“Go up a gear, wouldja.”

I pulled the gearstick up, but the engine resisted.

“Pull it down. You need to go back to go up.”

As I readjusted the gears, I accidentally flicked something with my elbow.

“Now the wipers are going,” he said as if I couldn’t see them waving enthusiastically across the window.

I just about caught sight of the oncoming coach bus that was taking up 3/4 of the narrow country road. I dodged it by moving closer to the branches, avoiding injury to my driving instructor’s car.

“Get in off the road.” The command was followed by a long beeeeeeeep from the bus.

“I forget how to flick the wipers off,” I said, my heart struggling to settle after the near-death experience.

“You need to speed up again. Go up a gear, wouldja,” he said. Next minute, another car was overtaking us while the instructor was leaning over me impatiently searching for the wipers while I gripped the wheel praying for the lesson to end.

I always knew I wanted to drive. I studied and revised for my theory test religiously, passing with 1 incorrect answer and ready to take on the roads. But learning to drive behind a wheel was a more daunting experience, especially since I grew up on narrow roads where tourists would rather drive in the middle and risk an accident instead of risk a scratch to their car.

I was limited in my choice of instructors (i.e. not in a position to choose) since I was confined to the middle of nowhere and lazy to venture afar. I’d run home from each driving lesson and jot down things that went well, things that went bad, what to remember and what not to forget. I figured if I spent a lot of time thinking about it then I’d naturally become a good driver because I obviously cared a lot. Though thinking too much into it ended up to doing the opposite.

The human memory is a complicated process which includes several different pathways for learning new skills, remembering key facts, and storing emotional experiences. ‘Declarative Memory’ is the conscious process of recalling facts/information. It is used to revise for exams or remember the routes you need to travel to reach a destination. Whereas learning to drive a car, to ride a bike or to swim are physical skills that your body remembers unconsciously out of habit. Some people say they drove home drunk one time with no recollection of it. This is because our bodies use ‘Procedural Memory’ to focus on performance while carrying out physical repetitive tasks.

Learning to drive is not something that you can acquire from reading a book. You can become more aware of the safety measures around it, but to actually develop your driving skills you need to know how to move your body in order to change gears when necessary, how to brake suddenly in a way that’s relatively safe. In a swimming pool, you don’t think while you move your arms and kick your legs about what you are doing – you just do it (unless you are a beginner).

So how do you advance from a beginner?

(Don’t worry, there is a happy ending to this blog post where I get my drivers license after two driving tests and far too many lessons)

1. REPEAT REPEAT REPEAT: My brother was on a tractor from a young age and made driving look as easy as waking up. He’s just a naturally good driver, I began to believe as if it was a club I wouldn’t gain access to. Though some people may feel they are just better at taking paper tests instead of practical work, we can develop our procedural skills with repetition. Insure yourself in a family car so you can get as much practice as possible (if it’s an option)
2. Get an instructor you feel comfortable with: When I started driving, I wanted the cheapest and most convenient option. I used my wages for traveling or college instead of being insured on our car at home. Thus, I only drove during lessons with an instructor I didn’t feel comfortable with. Ironically, that ended up being more expensive as I needed many more lessons to become confident in myself. Thankfully, I eventually got an extremely patient and kind instructor when I did lessons in town. He helped me pass my test.
3. SILENCE the critical voice: I would often listen to the critical voice in my head as I sat in the front seat. I learned off a ton of information but had no clue how to use it. E.G.:

Maybe I should overtake them? Is it safe? Oh god there’s a line of traffic forming behind me. I should probably overtake this tractor or there’ll be pissed off people up my arse. But it says in the rulebook I shouldn’t overtake on a bend. Right, I’ll leave it now so. Oh look they’re overtaking me. I knew I should’ve went!
There’s no room for criticism or doubt in driving. Meditating is a skill that helps you practice being in the present moment and recognizing unhelpful thought patterns. Doing what you feel comfortable with is the best advice on the roads and not worrying too much about the drivers behind you unless you are putting yourself or anyone else in danger. Managing the functions of driving is a repetitive habitual skill that comes naturally with practice.

Don’t worry if you are petrified of the roads, just like all skills it gets easier with time and can become a ‘good kind of scary’.

Reference Explaining Procedural vs Declarative Memory in Depth:

 https://human-memory.net/explicit-implicit-memory/