Tinman
I'm just enjoying the show!
Ok, I've stewed over starting this thread long enough. We've kind of danced around the issue in a number of threads recently, but what do you look for in your instructors and why? It's very easy to get distracted by a flashy website, or cool course title but what really matters, and how do you find that information?
I'll start it off.
I will admit that early in my training career, I was not terribly selective, and as such got burned once or twice. Thankfully, I also stumbled into some rather excellent trainers. Now a days, I am pretty selective about whom I repeatedly frequent, but I try to sample at least 1 new instructor or school every year. It makes for a tall order. When I’m looking for something new, I usually look first to the instructor’s background. I’m looking for who he/she has trained with, and what their level of training is. It has been my experience, that the best teachers are often continual students. It also shows an interest in learning things he/she doesn’t already know. The instructor’s operational background usually comes next. It’s all well and good that they have a great training pedigree but if they have no experience actually using this stuff you really have to question the validity of what they are teaching. This is probably the most subjective category, mainly because it is class specific. Someone teaching a CCW class to civilians will have a much different background than say someone teaching counter ambush tactics to a group of contractors spinning up for a deployment. Not every instructor has been or needs to be some kind of ex military, former SWAT something or another to be valid, it just depends on what they are trying to teach me. The next thing I look at is the material itself. This is where it’s helpful if the guy has videos or books out. You can get a sample of their work, and the instructor before heading off to class. Check out the course syllabus, if he doesn’t have one, drop him a note see if you can get one. What I’m looking for is that the material is relevant to the course description, and it fits with my training goals for that class. Next on my list is the instructor himself. Here, I try to poke around websites, look for posts and comments made by that person. Really, I’m looking for someone I can stand to be on the range with for the next 1, 3, or 5 days. I don’t have to like him, I just need to value the information, and tolerate the personality. Luckily, I have liked most of the folks I have had the privilege of training with. Generally, down near the bottom of the list is the facility. Nice facilities, and cool ranges are great to play on, but if the information or instructor suck, I’d rather just go to the nice range for a day spend a whole lot less money and effort.
Well, that’s a start, what do you all look for?
Tinman….
I'll start it off.
I will admit that early in my training career, I was not terribly selective, and as such got burned once or twice. Thankfully, I also stumbled into some rather excellent trainers. Now a days, I am pretty selective about whom I repeatedly frequent, but I try to sample at least 1 new instructor or school every year. It makes for a tall order. When I’m looking for something new, I usually look first to the instructor’s background. I’m looking for who he/she has trained with, and what their level of training is. It has been my experience, that the best teachers are often continual students. It also shows an interest in learning things he/she doesn’t already know. The instructor’s operational background usually comes next. It’s all well and good that they have a great training pedigree but if they have no experience actually using this stuff you really have to question the validity of what they are teaching. This is probably the most subjective category, mainly because it is class specific. Someone teaching a CCW class to civilians will have a much different background than say someone teaching counter ambush tactics to a group of contractors spinning up for a deployment. Not every instructor has been or needs to be some kind of ex military, former SWAT something or another to be valid, it just depends on what they are trying to teach me. The next thing I look at is the material itself. This is where it’s helpful if the guy has videos or books out. You can get a sample of their work, and the instructor before heading off to class. Check out the course syllabus, if he doesn’t have one, drop him a note see if you can get one. What I’m looking for is that the material is relevant to the course description, and it fits with my training goals for that class. Next on my list is the instructor himself. Here, I try to poke around websites, look for posts and comments made by that person. Really, I’m looking for someone I can stand to be on the range with for the next 1, 3, or 5 days. I don’t have to like him, I just need to value the information, and tolerate the personality. Luckily, I have liked most of the folks I have had the privilege of training with. Generally, down near the bottom of the list is the facility. Nice facilities, and cool ranges are great to play on, but if the information or instructor suck, I’d rather just go to the nice range for a day spend a whole lot less money and effort.
Well, that’s a start, what do you all look for?
Tinman….
None of the instructors I have trained with, or would like to train with, have flashy websites or full-page ads in Tactical Blasters Monthly, yet their courses are perpetually full. "In police work, we call that a clue." 
