5. Remember what it was like to be a beginner.
The longer you’ve been riding (especially if you learned to ride as a child), the worse you are at empathizing with the beginner. Argue if you want, but it’s true. When it comes so naturally to you, as naturally as walking, you don’t remember how much time and effort it took to master all these new controls, but here’s a useful analogy to help you relate…
Consider what it would be like if the controls were swapped, like you were riding an early ‘70s Husqvarna with the brake and shifter on opposite sides. Imagine the levers and throttle were swapped, too. That would take you a while to sort it out in your brain, wouldn’t it? And you’d get frustrated if your buddy, who grew up riding that bike, kept yelling, “Shift! Now give it gas! Don’t forget the clutch!”
You’d probably tell him to shut up and back off, right? That’s exactly where your beginner is at. Don’t forget that it feels natural to you, but it’s all completely foreign to them.
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