When I was a kid, we didn’t just walk uphill to school both ways—we also had to learn to drive in the snow, and we did it the hard way.
There were no antilock brakes, so we had to pump them. No four-wheel drive—just rear-wheel drive, with bags of concrete mix in the trunk for extra traction. Heated seats and steering wheels? Forget about it. And we scraped our rear windshields ourselves until rear defrost became a thing.
Sometimes, getting out of a ditch meant gathering a few friends to push the car while slipping and sliding in the snow. It wasn’t convenient, but it was effective—and honestly, a little fun. Those moments taught us teamwork, problem-solving, and grit.
Fast forward to today: drivers are piloting all-wheel-drive, fully automated trucks equipped with more tech than a spaceship. Heated everything, self-starting engines, GPS, lane assist—it’s a wonder cars don’t just drive themselves in the snow.
And yet, snow still seems to stop people in their tracks.
When Comfort Erodes Resilience
This isn’t just about driving in the snow. It’s a larger conversation about how the conveniences of modern technology can erode resilience and competency. When everything is made easier for us, we don’t always build the skills we need to handle adversity—or the confidence to navigate challenges when our technology lets us down.
Just like the military insists on teaching pilots the fundamentals of flying, even for planes loaded with automation, maybe driving schools—and life lessons—should bring back the basics. Why? Because true growth doesn’t come from taking shortcuts or avoiding discomfort. It comes from doing the hard stuff: facing challenges head-on, learning through failure, and building confidence in your ability to adapt and persevere.
Small Ways to Reconnect with the Basics
The good news is that building resilience and sharpening old skills doesn’t require drastic changes. Here are a few small ways you can dial back technology and reconnect with the basics in your daily life:
Get Lost: Take a tech-free road trip. Turn off GPS, roll down the windows, and navigate the old-fashioned way—with a map or your memory. Getting lost can be a surprisingly refreshing experience that sharpens your sense of direction.
Scrape Your Rear Windshield: Do it the old-fashioned way with a scraper. It’s oddly satisfying, and it might even make you appreciate the warmth of your car when you finally climb inside.
Skip the Auto Start: Bundle up and embrace those first chilly moments in the car. It’s a small way to reconnect with the environment around you—and it’s better for the planet, sparing it a few extra CO2 molecules.
Bundle Up Instead of Cranking the Heat: Layer on a sweater or jacket instead of blasting the heater. It’s a small reminder of what it feels like to adapt to your environment rather than expecting it to adapt to you.
Finding Joy in Simplicity
These little moments don’t just keep old skills sharp—they also help us slow down, appreciate where we are, and find joy in simplicity. In a world designed for convenience, choosing to embrace a little discomfort now and then can teach us a lot about ourselves.
So, what’s one way you could unplug from technology today? Maybe it’s as simple as rolling up your sleeves and scraping the rear windshield. Sometimes, it’s the smallest acts of self-reliance that remind us how capable we really are.
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