At the end of the instructor development course, there is an exam – the PADI Instructor exam for fear! Focusing on passing this exam is human nature, but it is not a real test at all! The real exam is the first lesson you will teach a PADI instructor.

This is why it is very important to choose the right IDC. You want to learn from a course director who teaches you to be a good coach, not how to pass IE. A course leader who specializes in getting full marks in IE will usually prepare you for the real problems that IDC should prepare for you. The experience of your course director will play an important role in this regard. When I first started teaching the lecturer development course as the new course director [appeared ten years ago], I fell into this trap. I am more concerned about my candidate moving IE instead of spending time focusing on more real world training.

As time passed and I built confidence, I began to pay attention…

How to be a successful scuba instructor was originally published on Spring