My journey with AA Driving School
Why did you change lanes to become a driving instructor?
In my previous roles in corporate jobs, I have trained staff and really enjoyed seeing them develop in confidence. I wanted a job where I felt I was giving back to the community. Driving is a valuable life skill that enables people to be independent.
How did you decide to ride with AA Driving School?
My father-in-law was an AA Member for 70 years plus and I’ve been aware of the AA brand all my life. I did some research to confirm that AA Driving School has a reliable business model. As an AA Driving Instructor, I have flexibility to manage my time and coordinate the leads supplied by AA.
The process of becoming an AA Driving Instructor is intensive and you need to be committed to achieve the I-Endorsement qualification. The end result is extremely rewarding.
What drives you as a driving instructor?
Auckland is a city of diversity so I meet people from a cross section of society on a daily basis. I enjoy meeting new people, finding out who they are and what their goals are in life. In one week, I can coach teenagers through to senior drivers in their 90’s and anyone in between!
And then it’s all the small things that make a big difference. I can get a message from a student two months later, saying “I passed!” I receive messages from senior drivers saying, ”You made the process easy”. It’s a satisfying feeling knowing that I have assisted someone to live an independent life and to have raised their awareness about road safety.
Tell us about the area you work in.
Working in Auckland Central means my area covers from Point Chevalier to Glen Innes and Auckland CBD to Mt. Roskill and everywhere in between those points. I teach manual lessons in my Suzuki Vitara as well as Simulated Tests and AA Senior Drives in both manual and automatic cars.
I teach a cross section of learners. Some are students whose parents want them to learn in a manual, some are apprentices needing to learn to drive a manual for work, and others have a passion for owning classics cars. There are people who are passionate about driving manual cars because they enjoy the feel of controlling an engine through gear changes.
What is the key to being a great driving instructor?
Building trust. That is the most important aspect to a successful driving lesson. It may be talking with the driver before moving off in the car to get to know the student better. Finding out what motivates them to learn to drive and what their goals are.
I like to use humour to diffuse what can be a stressful experience for some students. I have quite a few Dad jokes! That way you build trust, and drivers understand I am there to help them. It is a customer journey after all, so I spend less time showing and more time involving them. I aim to get student in the driver’s seat as quickly as possible.
