creating our own opening ....

My assistant/intern (aka niece) got her driver's license recently

(yay for me never having to pick her up or drive her home again)

and she was talking about a little acronym that her driving instructor taught her -

SMOG

(yes, smog)

Smog is what you think about when changing lanes in traffic - S for signal, M for mirrors, O for over the shoulder and finally G for go.

It got me thinking about how I actually change lanes in traffic

(which is more like MOSG)

I always check my mirrors first

(probably so I don't look like an idiot trying to change lanes when there is no room for me)

and if there is no room I slow down or speed up until there is room and then I signal.

Although the truth is that even if there isn’t an opening, many drivers will allow us an opening if we signal first and of course, the longer our little signal is blinking at them, the more pressure we build in the other drivers to let us in.

(this could be just a Jersey thing but we like to build as much pressure in other drivers as possible here)

and this got me thinking even further

(yes, my brain cells have actually fired up a bit in the new year - although in strange ways like this sometimes)

that this little acronym would make a good little strategy for the way we change larger and more important things in our lives than driving lanes.

We need to signal first. Often if we look before signaling, there just won’t be an opening.

But if we signal anyway maybe we will create the opening we want.

(this feels like some pretty deep and genius thinking to me tonight - of course, we are expecting more snow and I have a couple store orders that must ship tomorrow and my post office's motto is apparently not the "mail must go through", so I am a little stressed and may not be thinking clearly)

In real life how often do we make decisions (check our mirrors) before setting our intention (signaling what we want to do) and getting clear on what we really want.

Maybe the best way to manifest our best and highest intentions is to let life (and ourselves) know what we want instead of deciding that it just isn't possible until we get to some other place.

(this isn't about forcing our way in either - although life absolutely rewards action - but more about trusting life to allow things for us once we put out a clear signal about what we want)

So, in my year of deciding, I'm thinking SMOG (and snow, definitely snow)

*amazing traffic print by Myan of zuppaartista