Rear View Mirror

“Head up, head up!” Those words were ringing in my ears through the headset I was wearing under my helmet. I’m thinking, gee buddy, my head is up, quit yelling at me!

What I didn’t realize was that it wasn’t up often enough.

When you attend racing school (mine was at Skip Barber at Laguna Seca) or take a motorcycle defensive riding course like I did, two words are pounded in to your skull. Head up! That’s because if you are not looking well ahead, you could miss an opportunity or worse, miss seeing a crash that’s coming your way.

The same can be said for business.

Dirt track race cars have no rear view mirror. The pace is so fast that if you’re not looking ahead and your head’s not up, you’ll crash and burn. In a race car, or your daily driver, there is a reason the rear view mirror is smaller than the windshield.

What is ahead of you is far more important than what is behind you.

The late great Formula 1 Champion Ayrton Senna said, “The past is just data. I only see the future.” No doubt Senna learned from his past but it was what lay ahead that was far more important to him.

Head up!