Why is becoming a DM considered not worth it?

[Wibble]

BTW I also started a tech course but just could not get on with the twinset. I am small bodied and they were so cumbersome and I couldn't get the right attitude in the water (legs kept floating up), and it really hurt my neck. I would breath in and ascend then breath out and sink ha ha. My instructor was really good but it was just "not for me". The single tank works well in most environments unless shipwrecks or caves, or very deep. The theory however was great and I still enjoy reading the manual and digesting the information. Mostof the interesting stuff that I have seen is between 15 to 20 meters where you can stay for an hour and see loads and have a great time.

Technical diving is an attitude as much as specialist equipment. The main requirement is self sufficiency such that an issue doesn't turn into a problem and doesn’t turn into a disaster. Redundant gas and critical equipment, planning for problems, skills practice to resolve problems.

Backmount twinsets aren’t the only technology. A simple side-slung pony stage cylinder(s), using sidemount or even rebreathers which all provide more and redundant gas.

Why go to 40 meters where you can spend 3 minutes???

This is the point about DiveMasters lacking wider diving experience; looking after baby divers doesn't do much for your skills. You won't be going deep or underground to visit the interesting stuff such as wrecks, caves, flora/fauna, etc.

If I’m visiting a 40m/130ft wreck I plan for at least an hour on the bottom, maybe 90 minutes. Why dive for 3 mins? We’re scuba divers, not freedivers (aka snorkellers).

 

[Blackcrusader]

However, I really don't understand when people say that the DM course won't make you a better diver. Except for obviously getting to dive more, isn't your instructor helping you, other than just for DM related things?

When I go diving I am often paired up with instabuddies who turn out to be Padi instructors or even Tec divers just having some fun NDL dives. I would dare say that becoming a better diver requires doing lots of dives rather than lots of courses. But I am happy to pair up with someone who only just certified. In fact in Bohol I paired up with a lass with only 12 dives since OW cert and that day we had the fastest currents I've have had diving there over the years. She was calm as, just drifted along with me nearby, was great on air. She had fun drifting along, which is not always so for someone on their first drift dive.

Well look up posts by Dody on this forum who became a DM in a matter of days in Thailand.

Then he had diving incidents from trying to be too smart for his own good making himself underweighted.
The DM course did not make him a better diver. He's very very smart has a Ph.D.

Do not ever say you are a rescue diver

There has been a lot of threads about how a diver should introduce herself or himself to a new DS. I have a DM C- Card but I never claim I am a DM as I have never worked as such. I always say I am a Rescue Diver. 90% of the time, I dive with my wife as a buddy. I jump first, tell her I am ok and...

scubaboard.com

 

[DanBMW]

Teaching neutral buoyancy is 15 minute process max .... and fin pivots are BS.

Maybe you have the magic pill and I wish you were correct. I see many so called trained divers and many missed your "15 minute session," including Dive Masters and even a few Instructors.

 

[Still Kicking]

Maybe you have the magic pill and I wish you were correct. I see many so called trained divers and many missed your "15 minute session," including Dive Masters and even a few Instructors.

Correct weighting. Release air slowly until your head goes underwater. As soon as your head is underwater, let go of the inflator. Deep exhale and count to five. Breathe normally.

With this, I get people to neutral buoyancy in the pool on their first dive.

Of course mastering it throughout an entire dive takes practice, fine tuning, breathing control etc. but this is how i teach the foundation.

 

[NothingClever]

@Isa.nerwen

In my efforts to answer your question with some critical thinking, I want to make sure you don’t think I’ve lost sight of your enthusiasm.

I wholeheartedly support your desire to become a better diver. The joy that each one of us feels when discovering a whole new domain to be explored is magical.

I think many of us just want to make sure you’re aware of ALL the paths for growth that are available to you.

For now, every time you go out, have a plan to improve a skill. A useful rubric is:

- Buoyancy control
- Trim
- Swimming / finning / propulsion (same thing, just synonyms)
- Breathing
- Awareness (self, surface & subsurface environment, other divers, sea life, vessel and its crew, shore facilities and distance)

Good luck, have fun and keep us posted!

 

[Isa.nerwen]

Hi, I am a DM for exactly the reasns that you stated. however, don't think that doing the DM course is like any other diving course where you pay the money and get good service back in exchange !!!! The DM course is brutal !! I paid a lot of money and thought that I would be taken care of well......no ! The DM course teaches you to cope with all likely situations that you would face underwater while leading a group of fun-divers, or students while assisting an instructor. I was 58 years old when I did it. It was a humbling experience after running my own business and having many employees. It did make me a better diver (loads of diving), loads of teaching and instruction, going to great dive sites day after day. Getting comfortable in all environments, with my equipment and with various sea conditions.

