18 Feb 2020

You thought you were completely on top of your indicators, head checks, gear changes, parking techniques and road rules. You felt safe behind the wheel and were keen as a bean to finally ditch your learners and drive solo.

And yet, you failed...uggghhhhhhhh!

 

First, I’m here to empathise with you. I failed my first attempt at getting my P's. I finished the test feeling like I'd nailed it. But when my tester called me over and started her speil with "unfortunately", I knew I'd carked it.

Dude, it’s a real kick in the nuts. You may feel like a loser, replaying that moment over and over in your head. The one silly moment that failed you. Whether it was forgetting an indicator, hitting the curb or not moving far enough to the left when turning left into a street (guilty), it's eating you alive rn.

Chances are you're wishing you could just go back in time and redo the test. Or wishing that you hadn't told all your mates and family about the test because you now have to explain in shame that you've failed.

But listen up, forget about your first P's test attempt. Here’s the thing- you’re not going to be on your A-game all the time. You don’t have 30 years of driving experience up your sleeve, you only have a few hundred hours. You're not expected to be a perfect driver. 

And honestly, it's the nerves that cloud your judgement. When you're under pressure, your brain can do the stupdiest of things. I had a mate who nailed the test until their last right turn when they forgot to indicate. They were so nervous about finishing that they just simply forgot. It's annoying, right? You do everything right but that one little manoeuvre costs you.

But there is no shame in it. Hey, that’s life. There's a lot of people out there that have failed their first attempt too. 

What you should be doing is booking in another test. Prepare a little more if it seems fit. Research a little more on driving rules and tips on the test. Do another practise test with an instructor.

Give it another shot and don't get hung up on your previous test, because you're gonna be overthinking everything come time for your next attempt. And that's gonna put a hell of a lot of pressure on ya that's gonna make your brain go whacky behind the wheel again.

Soon, you'll be able to laugh about failing your driving test. It's kind of funny down the track remincising about all the silly stuff you did behind the wheel on your Ls and in your test too. Especially when you're joking about how serious or awkward your tester was.