When to Ignore GPS (and Listen to Yourself Instead)
- A digital road sign, a scary hill, and the wisdom of trusting yourself
It’s the strangest road sign I’ve seen yet.
Jeff and I are driving on I-40 East in North Carolina, where several roads are still a mess after Hurricane Helene barreled through with all her water in September 2024.
Seeing digital road signs along this stretch isn’t unusual.
But this one? Definitely is.
A Road Trip Flashback
It takes my mind back to an earlier drive . . .
I am driving alone to spend the weekend with friends in Chattanooga. I am completely dependent on GPS.
If it says, “Turn left,” I turn left. “Go right,” and I go right.
But at one intersection when it says, “Go straight,” I balk for the first time.
The Scary Road Ahead
The road ahead looks impossibly steep—a road straight out of my nightmares. My toes tingle; my fear of heights kicks in.
Thankfully, the traffic light is red. I have a minute to think.
Do I:
- Obey the GPS and go straight when the light turns green?
Or - Venture off on my own, turn left (or right?), and risk getting completely lost?
The light changes. My foot taps the gas—but my hands won’t stay steady.
Going Rogue
I won’t go straight.
I take a hard left turn.
I can’t take orders this time—I’m going rogue.
But as I do, questions flood my mind:
- Will my ETA slip into the next hour?
- Will I run out of fuel if I have added mileage?
- Will I end up hopelessly lost in the hills of Chattanooga?
I wait for the GPS voice to chime in with its scolding: “Rerouting…rerouting…”
Listening to Me
Sometimes we just have to listen to our own voice instead of an external authority.
Self-trust is a valuable resource. And even though it can sometimes lead us astray, over time it can also become wisdom—earned the hard way.
Ultimately, we’re each responsible for our own decisions.
While we may occasionally share the blame of a bad choice—with a faulty app or stinky advice or simply poor judgment on our part—in the end, trusting our eyes and following our values usually gets us where we’re meant to go . . . even if it takes a few extra turns.
The Surprising Outcome
I look back at my GPS again.
Before the turn, my ETA was 3:41 p.m.
After the “wrong” turn? Still 3:41.
My heart rate slows again.
My blood pressure goes down.
My confidence goes up.
That scary, steep road hadn’t been necessary after all. I didn’t need it. I could reach my destination just fine without it.
I follow the GPS for the rest of the trip though—grateful for its guidance, but now knowing I don’t have to obey it blindly.
Back to the Present
Now, driving through North Carolina, that Chattanooga memory makes me laugh. The digital sign we just passed isn’t meant to be funny, but it makes me laugh, too.
I pull out my phone for a quick photo, but I’m too late.
Still, Jeff and I will remember it—and laugh about it—for a long time.
What did the sign say?
“Do not follow GPS!”
Have you ever blindly followed GPS into a field or around in circles? Sometimes it’s best to *not* follow directions—like trying to drive down a closed road on I-40E (though I hear it’s partially open again!).
Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Oh, yes! Attempting to get to the Queen Creek Olive Mill in Phoenix. Following the GPS brought us within view of the destination but the road stopped ~1/4 mile across an open field. And we were silly enough to follow the GPS more than once! As in life, knowing the destination is enough without all the details. I know where I’m going; I just don’t always know how to get there.
I’ve followed GPS on some crazy twists and turns too. ha. Love this: “As in life, knowing the destination is enough without all the details.” Thanks, Mona!
You made me chuckle at this one, Lisa. What a great story! No, many times, we need to trust ourselves to make the right decisions, especially when it comes to our beliefs and values. Blindly following someone’s dictates because they say they’re in charge is a huge mistake. Thanks for the lesson and the laugh!
Glad I gave you a chuckle, Martha. I actually had several funny GPS stories to choose from for this one. lol. But I do still love it anyway! 🙂
Just today I was thinking about how slowly I’m learning to align my head and heart – to make sure that my choices are intentional. Following the GPS might be wise most of the time, but sometimes we just have to go with our gut.
I’m with you on this journey, Corinne. I’m trying to develop more self-trust even though it doesn’t always come naturally. Thanks for sharing here, friend.
I just went to someone’s house Sunday afternoon and was surprised the drive took so long and went on back roads. I wasn’t looking forward to returning that route in the semi-darkness when I left. I checked my GPS and found it had been accidentally set to avoid highways. So I reset it and had a much faster and nicer drive home. 🙂
It has taken me some odd places sometimes. Occasionally the address I want to get to doesn’t register for some reason. I’m very directionally challenged, so I depend on the GPS a lot. But I also need to listen when my own warning bells go off or when something doesn’t seem right.
