What you should not do while driving

A guide to working in motion is only trustworthy if it is willing to say no. This is that page. It is deliberately short and deliberately unhedged.

Never, regardless of the tool

• Reading. Email, messages, documents, dashboards, transcripts, or an assistant's written answer. If it requires reading, it waits.
• Typing. Including 'just a quick one at the light'. Especially that one.
• Video calls. Camera on means you are performing for a screen instead of watching the road.
• Choosing from a list. Any flow that ends with picking option two of five is a visual task wearing a voice costume.
• Reviewing anything precise. Numbers, legal language, code, contracts. Errors made here are expensive and invisible until later.
• Treating driver assistance as a break. Supervised autonomy is supervision. The name is not marketing.

Conditional no

• Emotionally charged calls. Anger and adrenaline degrade driving measurably. Pull over or reschedule.
• Anything in bad conditions. Rain, snow, night, unfamiliar roads, heavy traffic, or fatigue means voice work is off entirely.
• Handheld anything. In most jurisdictions this is illegal, and where it is not, it is still a bad idea.

The rule behind the rules

Driving degrades gradually and invisibly. You will not notice the moment your following distance shortens or your lane keeping loosens — which is exactly why 'I can handle it' is not evidence. Build the habit at the level of categories, not judgment calls, because the judgment is the thing being impaired.

Laws differ by state and country and they change. Everything here is a floor. Follow your local law, and when in doubt, do less.