Two wheelers form the primary mode of transport for a vast majority of us. They are also fun to ride and many of us with cars prefer to ride a bike for the thrill it gives, to feel the wind gushing through our hair and experience the outside world without a windshield. However, as we all know, we have to be very careful while riding a two-wheeler as compared to cars. A slight loss in concentration can put yourself as well as others at risk. The following tips can help you make your two-wheeler riding safer and better.
Inserting the key, starting the engine and vrooming off is not a very healthy practice. Spend a few seconds doing the following procedures:
Make an initial check: This check includes checking the fuel level (so that you can preplan when to refuel and ensure that your bike doesn’t stop abruptly in traffic), oil level and the tire pressure. Remember that tires are the ones that form the bridge between you and the road and pay extra attention to it. See to it that it is not punctured, check and change tires when they are aged out and always maintain the advised pressure levels.
Adjust Rear View mirrors: Rear view mirrors are very important. You rely heavily on them. It is impossible to turn back and see each time if there are vehicles behind you while riding. Sit on the seat comfortably and adjust the mirrors so that you can see clearly what is happening behind you before starting. If they are loose, immediately replace them.
Idling: Start the vehicle and idle for a while, especially in the mornings when you are starting for the first time. Roll forward slowly and check the brakes. Check headlights, indicators, horn etc. Release the Side Stand, if any before moving forward.
Helmets and Dressing :
Though it is illegal in most places to ride without helmets, a vast majority don’t, they say it spoils the thrill. But remember, thrill can kill. Wear helmets even if it is a short journey. After all, we have one short life to live and enjoy in this world, why make it even shorter!
You can wear bright jackets, especially if the ride is during nights or low light conditions, so that others on road can easily spot you from a distance and avoid accidents.
Wear a good pair of shoes, as many a time, you will have to use your legs for properly balancing and aligning your vehicle in heavy traffic, bad roads, sharp turns etc. Incase of motorbikes, legs have an even bigger role of shifting the gears & applying the brakes.
Hands become numb during cold weather conditions and your fingers may not be able to apply the brake and accelerator when your brain alerts it to do so. Please wear a good pair of gloves during winter and night rides.
Sunlight and glares can blind you completely at times. And that is enough for an accident to occur. Wear good sunglasses which cut off glare effectively while riding in the sun.
Be defensive, maintain a safe distance: Always maintain a safe distance between your vehicle and vehicles around you. Imagine drivers around you are all rule-breakers and may make a faulty move at any instance and take decisions appropriately. Car and heavy vehicle drivers may not be able to see around very clearly as they are confined to the interiors and may ram into you unknowingly. Judge the movement of kids wisely as they are highly unpredictable.
Avoid carrying big objects: I have seen the pillion rider carry two 29 inch CRT TVs on a speeding bike! Carrying heavy or big objects are highly risky as the rider will find it extremely hard to balance, especially during sudden braking and sharp turns. It puts you as well as people around you at risk. You can always choose public transport or arrange a car in case you want to transport such heavy luggage.
Don’t over speed, don’t break traffic rules: This is something which goes without saying. Government has set speed limits and hired traffic police for your safety. Many people have an ideology that the government has something to gain by making us go at slow speeds and see to it that the government doesn’t gain by going at high speeds and not following traffic rules. What a stupid ideology!!
Hope the above tips help you enjoy your two wheeler ride to the fullest. Wish you a Happy and Safe ride ahead!!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
HOW TO IMPROVE OUR EFFICIENCY AT WORK
“Oh God! What a waste the day was! Nothing productive happened though I slogged the whole of the day” is a common feeling in many of us every other evening. Of course there are days when we feel it was just great, but such days are so few in number. The reason that we accomplish so less in so much time is not that we are less able, but due to the fact that we lack proper planning, discipline and order in our lives. Though we have been repeatedly told sayings like ‘Order is Heaven’s first law’ we tend to forget them very often in our busy schedule and mess up every job resulting in total confusion and frustration. The article provides a few tips which if applied to your lifestyle can help you accomplish a lot without an extra pinch of hard-work!
1) Passion: This is the most important ingredient to a happy and successful life. If you are passionate about the work you are doing, you will do it better than anyone else around. Recollect some incidents in the recent past when you have worked with passion and love; I am sure the outcomes have been superb! Developing passion for work is not something which can be taught. Understand that only if you work with passion can your efforts yield great results. Only then will you feel happy and content at the end of the day. LOVE the work that you are doing. Tell this to yourself ten times every morning. This will surely give you positive results.
2) Planning: The next most important ingredient to an efficient life-style. I love planning because it gives me a lot of free time. And by free time I mean time when my mind is fully free from tensions, stress and worries. When my day isn’t planned, worries of when and how I will complete my work keeps poking me whenever I switch on my TV or browse the web. Moreover, the outcomes of a well planned endeavor are a hundred times better than an unplanned one. So planning gives quality free time as well as quality results. So why not plan?? Plan your day and week ahead, and jot it down on a piece of paper. Try to stick to it. It will yield great results.
