Talane’s Blog of the Week, February 20, 2006

More adventures of Talane in England. It is my turn to say hallelujah! Finally, on the fourth try, I passed my UK driving test! Now, lest you think I am a lousy driver, at age 16 I learned to drive on a Ford pickup with no power steering or brakes and I can navigate traffic in NYC without breaking a sweat. The UK test is just incredibly difficult. When I was 16 I only had to drive around the block to get my U.S. license, but here you do a 40-60 minute drive so there are lots of chances to mess up. You must also successfully complete two manuveurs, including reversing the car around a corner. I suppose it would have been easier if I were 16 and didn’t have 24 years of “bad” driving habits. But the differences are strange. In England, you have to put the parking brake on EVERY time you come to a stop, even just a pause in traffic. You don’t come to a full stop at intersections; you just pause and go on if all is clear. Then there is the fact that you drive on the other side of the road, which means getting used to shifting gears with the left hand—not to mention all the crazy roundabouts. I think there must be only about three roundabouts in the entire U.S., but here, they are everywhere.

Although it sounds minor, I can assure you that being 40 years old and not allowed to drive without a licensed “supervising” driver in the car is not fun, especially as one of my core needs is independence. (If you want to know your top 4 core needs, take my free Emotional Index Quiz at www.lifecoach.com.) Initially I thought my husband could teach me how to drive—disastrous. Fortunately, after a few miserable lessons, we hired an instructor to get me on the straight and narrow. It took 2 tries – the first instructor was horrible – but I finally got a good one.

As unbelievable as it sounds, I can honestly say that it was easier to give birth (32 hours of labor with no pain killer and all) than it was to pass this test. No joke.

What is the coaching wisdom in all this? “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again?” Yes, but with a twist. Persistence can pay off, but my strategy wasn’t working. I had believed if I threw enough money at this project I’d eventually pass. But after failing test #3, I realized a change was needed. I asked my instructor if there were a better time of day to take the test and he said yes—early morning. You get caught in traffic, end up driving less and are therefore more likely to pass simply because you have less time for mistakes. I scheduled the test for rush hour, booked in three extra lessons the week before, and my new strategy worked. I don’t think I drove any better or worse, but this time I passed.

Coaching tip of the week: if you’ve been trying one way and it isn’t working, change your strategy. It is crazy to expect a different result if you keep doing the same thing, but it is amazing how tempted we are to stay stuck in our old rut.

All the best,
Talane