Wise words to consider when thinking about going pro

[Ste Wart]

A colleague recently gave me a few of his old Aquacorps issues to read and I came across some very sage advice from Sheck Exley:

You have to love it. You have to love the diving. Loving recognition is not enough. That wears off. That's why you see such a high instructor dropout rate. The ones that got in it because it's another merit badge and everyone around thought it was a big deal - it wears off. You see it over and over again in diving.
When I got started in diving I wanted to be special. I grew out of that and got to where I just loved diving, and that's what has kept me going. If I hadn't, I would have quit a long time ago.

It rings as true today as it did 20 years ago.

 

[kelemvor]

From what I've read in numerous places, there isn't a ton of money to be made diving. Or, maybe pros are just trying to keep the field from getting flooded with competition?

Gear is also expensive, and as best I can tell you have to buy your own gear even when doing it professionally for someone else.

If I thought I could pull in a decent middle class salary diving, I'd probably be chomping at the bit to switch careers. I guess recognition never occurred to me as a reason to do it. I didn't think there would be a lot of people trying to get going as a dive pro that didn't really love to dive.

 

[eponym]

Ste Wart - thanks, good quote.

I've read that a lot of instructors drop out after two years of teaching. That certainly applies to the shop I'm affiliated with, and I've been there for more than ten years. Of course the pay has something to do with it, but . . .

It's not enough to love diving. You have to love teaching, too.

Teaching diving, and leading training dives, is nothing at all like diving for your own enjoyment.

 

[grassgreen]

Also what about when you've been an Instructor for around 5 years and are looking for new challenges, what is the average length of time Instructors last as Tec Instructors and or Course Directors? As you go up the levels does the length of time teaching go up, go down or is it around the same???
Cheers

 

[corvettejoe]

A colleague recently gave me a few of his old Aquacorps issues to read and I came across some very sage advice from Sheck Exley:




It rings as true today as it did 20 years ago.

I REALLY like this quote. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Ste Wart]

Also what about when you've been an Instructor for around 5 years and are looking for new challenges, what is the average length of time Instructors last as Tec Instructors and or Course Directors? As you go up the levels does the length of time teaching go up, go down or is it around the same???
Cheers

I'd hazard a guess and say that CD's and tec instructors have a certain amount of longevity when compared to the standard 'gap year' OWSI