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ARE YOU A nervous driver? Does the thought of driving make you feel anxious? Well, you aren’t alone. According to a survey by Liberty Insurance, nearly two-thirds of Irish drivers still feel underprepared for driving after passing their test.
It really can take a lot of time and practice to get confident behind the wheel. To become more confident and beat the nerves, it is important that drivers know how to handle different roads and weather and know their way around their car.
Here are six tips to help you reduce driving anxiety, calm the nerves and increase your confidence whilst driving.
Know your car inside out
In order to feel comfortable and confident in your car you need to know it inside and out and master all of the controls. Familiarise yourself with all the switches and buttons and what each of them do. Know exactly where your lights are and where each setting is and when you should use them. Where is the horn, the air-con, the radio, the button to open the boot, bonnet and fuel flap?
You also need to walk around your vehicle and get familiar with its size and dimensions. This will help you judge distances and parking spaces better.
Once your car becomes familiar, you’ll start to feel more and more comfortable in the car and this will make you feel more confident being in the vehicle.
Make use of driving aids
Most modern cars come with plenty of safety kit and driver’s aids as standard. Make clever use of safety equipment such as Blind Spot Monitor or Emergency Collision Autonomous Engine Braking by turning them on and using them. These technologies play an important role in minimising the chances of an accident. Knowing that your vehicle is helping you be a safer driver and is making the roads safer for you should go a long way to improving your confidence especially if you are nervous about having an accident.
If you car isn’t fitted with technology like this, you can buy and install some items yourself like a hands free kit, a reversing camera and parking sensors.
Get in the zone
In order to combat the nerves and anxiety around driving do all you can to make your environment as relaxing as possible. Set up your driving position so that it is comfortable and you can see clearly out of all the windows. Make sure your mirrors are in the correct position so you can see the other cars on both sides. Clear all the clutter from your car. Download a calming classical music playlist or your favourite songs and play them whilst driving – research has shown that this helps drivers to calm down.
Don’t wear bulky jackets when driving, these will restrict your movements and if you are nervous you will probably start feeling very hot very soon. Make sure the air-con is nice and cool to keep you chilled.
Practice makes perfect
Like most skills, the best way to become more confident at anything is to practice as much as possible. With driving you need to just get out more and drive in as many different scenarios as possible and be conscious of your driving.
Get out on to the motorway when it is quiet, and then again when it is busier. Find a quiet roundabout in an estate and practice getting in to the correct lane. Drive at night. Find the one driving situation that makes you the most nervous and practice it as much as possible.
You should also get out and practice in all types or weather. This helps you become familiar with how you need to adapt your driving style depending on the conditions.
Just remember, driving is a skill that we learn and it can always be improved.
Get more lessons
Just because you have passed your test doesn’t mean that the lessons have to stop. Nervous drivers can benefit greatly from extra lessons that cover motorway driving, defensive driving techniques and other skills not covered in learning to drive lessons.
Having professional advice and someone to show you what to do in a safe and controlled way will hopefully put you at ease and make you more relaxed when trying out the new skills.
Just because someone beeps at you for stalling at a roundabout or because you took too long to perform a manoeuvre doesn’t mean you are a bad driver and you should try not to let it affect the rest of your drive. Motorists love to beep and make out like these things never happen to them. They do. They happen to everyone.
If you make a mistake just take a deep breath and start again. Don’t dwell on it. Don’t let one mistake or one aggressive driver dent your confidence. Acknowledge the mistake, and then move on. Making mistakes is how we learn.
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Great news,Longford needs something like this
Forgot Longford was a county in Ireland
The rest of us forgot Longford was a county in Ireland. Some seeked professional help in doing so.
Where will we go on holiday this year kids?
Its not. Its a county in Northern Ireland
With all the homeless in the country, glad that there is money for resorts ! I have a real sense of deja-vu about this. But then we are all supposed to say it’s a great idea. Plenty of resorts in the country already.
Name one please? Go on !! I can think of only one such type of resort and that is Trabolgan in cork.
How come the pictures show sunshine????
They bought the set from the Truman Show
Has nobody told them yet that Longford only has 3 seasons. July, August & Winter
You only get the sunshine if you take the all inclusive package.
Great decision well done to Longford council members should be a huge boost to the region
Councillors don’t make planning decisions
@Tweety. They might not make the decision but from my experience they can be very good at convincing the planners that it would be in their best interest to grant permission for a project.
Well done Longford.
Brilliant news and something like this is so badly needed , for Longford and the tourist industry overall.
Brilliant news for Longford.Great vote of confidence following the marvellous County Development Plan prepared by Longford County Council
Just watch this get caught up in planning appeals from now till year dot.
Don’t worry somebody will find something ridiculous to complain about. They always do.
We do now have two Green Party TDs expect this to be destroyed by this lot
Just like you sean. Be the first. Why not
Well I hope not..its great for the local economy. Its a shame they charge the same as a one week trip to Florida..which one would you opt for?