However, if you are not a good leader or teacher it can be stressful, belittling and torrid at times. Instructors (especially) tend to make sure that you get bullied about and experience the worst of human nature.

I am glad I did it, because like you say it makes you a better diver (and person ) but don't think that you will enjoy all aspects of it.

I started to do my IDC but thought better of it and stopped because I did not want to turn my passion into my work.

My advice: do it, but go in with your eyes open and expect the worse. Then when it's not so bad you won't be disappointed.

When you've done it, come to Thailand and I will take you to some fantastic dive sites in th Anderman.

Bobby

Thank you! Where are you based? I think I'll probably do my DMT either in Koh Tao or Koh Lipe. That is if they let me in in Thailand again

From what I've read I need to get ready for the worst. But I don't mind the labour and I think I would be a good leader/teacher, at least from what I've seen from my regular life job.
But so far I've met amazing instructors that were always willin to help, I don't get do they become automatically mean when they teach a DM?

 

[Isa.nerwen]

The reason so many people said that DM course won't make you a better diver, is because given the overall instruction quality in recreational world, that is the most likely outcome. Is it a 100% certainty? Absolutely not. You can get lucky and find an excellent instructor. Is an excellent instructor the most likely outcome? Absolutely not again.

I spend first 5 years diving with one of the most garbage instructors, but then luckily I understood that, and had to spend 2 years unlearning all the **** habits.

At this point in your diving journey, any diving with new people / locations / dive shops / environments etc etc will make you a better diver. There are plenty of threads about "becoming a DM" on SB and I would highly recommend digging thru them (play around with the search function here, its pretty good).

You can do a DM / instructor or whatever you want really as long as you get more dives in different environments to gain experience. After 100+ dives or so once you are comfortable in the water, start googling around "technical diving" and see how those people look in the water, what techniques they use etc. You don't need to become one, but if you want to progress with your skills, you 100% (imo) will need to do an intro technical course led by a technical instructor who will square all your skills to a very very solid level (top 1% of recreational divers). That will also increase how much pleasure you get from diving as you will feel 100x more comfortable in the water

I really think tech diving is super interesting. I will look into intro to tech before deciding to do dive master, because I also do want to improve my diving skills.

 

[Isa.nerwen]

I’ll ask my question a different way.

After discovering diving very recently, what moment triggered the idea that to become a better diver you need to become a DM? The moment could be defined as reading a course manual, watching a video, admiring an employee’s skills, listening to a dive brief, etc.



Many of us have tried to explain with a variety of perspectives. I suspect over time you’ll come to have a broader understanding.

What's I don't understand is that in my experience so far (not a lot I admit, I have been with about 5 different dive shops so far) I've always found instructors that were really helpful, giving a tips etc - why would that change when doing DMT? Will they not still help you improve?

My reasoning why my diving would improve while doing DMT is simply that I would get to dive a lot, amongst learning all the other things.

 

[Isa.nerwen]

Yesh

@Isa.nerwen

In my efforts to answer your question with some critical thinking, I want to make sure you don’t think I’ve lost sight of your enthusiasm.

I wholeheartedly support your desire to become a better diver. The joy that each one of us feels when discovering a whole new domain to be explored is magical.

I think many of us just want to make sure you’re aware of ALL the paths for growth that are available to you.

For now, every time you go out, have a plan to improve a skill. A useful rubric is:

- Buoyancy control
- Trim
- Swimming / finning / propulsion (same thing, just synonyms)
- Breathing
- Awareness (self, surface & subsurface environment, other divers, sea life, vessel and its crew, shore facilities and distance)

Good luck, have fun and keep us posted!

Yes, I appreciate that! I got so many recommendations that I honestly don't know what to loop up anymore lol.
For now I will look into intro to tech diving before deciding if I want to to the DMT or not.

 

[Underwater Tourist]

I really think tech diving is super interesting. I will look into intro to tech before deciding to do dive master, because I also do want to improve my diving skills.

You do not need to become a technical diver by any means, just do an intro course at some point and thats it

Doesnt need to be tomorrow. Some people might argue the earlier the better, but it probably doesnt really matter when. Go diving, have a blast, and after a 100/200/300 or so dives try a tech course once you feel that you are comfortable in the water so you can challenge yourself with more skills