This was one year ago – The stages of behavioural change in evidence during a Driver Training session with a new driver… So enjoyable when you let the Driver take control of their session and their learning is exponentially accelerated. 
As a follow up to last weeks post about D’s session focus being on mirrors; I thought I would add a little more to it, as a follow up.
People tell me relentlessly that “Learners never choose a topic or goal for their sessions”. I acknowledge that it can be a long slog for some to feel safe/comfortable to do this. With some techniques though, it is exhilarating (for both ADI AND Learner) when they do naturally take that control .
That is what happened today – even though D does have substantial pre-existing anxiety issues, which does have a massive impact on her when discussing session topics and when giving me feedback and reflections. D was vocalising her Goals with ease (mini goals within the session).
She Chose a route, telling me she would focus on her mirrors (even naturally chatted about what happened and her massive achievements).I asked her which version of the route(s) she would take…. and she even volunteered for a hill and roundabout that has been her nemesis for some time!! She grinned at herself when naming her route!!
The thing that I had never mentioned (Risk agreed) during her ‘mirrors’ session was ‘blind spots’ [or “life saver” checks as I would prefer them to me named}. It would have been overload – and as it was, D expanded her initial Goal to include the mirror named Gertrude too!
Once all agreed and she prepared to move away – she did the most significant blind spot check announcing;” I’m checking over there because I can’t see the alley-way in the mirror… and I know I’m supposed to do that anyway. All my other Instructors moaned at me about them…. but I never found the need until now!! Now I totally get it!!It helps my anxiety to be honest!! To know what is happening around me! I feel so much safer”
She was so efficient with her mirrors during the whole session and even added blind spots in almost every instance to boot!
Another part of her session was the Pull up/Reverse on the right which she had never attempted before… the observations were impressive there too… so natural!!
The “Action” and “Maintenance” sections of the Trans Theoretical Theory of Behavioural Change were in evidence today following on from last week hahahhaaaaa!!! 
It is true though – the learning was there because she initiated the action, the purpose and factualised the rewards!
What a day! Joy for me amongst the current health concerns!! I loved it!
**** Original Post***
“The mirrors were christened (once again) with new names today:
~ on my left meet Wall-E ~ In my centre meet Bob In order to locate Wall-E we used a small post-it note to highlight efficiently where to look. The Driver directed me left a bit and right a bit to help her with the placement of the post-it note on the black plastic window border and slightly on the window glass too. Now she could flick her gaze efficiently towards the yellow colour! Problem solved! My Driver found it hard beforehand to actually visually search for that mirror so far from her normal sight line... ...so this was one of her 'barriers' to looking at the left door mirror is the first place. The right hand mirror only got named because 'it' was being looked at independently even though we had agreed to leave it until a later time to add to the other two once "I have my new habit of looking"... ... being 'nameless' felt a little odd because I was calling it 'nameless'