They’re obviously doing something right, in profit apparently and expanding abroad.
Have stayed in Center Parcs park in Longleat, Wiltshire before and it was an amazing experience but also quite expensive! Wonderful amenities and lots of activities no matter what the weather. Accommodation is 5 star. It’s a safe haven for kids. Cars are only parked at accommodation for unpacking & packing, parked in car parks away from accommodation at all other times. Can’t wait to visit this one in Longford when it opens. No way can this be compared to Trabolgan, they are on totally different levels!
yeah, been on a couple in England. very good facilities and completely middle class outfits – and prices to match.
you’d wonder about the extent of their customer base here because it ain’t gonna be cheap.
Anyone commenting ever been to centreparcs? Judging by the comments , no. Heated outdoor and indoor pools, houses for visitors with heating,cycle tracks in the park no cars, shops, indoor and outdoor activities, it’s an all year round venue. The Brits know how to do things like this. My only worry about this, all profits are leaving the country. Yes jobs and investment in a county that needs economic activity but what’s to stop centreparcs from supplying its own labour, own goods from overseas, in fact just about everything imported.………nothing. And we welcome this with open arms. There should be commitments to the local area, the local community and the country.
Alan any chance you could mention Irish Water, Denis O Brien and Thierry Henry, go on it’ll really complete your rant.
You’d make a bright day, dull
Make that Dutch https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_Parcs
Went there a few times as a kid and with all the stuff you can do, heated pools both indoor and outdoor, activities all over the place, even when the weather is Irish, it will be a good place to go. Not cheap though but it has a lot up offer secularly if you have kids.
Profits go to ‘fat cats’ who don’t give a toss for the people they live amongst and spend it on expensive imports and foreign travel. Who cares whether they are Irish fat cats, British fat cats or from elsewhere as long as they are willing to invest their capital and create jobs and taxes in Ireland.
Like they were ever in danger of turning down €223 million.
Very easy to get planning permission with 220 million, and 2 months after completion we’ll find out it gets flooded twice a decade.
How much of the €223M is taxpayers money ? 2,500 visitors at any one time & 1,000 permanent jobs ?? Thats 1employee to each 2.5 visitors. Somehow, I don’t think so !
It’s similar to the passenger to crew ratio on a luxury cruise liner, so I don’t see why not.
I doubt that ratio exists on a luxury liner – regardless, either the prices to holiday in Longford will be sky high or the wages will be ‘job-bridge’ like.
There’s always one.
Na James – Thats Tayto Pk your thinking of.
It doesn’t mean everyone is working at the same time
@clive hand – Good point. I still reckon 1,000 is a good bit overstated.
Ok who’s going to bring the Sun?
Holiday home?? Next years refugee camp more likely. No disrespect to the locals.
Trabolgan seems like a nice place on the website but the houses are freezing and everything is run down. Really hope this is better maintained over the years!!
“Hup by m’haunt marys house in longford!”
Ya cried.
Like a big child.
Now lets get it on centreparcs!
Ya junkies bastids ya.
Wtf u need meds pal
Joycean poetry pal.
wait for it, some quango will find a rare bit of ‘fauna’ and the whole thing will grind to a halt while quangos pals do an EPA for €5000 to check said ‘rare’ fauna is safe.
Yeah could be a ‘snail’ paced project.
I’ll only go if there is a seesaw.
I wonder will James Bannon send in a CV, I’d say he’d be great at entertaining the kids! Don’t you only know he’ll claim that he single-handedly brought it to Longford!!!!
It rains 165 days a year in Longford so good luck with that. Brown envelopes to people who manage pension funds etc. If it were in west Cork maybe it would survive but to expect a business to make a profit when it only operates at 100%? for approx 4 good months in a year is risky.
They survive in the UK, the climate there is a tad damp.
Yea the thoughts of placing this in the centre of Ireland, rather than the arsehole of nowhere astounds me too
Excellent News for Longford .
Congratulations
It’ll be a great spot for a halting site ..!
This is huge. Brilliant for Longford and the Midlands. And because it’s a British operation it’ll be done properly.
We need more big developments like you get in other countries, not in a way that would destroy our landscape and reasons why people like Ireland. But we could learn for others and make a great balance of both.
Where is Longford?
Just down the road from Shortford.
Does anybody remember that big casino that was going to be built in Tipperary. When I see it I’ll believe it. Hopefully the Longfords newly elected Westmeath TD’s will get all the credit for bringing it to Longford
Yes, I remember that, and I also remember plans for a sort of theme park planned for Lusk, Co Dublin, back around ’03.
looks like a idyllic location for a piranha attack
Jurassic park?
CAn we have the same photos with it bucketing rain?
Whats the point if there is no summers in this region?
great render looks very slick, just a bit optimistic with the sunshine
have your say