Question for the trainers/instructors:

[Jackson]

I've noticed an increase in the number of people offering classes or private instruction in the use of firearms. (Or maybe I'm paying more attention.) I was curious how you all got in to doing training and when and how you decided that you had reached a level where you had enough knowledge and experience to be paid to share it?

If those of you offering classes have the time and wouldn't mind sharing, I would be interested in your background and what led you to becoming an instructor.

Thanks,

Jackson

 

[esrice]

Good question!

tagged

 

[Steve MI]

You never ever reach a place were its enough knowledge.


Well lets see i had been a life long shooter at 19, I knew it all until i took a job that required me to carry a gun...

then I started taking every single class I could and then more then more, and do so every year. sometimes 4-5 per year.

Istarted teaching CPL/CCW classes for alocal shop then was drafted by NTFT to teach from there i went to classes about how we teach people to teach and how people learn. having a good personality and prick switch didnt hurt... but then it became the ablity to get the message across to others and learning there abilites.
and the ablity to make people have fun while being serious

what works for some of them and what works for others. also having the ablity to demo to the class in front of students and showing them that you know WTF your doing, and the ablitiy to make mistakes as well and explain to them why and how and what was done wrong. and how to correct it. (AKA make mistakes on purpose) and show them what and why. and to get them to interact.

but having the insight and foresight and hindsight to have people to trust what you are teaching them based on what you have learned and been taught here is the next big key.

Credit were its due...... honest. in this line of buisness everybody knows everybody and if you screw one your screwed....

I moved on from NRA Liablity programs because in honest they teach you nothing about fighting with a gun or your hands, or for your life. its range rules and legal's (sorry not to offend but its true)

I then gained the trust of many of those I trained under, taught next too, and more someof those that have mentored me and given me high prasies for my ablities to do and teach.

Now i have trained under those with super secret Ninja backgrounds and gotten zero out of the there classes because they were there and killed a million people doesnt mean they can teach you.

gain trust of local ranges i first started on farms and yards after i left my first place.
then gravel pits and ranges once I took on liablity INS and AI's and my AI's are my life and Blood

In a nutshell.
I learned that after years of doing everyone's else dogmatic programs, students werent getting what was needed to Win, I decided it was time to pass on what i had been taught and trained to do for years it was time to pass it on......

its a full time job now and buisness for me that has grown huge.... and gettign better every day....


sorry for the ramble but i daydreaming and thinking back to were it all started in 1999

 

[Jay]

Fair question.....

I started shooting in 1955. Shot my first dove, and deer in 1956, and I've been shooting and hunting ever since. Things got a bit more interesting in the Marine Corps in 1965, and I was able to display a bit of marksmanship hardware. I spent two years exchanging rounds with some folks, and learned what it's like to shoot, and get shot at, shoot someone, and get shot. I got out because I wasn't impressed with the peacetime military. Kept up shooting sports on the side, and became an instructor for the Red Cross in First Aid, and CPR, in 1975, and found out I could teach subjects that I knew about. Taught rifle and pistol classes for 4H and Scouts, then got involved with NRA. I do teach NRA courses, and I teach some that the NRA doesn't include, but I don't get into what I'll call "exotic" training. I teach basics plus common sense, and some things from experience if folks want it. I'm an expert only on myself, but I didn't get into my 60's being stupid, and the Marine Corps indelicately removed what little tact I started out with. I don't advertise much other than word of mouth and a few cards, and I stay busy enough to keep me off the streets. I do not accept payment for a class until the student is comfortable that they got their money's worth, and students are more than welcome to a no cost refresher outing at any time. I've never had a student opt not to pay, and some I haven't charged because I knew they couldn't afford it. I don't teach to make a living, I teach because I'm good at it, and I enjoy it, and people shouldn't have to take a second mortgage to pay for their chosen method of protecting themselves, and/or a very rewarding family pastime. I've taught folks from 10 years old, up to 75 years old. One of my students gave me a couple of acres to build a private range on (and he was in the Navy, no less, and also a member here), and that lets me keep costs, and prices reasonable for most everybody.

Shoot safe.......

 

[JetGirl]

the Marine Corps indelicately removed what little tact I started out with.

I do not accept payment for a class until the student is comfortable that they got their money's worth, and students are more than welcome to a no cost refresher outing at any time.

I teach because I'm good at it, and I enjoy it

I can vouch for this ^

 

[Jay]

hmmmmm, I would have figured that with all the quality instruction available, there would be more response to this question.... I wonder why only two of us replied ?

