"My Pedestrian Persona Modification Plan"





Introduction
In making a Makeover Plan in being a pedestrian or driver is the same way to me. I think one should start with the easiest task and work up the ladder to the toughest step. Set small goals with yourself and reward yourself every now and than. Here's a link, Alan Furukawa-Plan, if you're serious about a makeover plan for yourself. As for me, I plan to work on my impatient attitude because it makes me rush, hate waiting, and makes me want to speed.

Attitude Change

The first thing I would like to change about being a pedestrian is my impatient attitude. I find that I say negative things when I'm bored and waiting around waiting for people to either catch up to me or walk faster. I tried to think of happy thoughts but they turn negative because I become impatient or irritated from waiting too long. If you haven't figured it out, I'm an impatient person who can't stand waiting around. Can you imagine me on the road in traffic? I'd probably start irritating other drivers off because I'm so impatient.

I need to work on relaxing and stop worrying about time that I think I'm wasting. I need to remember about the people around me, I must look weird or irritated when I need to wait because I'm so bored of waiting around. I try to read anything but find that I can't focus on the book for too long because my attention isn't on the book.

I notice that when I'm patient and waiting, someone else comes along being impatient and I start laughing because I know what it feels like when you're in a rush and nothing goes right. When I sat down to watch these people, I wonder if that's what I look like when I'm impatient.

What bugs me is what happened just the other day when I was standing in line being patient. This old lady with her grandson cut in front of me and when my mother came back she asked me what happened? All I know is that she just came in my line and stood in front of me. I thought she was with the guy in front of me but she wasn't. So my mother says really loud, I mean the whole store heard, "I guess some people never learn and like teaching young people how to cut in front of everyone; well no wonder kids today disrespect people older than them."

Well after my mother said that I felt stupid and told my mother to wait outside and I'll pay for the groceries. I really didn't mind that the old lady cut in front of me because she's old. Than again, is it okay for all old people to cut in front of people whenever they feel like it. Don't get me wrong, I do tell people who cut in front of me that I was in line most of the time. I just got caught with this old lady because I didn't think my mother would notice but she did. Boy did I suffer the humiliation.

Rushing

When I'm impatient I always start to rush around. I seem to always have something negative to say about people who take up all the room on the sidewalk so nobody can pass by them. I don't know about you but I can't stand this when I'm in a rush because I can't go around them. On top of that these people walk so slow like they're in slow motion and I feel like I'm on fast forward. I would really appreciate if these sidewalk hoggers and slow walkers will walk single file on a sidewalks, so others can pass by.

You bet I tried to ask slow walkers and sidewalk hoggers to step aside so I can pass by but they don't and continue blocking my way. I use to call them an idiot and inconsiderate people but I soon found out that I was also calling my mother, family, and friends that too because they don't walk the same pace as me. I'm starting to walk across the street and walk pass the slow walkers and crossing the street again to pass these slow walkers by. I'm working on sitting down until my mother, family, and friends catch up to where I am and start walking again and every time I find out that I'm way ahead of my party, I sit down and wait for them.

Related links dealing with rushing in my report one:
Jason Nakasato-Pedestrian Traffic.
Caroline Balatico's-rushing.
Rochelle Tactacan-Solutions in Swearing.
Terri Slaughter-Four Rules. This relates to aides in sidewalk frustration.

Drivers

I don't like drivers that take their sweet time turning when they know that I'm waiting for them to turn so I can across the street in the crosswalk. One day I timed these drivers and I stood there waiting to cross the street for ten minutes and I had to speed walk to catch my shuttle. Sometimes these drivers took longer and I missed the shuttle. I mean I try to be patient and considerate to drivers and they get me mad because I get to school late by ten to fifteen minutes because I missed the shuttle or was waiting for them to all turn so I could cross the street. Perhaps they should put a traffic light but come on, there's too many traffic lights on the roads all ready. However, if they do put a traffic light on Woodlawn it would probably stop people from racing, but then again, there are traffic lights on East Manoa Road but every day and night I hear people racing and sometimes I hear a car crash.

License

One reason I don't drive is because I suck in traffic. I enjoy speeding and I even experienced turning on two wheels while giving my dad a nervous breakdown. Come to think of it my father never took me on the road since than. I don't blame him because his life was on the line and he didn't have any control over what could have happened if I didn't have control over the car.

