What style of DM course do you guys recommend?

[USdiver1]

I agree with the majority of posters who counsel gaining significant diving experience prior to entering any DM program. Dive in as many different OW conditions as you can: fresh, salt, tropical, cold-water, low viz, boat, shore, night, etc. If it is within your interest also train and dive in overhead conditions. Then if you really want to DM (that is work in training/guiding others) seek a long term program at a resort or LDS where you will not only hone and practice your teaching skills but you will work with several instructors and (most importantly) several groups of students during their instruction in scuba. Take a slow and measured approach to becoming a DM, it is not something that you should do on impulse, nor in a rushed manner.

 

[Yoyodyne-88]

My turn:

Yoydyne-88: 12 weekends a year in NE USA??? That's less than 3 full months. You don't dive (wet) in May, Sept. & Oct.?

I was taliking about teaching, not personal dives. We start taking students out May 1st. Many won't go that early, since the water can be 36ºF. And after Labor Day, air temps can be below freezing at times, also discouraging to a new diver.

I'll dive even under ice, but I no longer dive wet in the USA, ever. I take my drysuit to Florida.

 

[azmodan50]

RJP, azmodan50: I disagree to a point. I feel the DM course forces you to polish your skills to demo quality, so that somewhat improves your diving. Whether your skills improvement is worth the cost of the course, I doubt it very much.

Sorry, I meant that you wouldn't learn any new skills. You only learn how to teach the skills you already know. But in my experience, if I have to perform the skills myself, I don't go for the slow methodical demonstration method. I just get it done.

To mean, teaching the skill requires you to do it slow and emphasize each move so the students can see it.

 

[phlegm]

I got in touch with my original OW instructor and he reckons that given how immediately I got the hang of diving I'm probably ready for DM by now.

That said, I'm not going to ignore the pretty unanimous advice given by experienced divers here. I'm looking into doing a liveaboard in Komodo instead (please post or PM me any specific recommendations if anybody has any!). This is a tough decision as I am so sorely tempted to leave everything behind and do my DM, but I guess I'll hold off on it for the time being...

 

[beester]

There is a name for this affliction.... it's called Dunning-Kruger effect (Dunning). Meaning you are not ready yet to evaluate your own experience and skill set.

That being said... diving is definitely not rocket science... it's EASY, you only need to practice... doing lots and lots of dives in different environments. I also understand that some people will be natural and others will not be. I had a guy during my fundies training (basically an AOW training on a very high level, preparing for technical diving), who was a former French legionair, with thousands of dives (worked as an instructor in Egypt) but he failed the class. I've seen a teenage girl with 40 dives pass the class...

That's the skill part, but what makes you a good DM, is experience. Knowing the environment, but also knowing and understanding divers. You need to notice equipment being set up and how this relates to recent practice, you need to notice stress above and below water (someone being overly confident, or very introvert, messy with his equipment, lots of bubbles underwater, etc, etc), being able to clearly and slowly communicate both under and above water, you need to understand the local environment and his particularities (visibility, current, tides, fauna, etc), you need to be able to evaluate skill and experience of your customers without much info (a cert doesn't say ANYTHING, nor number of dives if they are all in the same spot), you need to combine all of this in a sound brief and dive plan, making mental notes of who to watch out for underwater and who you can leave alone.

And that's just the dive-guiding part, not all other stuff involved (helping out with classes, helping out in the shop, maybe servicing equipment, drive a boat, etc).

A good DM or instructor (because you need to have been a good DM to be a good instructor), has a lot of skills and talents both technical and people related.

Does this mean you shouldn't pursuit your dream... of course not, make up your mind, but you should be very selfconscious that you are still learning and this move to Komodo (or whatever) is just a kickstart and you'll still need to put in the dives and customer contact to gain that experience. IMO the best idea is to work in a local shop, get to know the local diving community, learn some non diving skills (equipment, boating), and then make the jump.

Cheers,

B

PS: Just read that you are going to do a liveaboard in Komodo and not yet start DM. Good idea... scout the environment, enjoy the marvellous dives, check the local ops already, after you return get some more local practice in and THEN return to komodo, more confident, with experience.

 

[TMHeimer]

I was taliking about teaching, not personal dives. We start taking students out May 1st. Many won't go that early, since the water can be 36ºF. And after Labor Day, air temps can be below freezing at times, also discouraging to a new diver.

I'll dive even under ice, but I no longer dive wet in the USA, ever. I take my drysuit to Florida.

I understand when you say teaching only 12 weekends. I am fairly amazed that we do OW checkout dives from first week of April through first week of Dec. It has to be a rude introduction for some in those fringe months. Where are you in the NE?

---------- Post added May 7th, 2015 at 10:02 PM ----------

Sorry, I meant that you wouldn't learn any new skills. You only learn how to teach the skills you already know. But in my experience, if I have to perform the skills myself, I don't go for the slow methodical demonstration method. I just get it done.

To mean, teaching the skill requires you to do it slow and emphasize each move so the students can see it.

OK, I'm just splitting hairs anyway. You have to improve the exact way you do the skills in order to teach them slowly, emphasizing the critical attributes, etc. But of course, you just whip your mask clear quickly when on your own. As I said, seriously doubt DM course is worth the money if you just want to polish the exact way you do your skills.

 

[phlegm]

I think saying I'm suffering from the dunning-kruger effect is going a little far but I take the point. I know I have a long way to go, but I also know that I take diving more seriously than many with my number of dives. I found out that my OW instructor now uses me as the example of the golden student who just took to the sport (he would never tell me that though!). I've been exposed to a reasonably wide range of conditions, I've calmed panicked divers above and below the surface, I constantly monitor my buddies, I've led boat and shore dives and got us out of dicey situations and learnt from every mistake.

Good points all round though. I think I have the observation necessary (I read people pretty well). I probably need to work on my social skills as I'm powerfully introverted but I figure there's nothing like total immersion (heh) to break that inhibition.

 

[TMHeimer]

You've got a point about "total immersion". Pretty much an introvert myself in my younger years (particularly socially), jumping into being a Band Teacher at age 23 sure turned that around.