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I disagree in some cases. Why? Nobody had a problem with a zero-to-hero driving license course. But thats the same. After getting you driving license, you will have to learn driving a car. And that's accepted.
It all depends on the person himself. I'm an autodidact. I learned diving myself en got in 8 months (120 dives) ow-aow-rescue-DM. Now I'm following a advanced nitrox/decompression diving course, 'on the slow' way. It's horrible for me. It takes 5 months at the moment and all it's depending on the instructor. I dived 100+ dives in 5 months and train serious (but I never dive alone), to test some things, I use the pool of my club. Most people forget that there are serious divers who want to train to improve their skills very fast. I dive 2-3 times a week, so I can go faster than someone who dives only 1-2 times a month. But instuctors forget these difference. And if I dive, I allways try to do some skills. The problem is again in the diving world that everybody has a finger to say: 'you are going to fast, you only use doubles for only a couple of months, etc'. but they all forget that no person is the same (diving doubles is not rocket science, it's the same as diving a single tank for me). I know I'm more serious than most other divers, if I want something, I will go and fight for it.
So: For some people a zero-to-hero course is not a good idea, but for some people it is the best way.
I disagree in some cases. Why? Nobody had a problem with a zero-to-hero driving license course. But thats the same...
I agree, it all depends on how much you practice and the learning curve is different for each person. I obtained full cave in a little over a year after I started open water...