lights on. I panicked! My first thoughts were, was my daughter out of her seat, which often times children do, even when parents explain why it is safe to remain seated and buckled in at all times. It turns out, when I asked the cop the reason for him stopping me, I had not buckled up myself. I was so worried about getting my daughter home safe in broad heavy afternoon traffic, that I forgot how to protect myself. Not at all unusual for "stress" of a parent. I got the ticket and the officer said with his robotic tone, "have a nice day and drive safe." Key point: seat belts save lives! :)~M
I usually fall into the category of I did something wrong and I know why I am being pulled over. I respect the police especially since my youngest son is an officer. As to demeanor, I am calm most of the time and it seems to always have a positive effect on the outcome. Police like to be respected. Heaven knows they get little enough for the amount of danger they face on a daily basis. Thanks for your blog.
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