My family says I drive like my aunty who was a speeder and likes her sports car. I should ask her to teach me how to drive because my family doesn't want to teach me, I guess I freaked them all out. I bet she wouldn't mind teaching me how to drive because I would take her all over the place. However, the problem is, does my family trust the two of us because I speed and like fast cars. By the way, my aunty can't drive for the moment because she had a stroke and is paralyzed.

If you're a speeder I would recommend you to visit Michelle Alonzo's site because she has speeding stories. Yes, I have a story contained in there on my speeding and where it got me. Another link that you should check out about speeding is my response to Braden Kato-Aggression. He talks about his younger days when he was aggressive on the road.

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Implications to Traffic Psychology
Being a pedestrian is just like being a driver. If one can't control rushing, impatience, and speeding than one is dangerous on the road as a driver and a pedestrian because they are preoccupied with tryng to get to one place without concentrating on what's going on around them. Safety should come first with other peoples' lives in mind too. A pedestrian and driver need to be on the defense and offense at all times everywhere one goes. If you don't than one would experience accidents that were unexpected. For example, if you're walking or driving and don't pay attention to the things going on around you, someone can come out of nowhere and bump into you without you knowing if you could've avoided the situation.

Social Learning Theory says that we learn by observing and imitating others. I believe that I'm impatient, always rushing, and I enjoy speeding due to observing others around me. I learned to walk fast and rush through my aunty, she rewarded me whenever I walked fast and rushed because I could keep up with her during sales at Ala Moana. I learned how to speed by observing my father drive over speed bumps like they weren't there. Besides my grandpa wanting to become a race car driver when he was alive.

Rushing doesn't allow one to see the funny things that go on during traffic. Once I was on the bus from town to Hawaii Kai, I was so irritated and annonyed that I didn't even bother to look outside to the other drivers on the road. Well when I did, I saw people sneezing, yawning, eating, singing (I mean singing with expressions and emotions), laughing with nobody next to them, talking to themselves, putting on makeup, flossing teeth, and digging their noses. I started to laugh to myself and smile. It was hilarious. Watching others helped to pass time by and relax me.

Being impatient doesn't make you a better driver or pedestrian, more like the worst person on the road. Being that I'm an impatient person, I know that I need to work on this a lot because that means I get bored fast. This is probably the worst for me because I don't pay attention to situations around me. I just look forward and when someone hits me, I jump all over that person without realizing that I had some part in it. On top of that, I tend to daydream in conversations that I get tired of listening to. I often need to ask people what were we talking about. I feel bad and guilty when I need to do these things. I will need to begin to start using behavioral theory to stop this problem.

I started to write down a list of reasons why I get bored so fast. I try to keep conversations going and keep with the subject at hand even though I'm bored with that suject. It's hard sometimes and frustrating. It's funny when the other person forgets what the subject at hand was. At lease I know that I'm not the only person who experiences this problem.

When someone who is driving me to a place and I'm in a rush, I notice that I can't stand waiting in traffic. Somehow, every traffic light I come across I catch and a slow person cuts in front. This slows me down and I get even more impatient and irritated. Dr. James mentioned one day in class that this is good because the other person is slowing you down and protecting you from an accident. I think he's right now but when I'm in that situation when I'm walking, I don't think so. I think they're trying to frustrate, annoy, and irritate me.

Cutting people off in line or on the road without people's permission is bad because you're taking their space away from them. Like the Kendall Matsuyoshi-Accordion Effect. Not to mention, endangering yours and other peoples life. Don't forget that some people aren't nice and hate people who cut them off. For example, some people shoot people on the roads who get them upset. So be careful when cutting people off. Don't forget to always thank people after they let you in. So far, I haven't come across anyone who didn't like people thanking them for letting them in or even stopping for them. Yes, this applies to pedestrians as well. I stop for cars in their driveway to go and they thank me. Yup, I thank people in cars when they let me cross.

Speeding is only bad when you don't get caught, NOT! =) Checking if you're paying attention and not sleeping on me. Speeding can scare you when you turn on two wheels. I DON'T recommend anyone to try it either. Speeding can cost you money and you're license when your taking the road test.


