Finding your Driving Instructor
It is vital that you pick a 'good' driving instructor, especially with the amount of teachers offering driving lessons in London. Don't be afraid to shop around before you get stuck in with one teacher. It is a good idea to have a relative or friend to teach you to drive around London for your first few lessons. This is to get you comfortable with driving and taking control of your car. Once you are calmer and more confident sitting behind the wheels, you can make a more rational decision on your driving instructor.
Now there is nothing wrong with having a relative or friend to teach you until you can pass your exam. However, having a real instructor can make the journey much easier.
Do not underestimate the value of your social network. Don't be afraid to ask your friends about their driving instructor. A post on Facebook or a tweet on twitter will likely yield you many choices.
The Instructor for you
Every driving instructor will be slightly different and many of them offer first lessons free. You should take them up on their offer and see if their teaching style suits you. Do not stick with a driving instructor just because you can't be bothered to find others. This is your own money you are spending.
Do research and ring up different driving schools to find out their lesson length, times, and price. Then eliminate those with too long lesson times, awkward teaching hours and those that are out of your price range. With the ones that are left, go for a test run and see what the instructor's teaching style is like.
If a particular school does not offer free first lessons, book only 1 lesson. Do not get talked into paying for more than 1 lesson yet.
The instructor should make you feel comfortable driving. You should be able to feel like you are progressing. If you feel discouraged and annoyed after your driving lesson, you know you have the wrong instructor. However, you should also know yourself before making too quick a decision on your instructor. Are you the type of person who can bear to hear the truth without the sugarcoating? If so, the harsher instructor will help you progress much faster.
If on the other hand you know you have trouble taking criticism, then someone who is much more free with praises would help you progress faster. Do not automatically assume that a mean instructor is a bad instructor, try to remain impartial and pay attention to the amount of progress you have made during your lesson. Sometimes, you may find you learn faster with someone who is totally opposite to you.
