It’s curious how the shooting instruction activity has become a trend. I imagine it’s the result of the photos of event highlights, with people wearing camouflage, wielding expensive firearms, next to hole-riddled targets. Combine that with the massive and irresponsible offering of “instructor courses” , and the magic is done. I don’t want to discourage anyone from pursuing the profession of an instructor, but perhaps it’s relevant to bring some reality to the adventurers. Here we go, 10 Things You Need to Know Before Becoming a Shooting Instructor:
- Most of the time when you go to a shooting range, you isolate yourself from society with one or more people you don’t know very well. If you’re not ready to face someone and potentially kill or be killed, don’t come to the range.
- Everything that happens on your range is your responsibility. There’s no “buts.” If you don’t take responsibility, don’t come to the range.
- What happens to your students outside the range is also your responsibility. If you don’t want a life-or-death commitment with someone you didn’t know five minutes ago, don’t come to the range.
- We work in constant hypothermia and sunstroke. If you like to keep your clothes clean, your perfume fresh, and your hair well-groomed, if you don’t like mud, sand, or sweat, don’t come to the range.
- There are a million people offering courses for 1/10 of the minimally acceptable price. If you’re not willing to sit down and study until you can offer a differentiated service, don’t waste your time coming to the range.
- Our activity involves unnecessary bureaucracy, carrying weight, getting injured, preparing lessons, worrying about logistics, picking up casings, being a counselor, eating poorly, enduring days of constant physical effort, painting, stapling, and fixing targets, hearing a lot of crap, and needing expensive equipment that is not always available. If your heart is torn between the instructing activity and any other profession, don’t come to the range.
- If you seek recognition and high profits, if you see shooting as an investment or a way to make some extra money, don’t come to the range.
- You need to know the difference between being serious and taking things seriously. If you mix these two worlds, don’t come to the range.
- Contamination is an inherent part of your life, which will inevitably become shorter. If you’re afraid of getting sick, don’t come to the range.
- Everyone’s life is worth exactly the same. If you can’t teach your building’s janitor with the same enthusiasm as your favorite class, if you can’t respect everyone’s freedom and respect everyone, without distinction of any kind, don’t taint my damn range with your presence.
If you were bothered by this text, instruction is not for you.
If you made it this far with a smile on your face, now we can talk about instruction.
