Is there an instructor crisis?

[Aura]

There's certainly no shortage of condescending comments about how entitled, lazy and useless young people are. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you're just blissfully unaware of how the general costs of living have gone up compared to wages. But it's a world wide phenomenon that young people are in more debt than ever before in history. If you can barely cover the basic costs of living, obviously you won't be throwing money into an expensive hobby.
A lot of you call for more expensive entry level courses, but is the problem a lack of instructors or a lack of potential students?

Another thing is, do you expect to be this condescending and crap all over young people, and expect them to consider you good company? If I wasn't specifically passionate about diving but rather just looking for any active outdoors hobby to pursue, I wouldn't for one second consider dealing with the amount of bitter old people in the local diving community who spend more time chasing young people out of the community than they spend in the water themselves. A lot of you here seem to be ambassadors of that. It's hardly surprising that the average age of scubaboard users is as high as it is.

 

[drrich2]

Question about the history of recreational scuba instruction in the U.S., particularly in the past 20 years. Any idea how large a portion, %, etc..., of recreational scuba instructors made such instruction their primary vocation? What they solely or nearly solely lived off of?

I ask because in U.S. culture there's been more and more talk of the idea of a 'living wage,' often put out on the presumption any full time job ought to generate sufficient income to 'make a living,' which although seldom specifically described, seems to involve 3 meals per day, clothing, a personal small apartment or single family house (in other words, single or single family residence), vehicle (unless public transportation practical, in which case rent is higher in big cities), health insurance, and probably a smart phone and internet plan. What's not so clear is what about jobs that don't generate enough value efficiently enough to justify all that - like the kid mowing lawns or delivering papers?

It's my understanding many instructors did it as a side-gig, for some extra income, personal enjoyment of teaching, shop gear discounts, reduced price 'working' trips (e.g.: leading dive groups), etc... Is that accurate?

So, back to my big question - in the U.S., has recreational scuba instruction ever commonly been a sole vocation for many?

 

[drrich2]

There's certainly no shortage of condescending comments about how entitled, lazy and useless young people are. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you're just blissfully unaware of how the general costs of living have gone up compared to wages. But it's a world wide phenomenon that young people are in more debt than ever before in history. If you can barely cover the basic costs of living, obviously you won't be throwing money into an expensive hobby.

Yes, it's easy to fall into a false dichotomy where the options are:

1.) Spoiled, lazy, entitled young people with the highest quality of life in history who don't know how good they've got it, bunch'a molly-coddled 'participation trophy' college kids...

versus

2.) A beleaguered generation lost in the crowd, unable to get good jobs right out of high school, obliged to invest several years racking up enough debt to buy a car (or house) for a degree of very limited value in a degree-flooded job market, facing inflated cost of living, soaring deficits and national debt, inflation, soaring health care costs and the ravages of escalating climate change, often lacking long-term job security in a world where private sector pensions border on extinct, a 2-income household is needed for a family, divorce rates are nearly half, the cost of raising children is great, etc...

There's some truth in both camps.

I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you're just blissfully unaware of how the general costs of living have gone up compared to wages.

I've read of wage stagnation repeatedly, but often wonder if we're talking about the same thing. It'd be interesting to see what the cost of living is for a true 50's era lifestyle (e.g.: small house, one window unit air conditioner, one old car without many modern amenities, one t.v. just getting free broadcast signals, no internet plan or smart phone, etc...), and compare that to mainstream working class income levels.

I'm not blaming people today (young or old) for wanting more; I do! But is the common assertion that people have to pay a much higher % of their income for a basic living accurate? Or has the standard of 'basic living' become so inflated (e.g.: bigger homes, central air conditioning, fancier cars, big screen t.v. with Netflix and Amazon Prime, computer, Internet package, smart phone with data plan) that of course it costs more?

Summed up metaphorically, how many modern Americans would, given the opportunity, hop in a time machine to get sent back to the 1950's to live that 'golden age' lifestyle, as opposed to what we have now?

