Simple preparation - one of my biggest pet peeves

I don't remember the exact quote but it is something like, "Success is 90% preparation and 10% execution". If there is no such quote then I want credit - LOL

Anyway -- this is post is NOT about big preparation stuff like a daily itinerary for your two week vacation or getting your taxes done by March 1st or anything grandiose like that, in fact, for that stuff I am a spontaneous go with the flow guy (especially when it comes to tax prep!).

What I am talking about is the little stuff that REALLY gets under my skin. The biggest of them all might very well be the TOLL BOOTH!

Let's see, whether it's on the highway, the airport, or a parking garage you KNOW IT IS THERE! I can not stand pulling up behind someone who is completely unprepared. Seriously, at least have your ticket handy. Yesterday I was at a seminar and was stuck in parking garage for nearly 20 minutes. As I was THREE cars away I noticed the person at the cashier was 'fishing' for their ticket. Ok, if the lot was empty and you just cruised on up this makes sense, not for me, I would be ready with ticket and money in hand, but I'm ok with it. But really, you just sat there for 20 minutes, couldn't you have done the whole purse search while you were waiting (this just happened to be a woman, I am not judging or making a generalization I assure you). So, Car A gets done and I am now just one away. I pull up and realize that the driver of Car B is about to begin the same 'dance' as HE pulls up to the window. Are we serious? Is time that useless to everyone? This dude though takes the cake...not only can't he find his ticket for at least 90 seconds he has NO cash! Ummmm...ok, lots of people stopped carrying cash, but again, didn't he KNOW this when he pulled up and couldn't he have had his credit card ready? Unbelievable.

My other FAVORITE toll booth past time is the 'one coin at a time dropper'. You know the person, they pull up to the EXACT CHANGE toll booth and feed in ONE coin at a time. I have decided this happens for one of two reasons:

1. They are 2 minutes from death (elderly) and they don't realize you can throw a shit ton of coins in and the machine will actually count them OR

2. and this is the BAD one --- you are looking for a 'free ride' so you toss small coin in after small coin in hoping that somehow either you will 'game' the machine or the random person in front of you actually tossed in too much money.

In either scenario I have been able to do some 'profiling' to try and avoid these people in front of me (and yes I have a TOLL TAG, but it doesn't work anywhere I travel to for work). Scenario ONE you actually can avoid with some preparation. Avoid being behind cars where you can only see knuckles on the steering wheel in front of you and MAYBE a shock of grey hair. You can also get a good read from the vehicle...does it have one of those thingies on the antennae like a tennis ball?

Scenario TWO is tougher because you often can't spot them until they are actually at the booth, however, if this happens be prepared to take 10 DEEP BREATHS --- the window does NOT roll down and they have to open the car door to 'toss coins' in. Statistically accurate within a +/- of 5%, 80% of these people are 'coin feeders' and you will be waiting.

These are just two examples of small amounts of wasted time. Each might only be 5-10seconds but that adds up, plus you have no idea if that 5-10 seconds could have saved your life down the line or cost you an opportunity to meet someone special.

Think about, next time your in line at the grocery store, have your credit card ready, half the check written or whatever else you can do to facilitate a quick and efficient exit and let the next guy get moving --- he may be more impatient than me, but I doubt it :-)


ILU VM