What is my main goal as a PADI Course Director?

I really do have the very best job in the world! Nothing can be better than teaching people to become PADI instructors. But what am I really trying to achieve during my Instructor Development Courses?
Way back in 1991 I became a PADI Instructor myself and I’ll never forget the overwhelming sense of achievement that I felt when I held that certificate in my hand.
But that was only the very start!  Once I began to teach people to Scuba Dive, my excitement grew even more, and then when those very same people asked me to teach more and more courses, I cannot describe the passion that was in my heart. It surpassed anything that I had experienced before.  These feelings give me some clues as to what is needed in my role in Instructor Development.

My past experiences have shown me what is important. I have been a Platinum Course Director for over 11 years now, and have taught many people to reach their own goals of being a PADI Scuba Diving Instructor.  But my own past has also shown me that whilst passing an exam and holding a certificate is important, it is nothing compared to the achievements of being a successful PADI instructor.

That is why our IDC’s are focused on becoming successful in the real world. We teach lots of ways that you can give the very best service to your students. I have had an awful lot of experience in the dive industry over the past 20 years, and I like to pass on the lessons that I have learnt.
Of course we teach the techniques that the PADI examiners are looking for at the PADI Instructor Exam, but our main emphasis is on keeping your future customers coming back for more and more.

To be honest, it’s fairly easy to prepare people to pass a PADI Instructor Exam, but passing that exam is just the start.  I would have no job satisfaction at all if the instructors that I taught  just “got the badge” and then didn’t teach. My own goals are that our IDC Candidates go onto much better things.  I know that we are successful in our aims because looking at my statistics on the PADI website; I find that 32 pct of all instructors that I have taught have gone on to become PADI IDC Staff Instructors.  I know that an even bigger percentage actively teach around the world. Their lives have certainly changed.

To say that becoming a Scuba Diving instructor changed my life is a massive understatement. My Job is about changing lives! Not only of the instructors that I teach; but of all of their students as well.

Have a very successful 2012.