If you can barely cover the basic costs of living, obviously you won't be throwing money into an expensive hobby.

Good point. Will this lead to some avid divers working as instructors as a side-gig, not to make a living, but rather to mitigate the costs of the hobby (e.g.: dive shop gear discounts, low cost or 'free' dive trips where they teach/guide/work, etc...)?

P.S.: My perspective is United States-based. Other areas of the world may differ.

 

[OMyMyOHellYes]

I was charging more for an OW course years ago than the local shops a charging now, how do they do it?

Typical drug pusher scheme. Or Gillette razors.

Get em in the door cheap. Sell the course at a loss - say $200. Praise the crap out of their performance. Sell em a trip Bora-armpit. Then sell em the Platinum plated titanium regulator with the submerged latte drip, the bionic eye mask that lets them see 20 M in murky water, the el suprimo grade schnorkleator with the latest in snorkel technology (snorkels are important! Don't skimp!), the goose-feather insulated BCD, the ultra max flow-turbo fins, the Cray-Cray dive supercomputer. Yeah, you gonna need all that siht on the Bora-armpit trip. It's your life support system at 10 M depth! And it's only $3,000 for the special price savings package! Did I mention the camera you're gonna need to bring home your memories for your dives #5 - #15?

In three - five years, it's all gonna be on craigslist - condition "like new! Only 10 dives!"

I'm not kidding. I bought the tanks a couple weeks ago.

 

[berndo]

No, it is what I see, experience, live...

You don't see that cost of living has increased by more than wages over the last 40 years? I'm talking basic stuff, not leased BMWs.

@drrich2
I'm sure there are many factors and I don't think your wrong about the points you brought up. However, the houses I was talking about are the same houses. The exact same house that was 60 grand is now 500. It's crazy.
It might be a different situation in the States. I don't know what you guys have to pay for what. Where I live, stuff has gone through the roof though and wages haven't. Not talking about fancy stuff, just food, housing, gas, electricity, etc.
I don't really see people blowing 200 bucks on pants. Just filling my car up cost almost 200 USD today.
I was talking more about the 80s rather than the 50s or 60s. People in the 80s were still living off of one income here.

BTW: In Europe, nobody has air condition in the office or at home and we still have lots of blue collar jobs.

 

[berndo]

Spoiled, lazy, entitled young people with the highest quality of life in history who don't know how good they've got it, bunch'a molly-coddled 'participation trophy' college kids...

I'm sure there are those people too but I don't think it's normal. I think people who write articles specifially look for wacky people as examples to rail the readers up.

 

[rhwestfall]

I see people expecting a "living wage" on jobs I did as a kid (cutting lawns, dog sitting, delivering newspapers). I've known people having 2-3 jobs at the same time to make ends meet. My own family farmed by the day, and did graveyard factory work. Nobody needed a therapist because they felt overworked. There was no "participation trophy". No year off to find yourself... No freebies...

 

[rhwestfall]

My own daughter is disgusted with her peers/ generation...

Over the summer she has 2 jobs. While in college, she held down 3 different jobs (lifeguard, swim instructor, coaches kids club sports), and will graduate summa-cum-laude with 3 majors.

She is a Red Cross IT and earned it by the time she was 19.

 

[rhwestfall]

I do see, at least here, not many LDS are run as principal occupation. Most are retirement gigs. Staff are doing it for perks.

 

[OMyMyOHellYes]

There was no "participation trophy". No year off to find yourself... No freebies...

Gap year? Is that supposed to be when the parents would otherwise say "You want a year off to go play? After I supported you for 20+ years with ZERO responsibility, you want to drag that out another year? Take your degree, go get a job (be glad I didn't let you major in 'Northern Mongolian Renaissance-era Gender Studies'), find a place to live, and be an adult. Good luck in life. Report back marriage, child births, other significant milestones"?

I think I got a Gap Week. which I used to find an apartment, move from college town to work city, get unpacked, get shoes shined and shirts ironed, then start work.