Over the past several months I have shared with you some insights about child rearing based on observations of my own children and of those around me. I was about to submit another article with this theme but an email from a friend redirected my focus from young people, to myself. I realized that I have been teaching a very “bad” lesson, and in the most effective way – by personal example.
In the beginning of the last century, the Italian economist, Vilfredo Pareto, observed that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. Later on, economists recognized that this principle (which is also known as the 80/20 rule) can be applied to other fields. For example, in many businesses 80% of the sales come from 20% of the clients, and 80% of the complaints come from 20% of the customers.
I found this principle to be helpful, not only in explaining different phenomena, but also as a guideline for life. For instance, people who follow a healthy diet know that in order to maintain it for years to come they should allow themselves occasional succumbing to less healthy alternatives. In other words, as long as 80% of the food that enters the body is healthy, the occasional huge burger and fries that make up the other 20%, is ok. (Note that as helpful as the 80/20 rule is, one shouldn’t apply it to all aspects of life. When you take your wife to a nice restaurant to celebrate your 20th anniversary, don’t expect her to appreciate you proudly telling her how you have been faithful to her 80% of the time.)
A few years ago I made a resolution not to text or email while I’m driving. I kept this promise 80% of the time and I was content with that. As you know, it is not easy to ignore the cell phone when we hear the familiar sound of an incoming text. And besides, how much time does it really take to read a text?
A few days ago I received an email from my friend Julie pleading with me, and others, to stop this dangerous habit. A client of hers lost his life because the driver who hit him drove through a red light while she was texting. The truth is that the driver who is texting is 23 times more likely to be in an accident because reading or sending texts diverts the driver’s eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds — the same as driving the length of a football field, blind, at 55 mph.
The Bible teaches us that we must go to extreme measures to guard our life. It was given to us by God and is not for us to throw away. When you text or email while driving you do not only irresponsibly risk your own life, but you play with the lives of others. It might be legal in our state to text while driving, but it is absolutely unethical according to our tradition.
The 80/20 rule gives us a helpful perspective on life, but in the case of texting while driving, just like fidelity, it is not good enough. It must be 100/0. Albert Schweitzer said that “Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing”. With this in mind, please stop this gravely dangerous practice of texting while driving and pledge to teach your children, by positive example, the responsible way to behave.