 

[Coach]

ACT

The background of all of our instructors is available on on website.
Adaptive Consulting & Training.

I was asked to become a part of the team at ACT to handle the instruction and direction of the competition shooting. I also assist with instruction in other courses. I was asked to join ACT, because I was observed giving some private instruction to a new shooter and my teaching technique was considered to be good. I shoot competition 2-3 times per month sometimes more, and locally I am near the top most of the time.

I feel like I have some insight to offer students in the area of competition, and in defensive situations as well. I have been shooter for all of my adult life, but have spent a huge amount of time on the range since 2004.

I teach for a living, and have coached plenty of football and wrestling over the years. I look at my role as an instructor as I am coaching and teaching which I have been doing for 19 years. The subject is just different, and very rewarding.

Anyone who thinks they know it all and have nothing more to learn is sadly mistaken.

 

[minuteman32]

I started giving informal assistance on whatever range I was @, if someone wanted/needed it, as well as friends that I'd take shooting.

I, wife & some friends attended a UT CFP class & my wife kept leaning over saying, "you could do this..... you SHOULD do this!"

I became an NRA Pistol & Personal Protection In the Home Instructor & later that year became a UT CFP Instructor.

I mainly teach the UT CFP classes, but have taught the NRA Pistol class, too. I still offer informal instruction, as well.

I would say become an NRA Instructor in the area(s) of interest to you & branch out/specialize as time goes on.

 

[mercop]

Good question. I guess I started around 98/99 with my first firearms instructor course. It was the LE NRA course. Over the next 10 or so years the dept sent me to around 45 specialized schools for everything from edged weapons to SWAT. Between all the courses and my traditional martial arts training what I saw was a massive lack of continuity between all skill sets. This was the beginning of the Modern Combative System. MCS is the blending on open hand combatives, impact weapon, edged weapons and firearms within seven yards.

Folks here who have attended MCS classes can tell you in gun classes you will learn edged weapons, in edged weapon classes you will learn about gun, and in all classes you will learn about open hand combatives.

Just recently I have certified two people as adjunct edged weapons instructors. So far I have no adjunct firearms instructors. I consider myself a teacher more than an instructor and require the same from my adjunct instructors.- George

 

[Jackson]

I consider myself a teacher more than an instructor and require the same from my adjunct instructors.

Can you explain what you mean there? What's the difference in how you're using the terms?

 

[ACT II]

I've been shooting since 1994 or so (yeah, I got a late start in life). Over the years, I've accumulated hundreds of hours of classes completed with a variety of both well known and some not so well known instructors. That includes some really good classes geared toward instructor development. Somewhere along the way I did some informal teaching along the way of individuals and small groups. For the last few years I'd been thinking of doing it "for real," but it just never happened until obijohn and couple of our friends formed ACT (to which we added Coach as soon as we could).

I know I'm not the best shooter in the world, but I also know that I'm a really good teacher. I haven't done it nearly as long as Coach, but teaching school is also my primary occupation. Teaching gun stuff has much in common with teaching physics stuff and math stuff.

I'm not sure how anyone can know when they are "ready." When ACT was new, I had many conversations with Glock21 (he's one of John Farnam's associate instructors) about how I could know when I was ready. It seems like the only way to know is to just do it. He also shared with me something very important: we're all instructors whether we know it or not. Any time you handle a weapon or shoot in front of someone, you are teaching them by example whether that is your intent or not.

Some schools/instructors have formal programs for developing their instructors. If I felt that was a necessary part of my path, I'd do my best to go through all of John Farnam's classes. I might not "make it" as one of them, but I guarantee I'd learn a lot and be a better instructor because of it.

Joseph Viray (aka rhino)
Joseph@AdaptiveConsultingandTraining.com

 

[Jackson]

I want to bump this thread. I know its old but there are a lot of instructors. Some were not around or did not respond when the thread was new.

How did you become an instructor and how did you know you were ready to teach others?

 

[19Delta]

I want to bump this thread. I know its old but there are a lot of instructors. Some were not around or did not respond when the thread was new.

How did you become an instructor and how did you know you were ready to teach others?

^^^ +1, and subscribed.

