A series of posts interviewing professional driving instructors on what drives them to be the best and the skills you need to excel.
Name: Craig Moore
Driving School: Green 4 Go
How would you define ‘driving instruction’ in one sentence?
The most rewarding, frustrating and enjoyable job I’ve ever had.
How did you get to where you are now?
I started on the road to become a driving instructor after seeing an advert for a company called Let’s Drive and the attraction of having a yellow mini once I qualified. This was back in May 2007, so I met up with one of their recruiters and they said I would be perfect for the job (which I’m sure they told everyone!) Anyway to cut a long story short, I qualified in April 2008, first attempt and the option of the yellow mini were gone as Let’s Drive had been swallowed up by RED. Not wanting to join RED I decided to join Learners UK and started working, this allowed me to cut my teeth and stayed with them until November 2009. I then joined forces with my current business partners and traded under the name GREEN 4 GO which allowed us to share the cost of advertising; we operated 3 cars in Taunton and became fairly busy. Moving on a bit we created GREEN 4 GO SOM LTD in January 2012and now offer franchise packages to other instructors and currently have 9 cars operating in West, South and Mid Somerset.
What’s your favourite part of the profession?
Having the ability to help someone achieve their goal, however hard or easy that might be. The feeling I get when they return from their test awaiting the result and seeing their face when they pass will never go away.
What’s your least favourite part of the profession?
Umm other driving schools and instructors thinking its ok to provide a very inferior service. We are in a customer service industry and some I think have really forgotten that part.
What one essential skill should all driving instructors have?
We should all have the ability to listen to our customers and treat all as individuals. No two students are the same and only by listening to their needs can you provide the best possible service and obtain the best results.
What’s been your biggest professional learning experience and why?
I think my biggest professional learning experience was when I took on a student that had done his initial driver training in Bangladesh. I thought up until that point I could predict what mistakes students would make, this was not the case and we had some very interesting moments where my life flashed before my eyes. After a year of lessons we were still not getting very far and I was all but going to give up but my student was so nice and determined I ploughed on and after 2 years and 2 days he passed on his 1st attempt. All worth it in the end and taught me never to give up.
What advice would you give someone starting a career in driving instruction?
Don’t believe all you read in the press about how easy it is to train, pass and set up in business. It takes hard work and determination as the market is still flooded with driving schools charging really low prices, you are not going to make and real money in the first few years so make sure you can afford to live if things go wrong. Always have a plan B and just because you can drive does not give you the ability to become a successful instructor.
Craig Moore: a biography
I’m co-director of Green 4 Go SOM Ltd based in Taunton, Somerset. We are a mid-sized driving school which in the past 18 months has trebled in size and is still growing. Prior to my life as a driving instructor I spent 20 years in the catering industry. Starting life in the early 90’s working for Navy, Army, Air Force Institute (NAAFI) on various RAF and Army bases including a brief tour of Southern Italy when attached to EFI during the first Gulf war. I then joined the mighty as it was then Whitbread as bar manager of a pub/restaurant in Salisbury spending 3yrs at the coal face before moving across town to join the Forte Hotel group as Catering Operations Manager of a large hotel. Here I stayed for 8 years until I decided I needed a fresh challenge and took charge of a branch of ASK Restaurants in Oxford city centre which believe me was one of the most stressful and exciting jobs I’ve ever done. This roll only lasted a year as the pull of the home county was too much and I moved back to Somerset taking a job with the Castle Hotel in Taunton as BRAZZ General Manager where I stayed for 3 ½ years.
During this time I not only got married to Katherine and bought a house locally but was also training to become a driving instructor, using my spare time for studying and using one of my waitresses as a guinea pig and offered to teach her to drive at no expense but unbeknown to her I was just practicing what I’d been taught! I eventually told her once I’d passed my Part 3 and she went on to pass her test a few weeks later. I now live and work in Taunton with my wife, 3 year old son Cori, black Labrador Theo and Rosie the rabbit. In what spare time I have I really just like spending time with the family which normally involves playing with Cori’s trains or watching Peppa Pig! My life is very different now from the hustle and bustle of the catering industry but I definitely don’t miss all those early mornings, late nights and having to work every Christmas and New Year.