Recently, I got stuck in a traffic jam on the Long Island Expressway. For what seemed like forever, I inched forward at a snail's pace. During all of this time, I began to imagine what could have caused such a massive tie-up on the expressway. Perhaps, the road had been closed due to an overturned truck. Or maybe, everyone had moved aside to allow emergency medical vehicles to tend to the injured in a multi-car accident. Therefore, you can imagine my surprise when I reached the source of the bottleneck - a motorist changing a flat tire on the side of the road.

Yes, I had once again fallen victim to the rubbernecks; the people who slow down just to get a good look at an accident or in this case, a car broken down on the side of the road. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that rubbernecking isn't isolated to the highways. Many people rubberneck on the job, in their finances and even in their marriages. In fact, whenever someone diverts their attention from where they're going to observe the misfortune of others, they are rubbernecking.

Now, please don't misunderstand me here. I'm not suggesting that we shouldn't stop and lend a helping hand to those less fortunate. However, rubbernecks don't stop to give aid to others. They simply look on at their misery; often with contempt. By just gawking at the person in trouble, rubbernecks do nothing to alleviate the suffering of others. And even worst, they add to the misery of everyone else. They slow down the flow of everyone around them.

In fact, we've all experienced the effect of rubbernecks in our jobs, clubs and even at church. You're having a wonderful day and everything seems to be going your way. You're cruising in the fast lane when all of the sudden, a rubberneck cuts you off with a story about some senseless tragedy that happened 3,000 miles away. The story doesn't involve anyone you know nor are you asked to help in any way. Most often, the person is simply repeating a story that he or she heard on the evening news, which is the feeding ground of the rubberneck. However, in the process, the person has slowed down your roll and dampened your spirit.

Therefore, you must avoid rubbernecks at all costs. Remember, there will be many obstacles placed in your path during your dash. And if you are to clear these hurdles, you need to focus your attention on the race you're running and not on the race of someone who may have fallen. After all, the surest path to disaster is to be running full speed ahead while looking backwards. For example, haven't you noticed that the person who consistently critiques a neighbor's childrearing techniques invariably has a child of his own child that is out of control? The same thing applies to the person who focuses on another person's marriage, business or anything else. Each of us has enough of our troubles to worry about without distracting ourselves by focusing on the troubles of others; unless we're going to do something about them.

Besides, one of the key ingredients in the recipe for success is enthusiasm; and lots of it. You need enthusiasm to push through the barriers between you and your destiny. You also need enthusiasm to enlist the assistance of others. However, it's very difficult to keep a positive mental attitude when you're being bombarded with negativity.

Therefore, whenever you notice a traffic jam ahead in life, immediately get off on the next off ramp. Even if you have to go out of your way to take a detour, it's better than getting caught up in the latest tragedy or celebrity gossip.

Of course, sometimes the rubbernecks will spring out of nowhere. You won't be able to avoid them. For example, you can be sitting in your office and a colleague will pop in to "share" with you the latest tragedy that just come over the wire. In that case, you will be inevitably slowed somewhat but you don't have to get completely stuck. You can simply thank your visitor for sharing the information and tell them that you're too busy right now to talk about it but you'll come see them later (which, of course, you won't). Yes, this may seem a little underhanded but all's fair in love, war and dealing with rubbernecks.

Seriously, I'm not suggesting that you bury your head in the sand to shield yourself from the unpleasantness of life. There are ills in our world like famine, plagues and war that we should all be working to cure. However, focusing our attention on the latest celebrity trial or political scandal doesn't help in that effort. It simply serves as a distraction. Remember, we'll never get anywhere in our quest for utopia if we're all stuck in traffic watching some guy changing a tire.