 

[drillsgt]

My background was predominately in the military as an instructor which I augmented with attending a lot of civilian instruction and actually was quite a bit better, then in 2000 I got my multiple ratings from the NRA. At that time MI just got their shall issue CPL going so I started teaching CPL courses. Like SteveMI I quickly saw that the NRA courses while good foundations didn't really provide a lot of what I thought the students needed so I had to augment those courses heavily. I continue to train but have come to realize there really isn't much new under the sun when it comes to this stuff. In fact I find myself often going back and just working on the fundamentals versus some new whizbang way to grip the forend of your rifle etc. I think it's a mistake to get to a point and call yourself good and stop training. I still like to attend courses and pick up things that may improve myself as an instructor but more importantly just to listen to other instructors philosophy and teaching methods.
Someone mentioned the difference between a teacher and an instructor, an instructor likely can do a competent job of teaching by the book etc but a teacher tends to elaborate on why or why not something works or show other methods that work as well and allow you to develop what may work better for you. I tend not to be impressed anymore by what's on a flyer but tend to go more by recommendations of those who have taken the courses before. I'm not impressed if you were a SWAT cop for ten years, I work with a lot of people that have been on SWAT teams that couldn't teach themselves out of a paper bag.

 

[Latewatch]

Like many others I began shooting with my Father at the age of 6 and have been shooting for the last 45 years. My formal training began after joining the US Army in 1980. I served in the Army for 11 years to include 5 years with the 2nd and 3rd Ranger Battalions and 4 years as a Ranger Instructor with the Ranger Training Brigade. Since leaving the Army I have been a Police Officer for the last 20 years. Most of that time I have been involved with firearms and defensive tactics training. I have attended numerous Military and LE firearms schools at both the operator and instructor level. I have also been shooting competitively since 1984 in IPSC/USPSA, ICORE, and 3 Gun.

I began conducting private instruction because I enjoy it and believe that I am very good at it. I also believe that my background of over 30 years in shooting, tactics, and training provide me with skills that I can effectively impart to others.

 

[Glock21]

I started shooting seriously when I turned 21, and took a few classes here and there for the next decade. Then I was talked into taking a handgun course from John Franam....after that I became a training junky and went to everything I could afford. Awerbuck, Ayoob, Gunsite, etc... Within 8 months of the first course with Farnam I was assissting him on the line, and a year and a half later I graduated his Instructor program, and had my NRA creds.

I'm on my 12th year working with John and I average 15+ courses a year with him. He encouraged me to start my own training business two years ago, and here I am.

 

[drillsgt]

I started shooting seriously when I turned 21, and took a few classes here and there for the next decade. Then I was talked into taking a handgun course from John Franam....after that I became a training junky and went to everything I could afford. Awerbuck, Ayoob, Gunsite, etc... Within 8 months of the first course with Farnam I was assissting him on the line, and a year and a half later I graduated his Instructor program, and had my NRA creds.

I'm on my 12th year working with John and I average 15+ courses a year with him. He encouraged me to start my own training business two years ago, and here I am.

+1 to Farnam, I took my first official course with him years ago and thought I knew something about defensive shooting/training, it's true what they say, you don't know what you don't know.

 

[VERT]

I want to bump this thread. I know its old but there are a lot of instructors. Some were not around or did not respond when the thread was new.

How did you become an instructor and how did you know you were ready to teach others?

Truthfully I ask myself all the time if I am ready to teach people. The whole process as crazy as it might sound happened by accident.

I started shooting at an early age. My father taught me traditional rifle skills and I started competing in NMLRA competition at the age of 10. By age 12 I already had a national championship and two national records under my belt. I stayed competitive until about age 16 when I discovered cars and girls. Quit football my senior year because I kept hyper extending my shoulder and I was not about to give up my rifle. Played around on the rifle/pistol team at Purdue. Was never serious about it. To be honest I do not enjoy the competition as much as the shooting. Pretty much remained a plinker from there on out. After graduate school I completed NRA Basic Rifle so that I could help local scout troops and 4H. When I moved to South Dakota I become very active with a practical pistol club. Then work and kids got in the way. A few years ago I wanted to introduce people to shooting. I would drag them to an intro class with me. Then I found INGO and went to a couple classes with people I met on-line. Trust me when I say my skills were diminished and I made mistakes.

