"Come on Mom, I want to drive.
I can do it.
" With a slight turn of her head and a wry smile on her face, my mother said, "Okay, Tim, you can drive.
" We pulled onto a lightly developed road in the back of our subdivision.
Mom put the Chevy Bellair into neutral, turned off the engine, got out of the car, and we traded places.
Soon, I was triumphantly behind the wheel of a car for the first time.
"Okay, start it up and let's get going.
" That wry smile had become more of a constrained smirk by now, but I was oblivious, I was in the driver's seat.
No problem, I thought.
I'd watched my dad crank up his car, the family "Wally Wagon," many times.
I prepared to cruise on home with my mom.
"Hey, there's three pedals down here!" The smirk now a muffled giggle.
"Yes, honey, the one on the left is the clutch.
Put it to the floor, and as you press on the gas, slowly let it out, and the car should go forward.
" "Should?" My confidence level began to wane beneath our outer teenage visage of invincibility, or was it naivete? Back then, I mixed those two up, but I didn't know it.
In went the clutch, on went the engine, up revved the gas, out came the clutch, jerk went the car, stall went the engine, bang went my head on the steering wheel, and into hysterics went my mother.
"Timmy, try it again.
This time, let the clutch out a little slower.
And it will work much better, if you release the emergency brake.
" After a few more false starts that morning, we finally made it home.
Every time I saw my mom that day, she'd smile, stick her right leg out straight, thrust her head back and utter "vrooom," as she moved into the next room.
Even I thought it was funny by the end of the day.
Soon I could drive, with focused attention.
I had to go through a check list each time I drove, but with conscious effort, the jerking and stalling stopped.
In just a few months, it was second nature.
No more thinking about it.
The car and I had bonded.
I automatically knew exactly what to do.
Abraham Maslow, the late University of Wisconsin psychologist, developed the "Four stages of learning," to explain the process we go through when developing new skills.
The four stages of learning are:
We can be expert in one area and a novice in many others.
We should have patience with ourselves and others as we learn new skills.
Realize that everyone goes through the process.
Some are quicker learners than others.
With patience and a clear understanding of Maslow's four stages of learning, we can avoid much frustration and acrimony.
I can do it.
" With a slight turn of her head and a wry smile on her face, my mother said, "Okay, Tim, you can drive.
" We pulled onto a lightly developed road in the back of our subdivision.
Mom put the Chevy Bellair into neutral, turned off the engine, got out of the car, and we traded places.
Soon, I was triumphantly behind the wheel of a car for the first time.
"Okay, start it up and let's get going.
" That wry smile had become more of a constrained smirk by now, but I was oblivious, I was in the driver's seat.
No problem, I thought.
I'd watched my dad crank up his car, the family "Wally Wagon," many times.
I prepared to cruise on home with my mom.
"Hey, there's three pedals down here!" The smirk now a muffled giggle.
"Yes, honey, the one on the left is the clutch.
Put it to the floor, and as you press on the gas, slowly let it out, and the car should go forward.
" "Should?" My confidence level began to wane beneath our outer teenage visage of invincibility, or was it naivete? Back then, I mixed those two up, but I didn't know it.
In went the clutch, on went the engine, up revved the gas, out came the clutch, jerk went the car, stall went the engine, bang went my head on the steering wheel, and into hysterics went my mother.
"Timmy, try it again.
This time, let the clutch out a little slower.
And it will work much better, if you release the emergency brake.
" After a few more false starts that morning, we finally made it home.
Every time I saw my mom that day, she'd smile, stick her right leg out straight, thrust her head back and utter "vrooom," as she moved into the next room.
Even I thought it was funny by the end of the day.
Soon I could drive, with focused attention.
I had to go through a check list each time I drove, but with conscious effort, the jerking and stalling stopped.
In just a few months, it was second nature.
No more thinking about it.
The car and I had bonded.
I automatically knew exactly what to do.
Abraham Maslow, the late University of Wisconsin psychologist, developed the "Four stages of learning," to explain the process we go through when developing new skills.
The four stages of learning are:
- Unconsciously unskilled: I didn't know that I didn't know how to drive a stick shift.
- Consciously unskilled: As soon as my head hit the steering wheel that first time, I moved to this level.
I knew that I didn't know how to drive a stick shift. - Consciously skilled: With practice, I could drive the stick without stalling, but I had to think about it.
- Unconsciously skilled: After a while, I drove well without paying any attention to the hand foot coordination required.
We can be expert in one area and a novice in many others.
We should have patience with ourselves and others as we learn new skills.
Realize that everyone goes through the process.
Some are quicker learners than others.
With patience and a clear understanding of Maslow's four stages of learning, we can avoid much frustration and acrimony.
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