A cursory search on the internet and you’ll quickly find lists and advice across blogs and websites highlighting ways you can become a better diver. From my non-exhaustive survey they tend to focus on improving the foundational skills: buoyancy, trim, equipment configuration and the like. These are crucial competencies of a good scuba diver that should be learnt and practised. What I want to look at here are the attributes and characteristics that are less discussed.
Ego
An inflated sense of one’s self or ability; it’s a dangerous trait when combined with diving. I think it pervades diving, an activity that is built on qualifications, depth and perceived experience. If you’ve been on a dive boat you will have likely seen or heard characters exhibiting big egos. It can have so many different implications depending on the character. Apart from being an annoyance, the concern over what others think of you can quickly lead to poor decision making. This often manifests in the ‘I know best’ approach; so going too deep and generally ignoring advice. The ability to openly admit and realise your limitations is key to becoming a good (and safe) diver. This could be putting your hand up to pull out of dive because you’re uncomfortable or asking for help with equipment. At the end of the day nobody wins at diving.
Spatial Awareness
The ability to move in three dimensions is one of the great joys and unique aspects of diving. Good buoyancy then gives us the freedom to explore it. It is a fundamental skill tackled during all basic diving qualifications. It’s an enabler. The next level is having a good idea of where you are in relation to everything else. That could be your buddy (not finning them in the face) or the wreck or reef around you (again not finning them). Rather than getting too close the danger here is not being able to build an effective mental map of your surroundings and becoming separated from a buddy or group. This becomes more important in low visibility like those commonly found across the UK where separation from your buddy is a real concern.
Learn to be Uncomfortable
Cold, wet, sea sick, claustrophobic, heavy equipment, uncomfortable drysuits. There are plenty of times diving can be unpleasant (luckily not too often). I don’t want to make diving sound miserable because with good fitting equipment this is thankfully limited. However, as you develop as a diver it’s important to be able to accept and deal with the unavoidable short periods of discomfort. It’s easy for minor discomforts to escalate, raise stress levels, and become a significant distraction.
Manage Stress
I was waiting in line at my local dive shop to collect a set of regulators. The customer in front of me was discussing their nerves over their upcoming first open water dive. The manager’s response was to tell her confidently: ‘all you need to do is relax’. Much like saying it to your spouse in an argument this normally makes things worse. Exposed to new situations and environments increased stress is to be expected. Building experience is an obvious way to limit the ‘unusual’ situation and therefore reduce your stress while diving. However, it cannot eliminate the chance of the extraordinary so it’s beneficial to start thinking about how you internally manage stress. Diving is an adventurous pursuit that will constantly throw new situations at you so understanding how you can deal with stress is important. Personally, I’ve found visualisation a simple and useful technique. It’s worth noting that some stress actually leads to improved performance. If you’re interested in the relationship between stress and performance you can look into the Yerkes-Dodson Law.
Fit to Dive
This is a sensitive topic because one of the positives of diving is that it doesn’t require huge feats of strength or endurance to excel at. I have fond memories of diving with my grandfather well into his eighties. Buoyancy is a real leveller for sore backs and busted knees. What I mean is – are you as fit as you can be? A healthy level of general fitness is beneficial as the principle risks in diving surround the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. There will always be scenarios where being exceptionally fit and strong is an advantage (think recovering a casualty) but it’s the general level of fitness many divers could look to improve.
