As a society we have become lazy – complacent and accepted what we observe on billboards as the “truth”. We are constantly searching for a “quick fix” and have what I refer to as the “TOES” Tactical Overnight Expert Syndrome. The thought of this type of person makes my “TOES” curl and makes me ill. For the “TOE” (Tactical Overnight Expert), the shorter and more convenient the course, the quicker you get your signed certificate of completion. Normally they become certified in a given subject within a weekend course or 16-24 hours. Many times they even attend multiple course seminars (which are even better) and walk away with multiple certifications within the same time frame. The DVD phenomenon has made attending courses even easier and more efficient. Watch the DVD in slow motion a few times and it is as good as gold. Expect to receive a certificate on your front steps delivered to you via- Federal Express. Once they become Tactical Overnight Experts in the related subject then they promote themselves into “Instructor” status or “Master” designation. I will address tactical and combative courses in this article.
As a Close Quarter Combat Instructor/ Active (full-time) Law Enforcement Officer with a little more than 24 hours of training and experience, I observe the “TOES” attitude everywhere I go. I may add here that “TOES” does not only apply to civilians. I clearly observe this in the Law Enforcement and Military community.
The question that I pose to my students is this…Are you attending my courses to earn a certificate or are you attending to learn something?
Throughout the last ten years I have observed society get progressively worse. Instructors are a dime a dozen in just about every facet of tactical training. With the security boom, came the so called executive protection instructors springing out from all over. Hell, they had a three day executive protection course and that is all they needed. Their experience in the security industry was top notch since they worked two details protecting Grandma Smith and driving her around town. You also have the PSD, oh, yes you were in the sand box for a while and the skills and experience that you received there are enough to place you as the elite of elite instructors…NOT !
Now that we are in the cool gear era (Blackhawk and 5.11) we have introduced the super cool gear Instructor. This type of instructor looks cool and has 475 certificates from every instructor or school that has advertised in the tactical magazines. This type of instructor conducts his classes by talking and not by demonstrating. He has absolutely no teaching skills, can’t shoot worth a shit, can’t apply the tactics that he is teaching in real time (his movement contradicts his teaching) and above all breaks down under stress.
There are many excellent instructors all over the world. Let me re-phrase that. There are many good instructors all over the world but few excellent ones. Instructors that have devoted themselves to the improvement of their craft and can disseminate the information to their students in an understandable manner are few and far between.
The bottom line here is this… Tactical training, especially; involving firearms should be taken very seriously. We (Instructors) have a great responsibility. Students trust us on what we are teaching. Practice and training should be part of our daily life. We must practice what we preach. We must have an open mind and be receptive to new ideas and concepts. I attend courses often; I take something new from many of the courses. It may not be a technique, or something breaking new ground, it just might be the teaching structure or a way the students were handled. There is always room to learn, Always! Because I am an active law enforcement officer, currently assigned to the tactical unit (in an extremely violent city) I am always learning and applying tactics. “What I teach, I have used on the street.” That is my motto.
In closing, as Instructors we must be able to have an open mind and be honest with ourselves. We must ask ourselves: Do we have the knowledge? Do we have the experience? Do we have the practice to teach what we claim that we can teach? When we are conducting a course, we must demonstrate accurately, disseminate proper information and above all, we must be able to walk the walk…not just talk the talk, always holding ourselves to a higher standard.
As a prospective student here is a list of questions that I would have for the Instructor:
1) Does he have current real world experience applying what is being taught?
2) Has he had real world experience applying what is being taught?
3) Who has he taught and what type of feedback has he received?
4) What type of certifications has he received? (refer to my article )
5) How long has he been teaching?
6) Has he written articles, books? (keep in mind this doesn’t really mean anything…People tend to give an immediate expert status to anyone that has written an article or book) If there is a book or article that the instructor published, read it.
7) Does he advertise? Where?
8) Is he recognized in the industry? (Once again this is not a deal breaker)
9) Does he stress safety in his courses?
10) What is his certification process?
