Do you make pear-turns in your life?

My oldest son will soon turn 16. In Sweden, that means he can start to drive. Or rather, it means he can start to learn to drive. With a tutor next to him. To become a tutor, you need to attend a course.

We were lucky, the course instructor we had was very easy to listen to. He had a lot of experience as a professional teacher for driving students and he conveyed his learnings in a funny way.

One of the many things he shared, was that drivers-to-be often make "päronsvängningar" or pear-turns. On the white board he drew a picture like this to explain that expression:

Instead of looking where they are heading, the students often look at what they are afraid to collide with - be it a parked car or a side walk - and they do not turn towards their actual goal until rather late, making the turn pear-shaped.

"Look where you're going"

is an obvious statement that comes to mind and that we as tutors will most likely tell our students over and over again.

When I listened to the story about the "päronsvängningar", it occurred to me that the same applies for life in general. We want to keep our eyes on the goal, but many focus on their fears, their possible failures and disappointments, and take pear-turns on their way to their goals.

If you go straight towards your goal and ignore your fears, you will simply pass them by. 

The more you focus on the fears, on what worries you or what makes you unhappy, the bigger pear- turns you will make and the longer it will take you to reach your goal.

I am sure the coming two years of driving with my son will be interesting. We will learn a lot about driving and most likely a lot about life as well. Especially during each pear-turn.