Starting your career behind the wheel can be an exciting thing – but it can also be a stressful and difficult thing, especially if you don’t put in the proper groundwork and do some advance planning. Let’s take a look at a few of the things that many new drivers wish they’d borne in mind from the start.
Get the admin sorted
Before you start driving, you’ll need to do a few administrative tasks. This means applying for your provisional license, insuring your car, comparing prices and booking lessons. The first two of these are legal requirements and should on no account be neglected. You can reduce the cost of your insurance by looking for something specialised. Learner driver insurance makes the process of learning much more affordable.
Don’t neglect the theory test
You need to pass both the theory and the practical tests to be granted a full license. And yet most of us devote only a few hours to studying for the former, and forty or more for the latter. Even if you think the theory test is going to be a breeze, make sure that you study more than you think you’ll need to. It’s better to waste a few hours studying than to have to retake a theory test. Nobody has time for that.
Shop around for your instructor
You don’t want to have to spend upwards of forty hours in close proximity to a person you don’t have any chemistry with – or who you think is incompetent. Don’t settle for a bad teacher – shop around and find a good one. Don’t feel bad about it. Just because a teacher isn’t right for you doesn’t mean that they’re not right for anyone.
Slot in time to practice
You can’t expect to progress in any skill without practice. Being told how to do something is very different from actually doing it for yourself. Get out onto the road in between lessons to apply the knowledge you’ve learned. Do it consistently, too: it’s better to practice for twenty minutes a day for a month than it is to cram it all into a few long sessions. Bear in mind also that your brain is going to be figuring this stuff out in between the sessions, so make sure that you get plenty of sleep, too.
Learn in your local area
You might be tempted to travel further afield if you find that your local test centres have low pass rates. But this is a mistake. Learn in the place you’re going to be driving in. That way, you’ll have the experience you need for after you’ve passed the test. Find out where the test routes are and learn them all back to front!
Feature Image Credit: Andrea_44 – Flickr
This is a Take to the Road Collaborated Post
