Unlike many peeps my age, I didn't learn how to drive until fairly late in life. I was witness to my brother's driving learning journey and that didn't particularly look like an easy-going experience for me (read: lots of yelling, very stressy) so I put it off for as long as I needed to. Fast forward to life in college when my usual commute ways weren't always the best way to go -- long story short, someone got stabbed at my usual bus stop about 15 minutes after I had jumped on the bus -- so my parents let me use a car.
We were lucky enough to have drivers to drive us to our university but since our driver at that time, Mang Toto, lived in the city that my uni was at, we thought it would be good for him to go home during the day and just come back at 6 or 7pm when my classes were done to drive me back home. This began my "driving dry-run."
I am a very anxious driver, and as anyone who has been in the car with me driving knows, my top speed is somewhere around 20 to 30kph -- this is me with road rage. So it was wonderful for me to practice driving in the very very safe roads of the University of the Philippines, Diliman, where people were laid back, in no particular hurry, and generally give way and follow road rules at all hours of the day. Also, no big hills and no traffic.
I think I subconsciously took comfort in learning in this safe environment because years ago, one of my favorite aunts, Tita Emma, had to learn how to drive in her adulthood, I think she was possibly in her 30s -- she had lived many years of her adult life abroad, and now in the Philippines, needed to learn how to drive. It was scary for her, much like it was for me, but you know what she did? She went to driving school -- in Manila, it's like a week-long thing -- then one day, she woke up very very early in the morning, like 4am, and drove the streets to familiarize herself and to get used to the feeling of driving alone. She did that several times and afterward felt much better about driving. She built her confidence in a safe place and eventually built up the gumption to do it for reals!
Today, I did another adulting dry run. Since having our baby, I have been fortunate enough to go to all baby medical appointments with my husband or with the nanny. Today, a lazy Saturday, we had an appointment for the baby to have an ultrasound checkup in the center of town (read: easily accessible by public transport) and I proposed to my husband that I take the baby all by my lonesome. In December, our nanny will be vacationing for three weeks so my husband and I will be all alone with the baby (cue tiny violin) but I am very anxious about it -- Will we be able to handle it by ourselves? Will it drastically disrupt our lives? Will I mess up and forget to bring diapers, milk, or *gasp* a burpy cloth?
I won't bore you with the details but it did not go smoothly -- Highlights include getting lost and going down the wrong road, making a sharp turn and *almost* tipping over the baby stroller, not being able to find the ramps and carrying the stroller up and downstairs, going into the wrong building and eventually ending up 20 minutes late (I HATE being late). But in the end the baby was very content and well behaved, she took a nap on the stroller and drank some milk and everyone in the clinic was very nice even if we were late -- the baby's cuteness helped in that aspect as well as my obvious frazzled-ness, I think. Okay, sorry, I think I did bore you with the details.
It wasn't a big outing but now I do feel MUCH more confident that we can tackle our upcoming nanny-less of December. BTW, the above is such a first-world problem. I don't blame you if you stop reading now.
Another way to use the dry-run is when preparing for media interviews and external engagements like being in the panel for something. A friend of mine recently had to make a big presentation to industry leaders on emerging eCommerce trends. While she gives presentations a lot, she's not done it in such a large external venue before. So we did a dry-run in a very safe place, my living room, with cocktails and cheeses, and she was able to give her presentation and receive critique in a safe environment. To be honest, she didn't need to worry about anything, her presentation was polished and funny and creative. I think the dry-run helped calm her nerves more than anything -- plus it gave me an excuse to have friends over for cocktails and cheeses.
So if you feel worried about a big undertaking, whether it be moving to a new country, going in for a job interview, or going for a trail run in a path you'd never done before -- go for a dry-run! It takes a bit more prep time, but in the end, your nerves will thank you for it.
Comentarios