WhiteSands
Contributor
- Messages
- 668
- Reaction score
- 79
- # of dives
- 200 - 499
Hi
I hope this is the right place to post this, if not my apologies.
I'm dreaming of a career change to join the diving industry because its something I'm really passionate about, and would appreciate some frank advice from industry professionals.
My education and background is in software engineering, which I still enjoy. I've also done Project Management and have been involved in 2 companies (Education Services & Construction) in a management role, covering departments from Projects, Administration, HR, process improvement and accounts. I'll be 40 this year.
I guess I would love to be in a job which would involve leisure diving, especially guiding leisure dives. I also enjoy teaching very much but am genuinely concerned about the hazards of being an instructor (students shooting to the surface and going after them and suffering from DCS, and some other hazards that my instructor friends mentioned were part of the job). I also enjoy and am good at developing content for teaching, which was what I was involved in, in my previous job.
My current dream would be to own an LOB someday because it'll allow me to dive often and dive at different sites. Selling gear and stuff could be part of the plan but isn't really my passion. I'm introverted by nature, which is a shortcoming if I were to consider the job requirements of the positions I've mentioned above.
I live in SE Asia, and from speaking to several instructor friends, I'm told that being a diving instructor isn't going to pay my bills. I'm honestly hoping I could make a decent living doing what I love so would love to hear some options.
What are some possible options for me? What would you do if you were in my shoes?
I'd prefer to work for an organization first to learn the ropes. Starting my own business could be another possibility somewhere down the road, but not now.
Thanks!
I hope this is the right place to post this, if not my apologies.
I'm dreaming of a career change to join the diving industry because its something I'm really passionate about, and would appreciate some frank advice from industry professionals.
My education and background is in software engineering, which I still enjoy. I've also done Project Management and have been involved in 2 companies (Education Services & Construction) in a management role, covering departments from Projects, Administration, HR, process improvement and accounts. I'll be 40 this year.
I guess I would love to be in a job which would involve leisure diving, especially guiding leisure dives. I also enjoy teaching very much but am genuinely concerned about the hazards of being an instructor (students shooting to the surface and going after them and suffering from DCS, and some other hazards that my instructor friends mentioned were part of the job). I also enjoy and am good at developing content for teaching, which was what I was involved in, in my previous job.
My current dream would be to own an LOB someday because it'll allow me to dive often and dive at different sites. Selling gear and stuff could be part of the plan but isn't really my passion. I'm introverted by nature, which is a shortcoming if I were to consider the job requirements of the positions I've mentioned above.
I live in SE Asia, and from speaking to several instructor friends, I'm told that being a diving instructor isn't going to pay my bills. I'm honestly hoping I could make a decent living doing what I love so would love to hear some options.
What are some possible options for me? What would you do if you were in my shoes?
I'd prefer to work for an organization first to learn the ropes. Starting my own business could be another possibility somewhere down the road, but not now.
Thanks!
