For Skeptics. Benefits Of Steering Techniques
This article was provoked by phrases like "I `m not going to be a racer, so I don`t need to master steering techniques", or "In driving schools students practice in city at once, and I`ve been taught how to steer a wheel on the training ground for several days already!"Strange as it may seem, people don`t see the benefit and importance of being able to go round an obstacle that suddenly arises in front of you, or to get a side slipping car back on track. Being taught these techniques at speed - what could be better? Some people still object, saying that they have many years driving experience and never cause accidents.
Such arguments as rationality, driving aesthetics, and convenience fail to convince customers as well. Drivers seem to be OK with the fact that while driving into the garage they make 15 to 20 unnecessary maneuvers. "Why do I need graceful maneuvers while driving in the car stream? The car may jolt, but we`re moving, after all! "
Such arguments can be often heard, especially from experienced drivers.
But one thing a skilled driver will never confess is HOW he felt at steering wheel all those years. He fears that if he does, he won`t be considered a skilled driver anymore.
People do face stressful situations on the road. However, drivers have different levels of stress resistance - some take it hard, others try to seem indifferent, and there`re even those who don`t care at all. This is not the issue, though. I`m talking about the kind of stress we don`t pay attention to. We don`t notice it and don`t know reasons causing it. We just live with it.
If you watch strange people in the subway, in the cinema, or in the street, and pay attention to how they sit, stand, speak, laugh, you will be able to characterize them in some way. You can easily tell a confident gait from an unsteady one, and see who is sitting in a relaxed pose and who is tense. To relieve stress and remove pressure a person has been suffering from all his life is quite a challenge. Still, it can be accomplished. How do people overcome tension? Some keep ignoring it; others learn how to manage it.
There`re techniques that help people feel comfortable. What do oratory courses, now so popular in Moscow, teach? They teach to find a psychological state allowing you to feel at ease and sound convincing to the audience. These techniques cover different aspects pose, posture, gestures, articulation, and intonation.
The same applies to driving. What should we try to achieve? Easiness and composure. But at the same time - attentiveness and concentration.
A complex of special exercises will help you find such state while driving and make it NATURAL for you (rather than artificial). Steering techniques make the basis of these exercises. Offering neither drive nor extreme, at first they may seem boring. Some people soak up new techniques like a sponge, while others have to work hard to master them. Real comfort and confidence while driving are worth working towards, anyway.