Although the recent automobile incidents involving 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan and CBS broadcaster Tony Romo involved different circumstances and outcomes, the situations underscore an inescapable reality when it comes to the transportation options available to people of considerable means.
Hire a driver.
Not an Uber. A driver who is there when you’re ready to go, and who’ll take you wherever you need to be. At all times. To work from home. To home from work. To the airport. From the airport. Wherever, whenever.
Private car services are available throughout the country. And anyone who has a 24/7 job and/or the resources to not think twice about the expense would be wise to rely on someone else to get them from Point A to Point Anywhere.
For coaches who are constantly thinking and communicating, use that time to work without worrying about paying attention to the road. For anyone who may be having a beverage or two (or more) at a golf tournament or anywhere else, use the driver as an alternative to risking a DUI at best, a serious accident at worst.
Some coaches drive 30 minutes or more from their homes to the office. Why risk multi-tasking? Why be tempted to check text messages, or to send one or two (or more)?
Shanahan admitted on Tuesday that he looked away to retrieve his cell phone after it slid off his lap. Why was it on his lap, if he hadn’t been using it while driving? Why did he need to fish it out of wherever if it had fallen, if he didn’t plan to keep using it while driving?
It’s tempting, I know, to take a peek while at a red light or while on a seemingly clear stretch of road. That temptation disappears when the driver isn’t driving.
Every head coach and G.M. who live more than a few minutes from the office should use a driver. They can afford it. The teams can afford to provide it.
When the Chargers moved from San Diego to L.A., quarterback Philip Rivers retrofitted an SUV to create a rolling office in which he could work while someone drove him back and forth to the team facility. While that’s an extreme example, it proves the point.
For people who are always plugged in, the best play is to unplug from the driver’s seat and turn car time into fully productive work time.
And, yes, I’ve written this post from the back seat of an SUV that is taking me somewhere I need to be, at a time when I would otherwise prefer to be working.
