Last week my wife and son were in a car accident demolishing the rear end and the driver’s door. The car was totaled. When I appeared on scene well after the accident, they had already been transported in the ambulance to the hospital. As the CHP were writing up their report, I looked inside the car and noticed glass all over the seats, airbags deployed, and clothes and water bottles strewn about. It startled me even though I had already talked with both of them and knew they would be OK. The hospital visit was more precautionary to deal with my wife’s possible concussion. But still, it scared us all.
I frequently hear from colleagues how they are afraid to do something big. And often they are afraid of the worst-case scenario. Not the realistic worst-case scenario but the worst-case scenario which can involve death, total annihilation, or financial insolvency…. Do you get where I’m going?
The human brain tends to overestimate the odds of an unlikely event (airplane crash) and underestimate the danger of a likely event (car crash). Think about it, are you afraid to get in the car and run an errand? Probably not. But then, how many of us grab the armrest when the airplane hits turbulence? Just the other day I was talking with a woman who is deathly afraid of flying. Many people who are afraid to get in an airplane think flying is too risky. What they don’t realize is that they are at more risk driving to the airport than flying to their destination.
According to the ICAO (United Nations’ International Civil Aviation Organization), there were zero fatalities on commercial flights within the United States between 2014 and 2017. Zero. Between 2008 and 2018, there were sixty fatalities (2009 had fifty fatalities). According to a National Safety Council (NSC) article titled “Protect Yourself and Loved Ones by Addressing Roadway Risks,” there were an estimated forty-two thousand people killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2020. The article states, “Our roadways continue to pose some of the biggest risks we face each day.” So it may seem it is safer to fly to your destination than to drive to the airport.
Heck, according to the NSC, your chances of dying in a motor vehicle crash are 1:107 compared to being stung by a hornet, wasp, or bee at 1:59,507. So it is safer to be eating your burger and watermelon with the bees than driving to the picnic. But it is the bee that scares us.
Despite the statistics, we still drive. We still put ourselves at risk every day. But we also look at ways to mitigate those risks. We buy cars with airbags, drive more cautiously, avoid driving after drinking alcohol, and wear seat belts.
Next time you are afraid to do something, ask yourself:
Am I overestimating the odds of an unlikely event?
And when the answer, I presume, is “Yes”, ask yourself:
What ‘seat belts’ can I wear to reduce that risk and my fear?
I am just happy neither my wife or son were one of the 107.
Leave a Reply