That sounds like something we would do too. ha. GPS has taken me down some dark, scary roads which I usually just blindly follow because I’d be completely lost without it at this point. ha.
Great story!
After we drove about twenty miles through a cornfield in Illinois, I decided to turn off GPS and try to find my own way to Chicago!
This made me laugh, Deb. Just today my husband said he had to turn off GPS because it took him on a totally unnecessary loop to end up in the same spot he started. ha. Sometimes we DO know better than GPS. 🙂
GPS consistently tries to take us out on to the local ‘big road’ in town by a ‘shortcut’. It’s not.
And yes, we have ended up on very badly rutted dirt roads in the middle of Kansas while we are trying to find a piece of the Oregon Trail. “Wasn’t there a faster, easier way to get here?”
It makes you wonder how people used to get around when there weren’t even any real roads! When I think about the original Oregon Trail travelers, it’s quite a miracle they ever made it with all the trials they had to endure. I would have been way too wimpy to survive. ha.
I really enjoyed reading your story. I certainly don’t trust GPS 100%. It’s handy, but I never follow it blindly. Even in Finland, there was a sign saying GPS is wrong, follow these instructions to the castle!!
-Soma
Interesting that the same is true in Finland, too! Sometimes we have to be told to trust our instincts and what we see with our own two eyes instead of blindly following a device. 🙂 Thanks for sharing this, Soma.
I recently followed GPS while trying to visit my daughter in Dallas, TX. Due to road construction, the normal exit was unavailable, so the GPS directed me 30 minutes beyond my intended exit to an empty field. Thankfully, my daughter could see my blue dot on Google Maps and verbally guided me back to her house. We had a good laugh about it, but I was a little perturbed by the time lost. I usually don’t trust GM 100%, but the road construction was disorienting, and I was more dependent on it than I ordinarily would be.
Oh, it’s so crazy how these things happen. And yet in the end, technology still came through for you thanks to that blue dot on Google Maps. ha. When there is road construction, I almost always do whatever GPS tells me. 🙂 I would have landed in the same empty field as you did, Lisa.
I actually do this a lot; it’s a bit more nerve wracking when I don’t know have any idea where I am and how the “wrong” turn will turn out but I definitely ignore the directions a lot especially around here.
I want to be more like you, Joanne. 🙂 I’m only in the early stages of learning to ignore GPS some. It’s been such a lifeline for me for awhile now. But it’s definitely not perfect!
I bet we all have GPS horror stories! but what a good illustration this is too. Great food for thought today!
It is hilarious to read all the GPS horror stories. I’ve gotten a good laugh reading the comments here about the ways GPS has led us all astray sometime or another. 🙂
A great analogy Lisa.
I’m an old fashioned gal, I have never used GPS (my car doesn’t have one) & I don’t have a GPS App on my phone. I just use maps before I go & work out my route by memory (keeps the little grey cells of the brain active & healthy).
Then I navigate by land marks, enjoying the stimulus & challenge of ‘ol fashion navigation.
Blessings, Jennifer
Good for you, Jennifer. I think it’s great that you can navigate without being dependent on GPS. It’s definitely better for the brain. GPS has definitely become a crutch for me! It’s a wonder I can get anywhere now without it. ha.
This is so true. Sometimes, we must listen to our inner voice, hoping it will be the Holy Spirit and not just me. I loved your post.
I’m grateful for your voice in the Grace & Truth Link-Up! Your post is now featured on my Pinterest board—take a look: https://www.pinterest.com/embracingtheune/grace-truth-christian-link-up-featured-posts/.
Thank you, Maree. I’m still on the journey of learning to listen more to my inner voice. Sometimes it actually has some great things to tell me! ha.
I appreciate all you do to keep the Grace & Truth linkup still chugging along!
What a great story!
And so true – we need to learn to trust our inner voice. Yes, sometimes we might make a mistake, but often that inner voice is right!
Exactly, Jerralea. As I get older, I’m trying to trust myself more than I did when I was younger. We’ve been around the block a few more times by this stage in life and have seen a few things. 😉 Nonetheless, I am still grateful for devices and people who can point the way from their own experiences too. We have lots of resources and I’m thankful!