3)Time Management: I have attended a lot of seminars on success. I have heard a lot of successful people speak on their success too. One thing is common everywhere and that is time management. Without time management, success is almost impossible. Managing your time well, be it in your exam hall, working hours, free time etc can yield terrific results. And poor time management can yield very poor results. Believe me, no matter how much you work hard, if you aren’t able to manage time well, you are going to fail!
4)Order: Keep your work table clean and well ordered. Keep papers that don’t need immediate attention inside. Keep your books/file rack ordered and easily accessible. If you extensively use computers, see to it that the files are named appropriately and kept well ordered in folders. Most of our work involves retrieving old data, referring to it and preparing new reports. If things are kept well ordered, it is easy and less time consuming to find them. Finding a file or a paper in a messy place can make you go mad ad spoil your mood to work.
5)Put first things first: It is human nature to get stressed. We can’t do much about it. But research has shown that we get stressed more when we aren’t able to accomplish the most important things we are supposed to do. So the best way to control stress is to prioritize your activities and accomplish the most important activities first even though it may take more time and effort. We all know from personal experience that when we are less stressed, we are able to do more. So prioritizing reduces stress and improves efficiency greatly.
4)Physical and Mental well being: A healthy and spirited body and mind works times better than an unhealthy and demoralized one. Exercise, meditation and reading inspirational books on self-motivation and spirituality can greatly improve mental and physical well being.
5)Don’t browse the net or watch TV during mornings: This is the biggest mistake most of us do. Unless it is that important, do sit in front of the TV or browse the net in the mornings. These activities can tire you easily. Spend time for exercise, creative thinking etc during mornings when you are fresh.
6) Self Motivation: Whenever I read a book on success, I used to get excited and work as mentioned in the book. But then after a couple of days, the spirit died out and I fell back to my old routine. But then one day I read a book which mentioned about self motivation. You should motivate yourself very frequently, preferable every morning and before sleep with inspirational stories and success tips. It automatically enters your subconscious mind and you start working much better without you yourself actually knowing! Only when others praise your good work will you realize your improvement!
Hope these little tips help you improve efficiency at work and bring you success! !
1) Passion: This is the most important ingredient to a happy and successful life. If you are passionate about the work you are doing, you will do it better than anyone else around. Recollect some incidents in the recent past when you have worked with passion and love; I am sure the outcomes have been superb! Developing passion for work is not something which can be taught. Understand that only if you work with passion can your efforts yield great results. Only then will you feel happy and content at the end of the day. LOVE the work that you are doing. Tell this to yourself ten times every morning. This will surely give you positive results.
2) Planning: The next most important ingredient to an efficient life-style. I love planning because it gives me a lot of free time. And by free time I mean time when my mind is fully free from tensions, stress and worries. When my day isn’t planned, worries of when and how I will complete my work keeps poking me whenever I switch on my TV or browse the web. Moreover, the outcomes of a well planned endeavor are a hundred times better than an unplanned one. So planning gives quality free time as well as quality results. So why not plan?? Plan your day and week ahead, and jot it down on a piece of paper. Try to stick to it. It will yield great results.
3)Time Management: I have attended a lot of seminars on success. I have heard a lot of successful people speak on their success too. One thing is common everywhere and that is time management. Without time management, success is almost impossible. Managing your time well, be it in your exam hall, working hours, free time etc can yield terrific results. And poor time management can yield very poor results. Believe me, no matter how much you work hard, if you aren’t able to manage time well, you are going to fail!
4)Order: Keep your work table clean and well ordered. Keep papers that don’t need immediate attention inside. Keep your books/file rack ordered and easily accessible. If you extensively use computers, see to it that the files are named appropriately and kept well ordered in folders. Most of our work involves retrieving old data, referring to it and preparing new reports. If things are kept well ordered, it is easy and less time consuming to find them. Finding a file or a paper in a messy place can make you go mad ad spoil your mood to work.
5)Put first things first: It is human nature to get stressed. We can’t do much about it. But research has shown that we get stressed more when we aren’t able to accomplish the most important things we are supposed to do. So the best way to control stress is to prioritize your activities and accomplish the most important activities first even though it may take more time and effort. We all know from personal experience that when we are less stressed, we are able to do more. So prioritizing reduces stress and improves efficiency greatly.
4)Physical and Mental well being: A healthy and spirited body and mind works times better than an unhealthy and demoralized one. Exercise, meditation and reading inspirational books on self-motivation and spirituality can greatly improve mental and physical well being.
5)Don’t browse the net or watch TV during mornings: This is the biggest mistake most of us do. Unless it is that important, do sit in front of the TV or browse the net in the mornings. These activities can tire you easily. Spend time for exercise, creative thinking etc during mornings when you are fresh.
6) Self Motivation: Whenever I read a book on success, I used to get excited and work as mentioned in the book. But then after a couple of days, the spirit died out and I fell back to my old routine. But then one day I read a book which mentioned about self motivation. You should motivate yourself very frequently, preferable every morning and before sleep with inspirational stories and success tips. It automatically enters your subconscious mind and you start working much better without you yourself actually knowing! Only when others praise your good work will you realize your improvement!
Hope these little tips help you improve efficiency at work and bring you success! !
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