Finally it happened. Mrs. VERT decided to attend a couple classes with me. She enjoyed the experience and did very well; however, she felt that the material moved too quickly. She encouraged me to look into offering basic courses to women. Between grad school and my career I had at this time a lot of experience presenting/discussing material in front of a class. So, I asked a friend of mine who is a law enforcement instructor if he would be interested in teaching. I would help him with the organization and such. He agreed and asked if I would be interested in helping construct a training range. We built the range and I decided to obtain my NRA Basic Pistol Certification, not to teach but to help him. Great idea but poor execution in our plans, it is safe to admit that this plan failed. Not to be one to give up Mrs. VERT wanted me to keep trying. Just by luck I happened to know of a couple guys wanting to offer NRA programs at the local conservation club. We teamed up last year and there was interest. So I picked up a couple more NRA certifications and try to spend some time with other trainers. My new friends even encouraged me to start shooting in some local USPSA matches again.

I am new to this game. I am not former military or a law enforcement officer. I am a family man with a job. But I feel that I have the right to be able to defend that family. Hopefully I can continue to encourage good people to help me and together we can educate others. My personal goal is to help other people be safe and to be an advocate for our gun rights. In the meantime I hope to continue my development as a student and hopefully encourage others to do the same.

 

[the1kidd03]

Truthfully I ask myself all the time if I am ready to teach people. The whole process as crazy as it might sound happened by accident.

I started shooting at an early age. My father taught me traditional rifle skills and I started competing in NMLRA competition at the age of 10. By age 12 I already had a national championship and two national records under my belt. I stayed competitive until about age 16 when I discovered cars and girls. Quit football my senior year because I kept hyper extending my shoulder and I was not about to give up my rifle. Played around on the rifle/pistol team at Purdue. Was never serious about it. To be honest I do not enjoy the competition as much as the shooting. Pretty much remained a plinker from there on out. After graduate school I completed NRA Basic Rifle so that I could help local scout troops and 4H. When I moved to South Dakota I become very active with a practical pistol club. Then work and kids got in the way. A few years ago I wanted to introduce people to shooting. I would drag them to an intro class with me. Then I found INGO and went to a couple classes with people I met on-line. Trust me when I say my skills were diminished and I made mistakes.

Finally it happened. Mrs. VERT decided to attend a couple classes with me. She enjoyed the experience and did very well; however, she felt that the material moved too quickly. She encouraged me to look into offering basic courses to women. Between grad school and my career I had at this time a lot of experience presenting/discussing material in front of a class. So, I asked a friend of mine who is a law enforcement instructor if he would be interested in teaching. I would help him with the organization and such. He agreed and asked if I would be interested in helping construct a training range. We built the range and I decided to obtain my NRA Basic Pistol Certification, not to teach but to help him. Great idea but poor execution in our plans, it is safe to admit that this plan failed. Not to be one to give up Mrs. VERT wanted me to keep trying. Just by luck I happened to know of a couple guys wanting to offer NRA programs at the local conservation club. We teamed up last year and there was interest. So I picked up a couple more NRA certifications and try to spend some time with other trainers. My new friends even encouraged me to start shooting in some local USPSA matches again.

I am new to this game. I am not former military or a law enforcement officer. I am a family man with a job. But I feel that I have the right to be able to defend that family. Hopefully I can continue to encourage good people to help me and together we can educate others. My personal goal is to help other people be safe and to be an advocate for our gun rights. In the meantime I hope to continue my development as a student and hopefully encourage others to do the same.

Man, sounds alot like me...

 

[David Rose]

Background: Like many here I started shooting with my dad at a very young age. I was in 6th or 7th grade when I became fascinated by the combative use of firearms. I've been consuming a steady diet of information on the topic ever since. I may have been the the youngest person to ever check out Cooper and Ayoob books from the Allen county public library. If not the youngest I'm sure I checked them out more than any other middle schooler ever has. I took my first formal firearms traing and started competing in 2005. In 2006 I won USPSA Indiana Section Production State Champion. I became an NRA Basic Pistol, Home Firearms Safety, and Personal Protection in the Home instructor in 2010. Due to the limiting nature of the NRA curriculum I now teach mostly defensive and performance courses based on the desires of individual students. My passion remains understanding both competitive and combative uses of firearms, and sharing that knowledge with others.

How do you know you're ready to be a paid instructor? I wasn't comfortable accepting money when I first started teaching. I didn't have enough confidence to consider myself a "real" instructor. Looking back I know I made some students upset by refusing thier offer of payment. For me it was something to grow into. I think seeing the dramatic change you make in your students helps build your confidence. You kind of have to do it to know you are ready.

Excellent question Jackson.
Thanks
Dave Rose