There is a commercial on right now that I see often. In the commercial it is appears as if the driver is nowhere near his garage yet the car can shut the garage. So . . . it appears as if this man has driven away and left his garage open and didn’t even think about it until he was miles away. And I say miles away because the home looks like it is in a neighborhood full of houses and they show the car either on a bridge or in a very-city like looking setting. This commercial reminded me of a couple of things I used to do. I used to think that I didn’t have time to sit and watch my garage door close. When I got in my car I was already thinking about my destination and I would be pulling out of my driveway as the garage door was closing, then I would drive away as soon as it closed. Or did it? Yes, there were times I was so intent on driving or paying attention to the obstacle behind me – whether it be a pedestrian or another car – that I wouldn’t really be focused on my garage door so when I got down the street I would have to turn around to make sure it had stayed shut. I would often see it shut but not remember. I wasn’t saving myself any time.
Also I used to waste a good portion of my morning looking for my keys. I used to just set them down anywhere when I arrived home. At one point I got tired of looking for them so I made it a habit to put them in my purse. But that is the Bermuda Triangle and searching in my purse, and sometimes having to dump it out to get to the keys I-know-are-in-there-but-can’t-seem-to-get-my-hand-on – would end up taking even more time. So now I just hang them. I have saved myself so much time. So many times I had been ready to leave on time but then I spent 10/15/maybe even 20 minutes looking for my keys. Ugh. That had to stop. So now I hang them on a hook. I walk in the door and as I am reaching to turn off the alarm, I hang my keys on the hook.
And the garage? I sit and make sure it goes down. I don’t sit and watch it. I am usually doing something else. I pull out of the garage and hit the garage door button, then I put on my seat belt, put on my sunglasses, perhaps plug-in my phone if it needs it. I get settled. Then I look up and make sure it is closed. Then I drive away. I got tired of turning around to make sure it was closed. I got tired of wondering if it had closed and not popped back up. So, it might take a minute to wait, but it saves me a lot of time. And it is not really like I am sitting there doing nothing while it is closing, I am doing stuff. Instead of doing all that before I pull out of the garage, I do it while I am waiting for the door to close. I always make sure I have on my seat belt before I pull out of my driveway. And waiting for the garage door is a great time to put it on.
Society is in such a rush. We all have so much going on, so much on our minds. It seems like such a challenge to just slow down and take a moment. Make sure your garage door is shut.
I am also getting better at locking my car consciously. I used to have to go back almost every time I got out of my car. But now I am better at stopping for that 10 or 15 seconds (I mean how long does it take?) to make sure I locked it. Usually I am juggling my purse, my water bottle, my brief case, sometimes papers, and sometimes my phone so I don’t remember if I pressed the button. But, I am really making an effort. Even if my hands are full, I pause. Even if I am running late, I pause — because that is when I especially don’t have time to go back and check.
These things fall under the category of mindfulness, huh? Being mindful in these situations could help save us time. It makes me laugh because it seems like not paying attention is the faster way . . . but in the end it is not.
How about you? Do you spend a lot of time looking for your keys? Do you ever go back to make sure you shut the garage door? Do you ever take a few steps back towards your car to make sure it is locked?
Terre Pruitt's Blog 