Being able to drive is a life skill as important as being able to swim

Driving and swimming are more important life skills than administering first aid and using a computer, but less crucial than cooking.

According to a 2024 April survey of 1,000 members of the British public by UK driving school Young Driver, the top three life skills that everyone should have are being able to cook, being able to drive and being able to swim.  

The top 10 life skills revealed by the research (with the percentage of respondents who picked the skill as one of their top 5 choices):

1 - Being able to cook (51%)
2 = Being able to drive (36%)
2 = Being able to swim (36%)
4 - Being able to administer first aid (32%)
5 - Being able to use a computer or smartphone (28%)
6 - Being able to do basic DIY (28%)
7 - Being able to use a washing machine (27%)
8 - Being able to read a map (18%)
9 - Being able to clean a toilet (18%)
10 - Being able to iron (14%)

Some of the suggested life skills which didn’t make the top 10 list include changing a tyre, maintaining a car, riding a bicycle, lighting a fire, and troubleshooting a Wi-Fi router. 

Interestingly, more women than men (38% versus 34%) in the survey chose driving as one of their top five life skills. 

James Bond had an amphibious Lotus, but the rest of us don't have a car to scuba-drive.

Commenting on the survey results, Young Driver’s head of marketing, Sue Waterfield, said: “When we recently questioned more than 3,500 parents of our pupils, a fairly conclusive 99 percent felt it was important to take teens away from the virtual world and into the real world to learn real skills. Driving can be a huge boost in terms of confidence and independence, as well as opening up new opportunities in employment, education and socially.”

In other words, being a qualified driver who has passed the requisite tests is a more practical life skill than being a driving-game expert who has completed the different levels of gameplay. 

Knowing how to drive is ranked higher than knowing first aid in this case, but both abilities would lead to equally positive outcomes in real-life situations. 

For example, driving safely and skilfully would keep yourself and your passengers safe on the road; and using your knowledge of first aid to help someone in distress, whether physical or physiological, in traffic or anywhere else, would be a kind act which makes the world a better place for everyone. 

Based on these survey results, drivers who don’t know how to swim are less skilful and useful in everyday life than drivers who are also swimmers. 

Drivers who are non-swimmers, it’s time for swimming lessons! Adult swimmers who are non-drivers, it’s time for driving lessons!  

Driving is a life skill like swimming, but drivers shouldn't use their automobiles as submarines.

Read More: Getting a driving licence in Singapore

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