Method

I recorded my thoughts on paper and made my observations by listening to my thoughts and emotions when I'm walking. I even wrote down notes when I was a passenger with my mother. I soon realized that when I rode with my mother, I'm more expressive and open about my feelings than when I'm by myself. I even start to tell my mother how to drive and improve her driving techniques. She doesn't seem to yell at me anymore when I tell her how to drive because I tell her that that is what I'm learning in Traffic Psychology class.

I plan to continue my quest on improving my thoughts and behaviors while walking. I plan to set time out to get my license and I need to work on my impatient behavior before going on to the roadways. I think a good idea to learn how to be patient is to wait fifteen minutes outside of class before class starts. While waiting I should read the chapters for the class or a book that I would enjoy reading. I have to check and see if this works. I sure hope it does.

I now see why I should change my attitudes when I'm a pedestrian. I understand now that the behaviors that I need to work on are related to my attitudes and behaviors in everyday life. I wouldn't have thought that the behaviors I modified here are the behaviors I needed to work on in my life. It's strange how the modified behaviors change me as a whole and not just the part of me being a pedestrian. I will continue to work on my life problems using the resistance plan in my REPORT4.HTML.

I must leave here now to work and devise another plan to tackle my problem of not wanting to study for my exams. I can't afford to not study, so I need to motivate myself to study even though I don't want to. I wish that summer school didn't start the week after finals because I need a break before I go insane getting ready for a summer full of classes and surviving finals week.


Resistance

I still get irritated and annonyed at people who walk slow when I'm in a rush. I'm starting to make more noises and that seems to work. After people let me past I say thank you. I'm still trying to control my impatience and haven't found ways to distract my thoughts of impatience. I have a feeling that my impatience may actually be worrying and not impatience. Question is, how do I stop worrying? I hope to seek deeper within myself to find what my worries really are in my life. I have been less worried about my life since I started this semester because I have been distancing myself from troubled situations. For example, if nobody wants a homemeal but me, I just cook for myself while they enjoy takeout food. I'm relying on myself more and more to be where I want to be instead where other people expect me to be in my life.

I suppose now that my brother has gotten married and may move out of the house, I should really consider getting my license. I can just imagine myself in a drivers seat now and I wonder if I'd start to speed again. I guest I have to find out once I get my permit and start driving all ready. Don't laugh but my cousin is ten years younger than me, and she got her license and laughs at me because I'm too chicken to get mine. I have gotten a lot out of this course and hope that when I do decide to get my permit sometime this year that I'll remember the difficult situations that I and other people had in this course. Meaning that for every difiiculty situation that I come across in life, if I have enough courage and strived to over some of my fears, I can do it even though I may struggle and want to throw things out the window (like this computer at times).

As for my worrying, I think worrying isn't healthy for my because I don't concentrate on the present time, I'm too focused on what I'm worrying about. For instance, I can worry about being one minute late for class and start panicking. I may just have to think of ways not to worry too much. Perhaps, I should write all my worries down on a piece of paper an put it into my bag. When I'm ready to face the worries again, I should take that piece of paper out. Who's to say, it just might work.

I'm starting to do that now and I find it's helping a little bit. Hey, it's better than not trying anything at all. I still have difficulty forgetting and letting all my worries go, but for the most part, I can handle those worries enough to handle them while I do my work.

Surprise I'm back. Thought I'd leave you hanging on what I've done to improve on my worries. I was thinking one day what should I do to lessen the worries that I have. Things got worst because I started to worry about finals and getting things in on time. Solution, I spent nights cleaning the house and my room and thoughts of getting through finals wasn't too hard to handle. Who would have thought that cleaning would clear ones head. Don't get me wrong but I still worry about the finals but thinking of them one by one and not all at once has helped a lot. Each day that goes by I work on one class and when I get bored or tired I take a break and start another class. It's helped me to get things done. Finishing up one thing that is due reminds me that I have one less thing to complete.

Until the next time I meet up with another behavior I need to modify, I will continue my quest to modify it. I'll see you around and hope that you enjoyed reading about my behaviors I needed to modify and change. By the way, what's your behaviors that you want to modify or is it need to modify. Ha..Ha.. Got you!

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