15/07/2025
I have two students taking their driving tests today and the last few days have been building up to it. Last night I was laying in bed thinking about it.
Two amazing women, both of them desperate to drive. One is a mum who wants her child to be proud of her, she wants the freedom to explore with her child without having to rely on public transport. The other really wants to move house and change jobs but is so restricted on where she can live and what jobs she can apply for because she doesn’t drive. Two women in different stages of life, both knowing that passing their tests today will literally change their lives.
So I am feeling the pressure today and I was feeling it last night. Thinking about all of the possibilities. Worried that I might go and get into my car to find something is wrong with it… a flat tyre, a warning light.. and oh gosh, is the car clean enough? Should I have made time to run it through a car wash yesterday? I am thinking about how I want them both to pass so badly, picturing the moment where they both get told they’ve passed and knowing that I will cry the tears of joy with them, because I know how much this means to them both. But also knowing that it could go the other way, because nerves or a bit of bad luck can sometimes ruin everything, so I may have to face a solemn drive home. I may have to console and reassure them that we can go again. I will send them a text later on in the day to check they are doing okay and feel guilty that I’m not sending a congratulations text. I will then spend a few days wondering if I had any part to play in it, did I miss something? Did I fail to recognise an area that maybe needed more work? Should I have suggested pushing the test back? Should I have suggested an extra lesson and not worried so much that it might have looked like I was trying to squeeze more money out of them?
Even after 4 years doing this job, until last night, I never fully appreciated the weight that I sometimes carry, maybe it’s heightened right now because it is rare to have two tests in one day… or maybe it’s because for these two amazing women, today is EVERYTHING to them. And because they are my students and I have got to know them, their stories and I care about them, today is everything to me too.
This post is just to share that this job is not sitting in the car all day whilst we get driven around. Every single student has their own journey and their own motivation for learning to drive and we are there for every single step of the journey, the good, the bad and the downright scary and we carry the weight of it too. The pressure we feel on test days is just a fraction of the overall pressure, but it’s the final piece of the learning to drive puzzle.
Please send lots of positive, happy driving vibes to my wonderful students today. Now it’s time to get ready to go and give these women a boost of confidence so that they believe they can do anything they put their mind to. 🤞🏼
