Ignited: Managers! Light Up Your Company and Career for More Power, More Purpose, and More Success

Chapter 4. Managing Your Emotions

Road Rage in the Marketing Department

For many of us, our time in the car is the only time we get for ourselves. It’s where we start and finish our workdays, getting a chance to reflect on where we’ve been and where we hope we’re going.

The highway is also an amazing place to study human behavior. Comedian George Carlin was on to something when he remarked, “Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?” Of course, Carlin’s observation is really more of a comment about how we perceive other people than about how other people drive: We all tend to assume that our preferred driving speed is the “correct” one, and therefore react with intolerance ...