Seriously, why scuba diving hasn’t been labeled the perfect sport in the world is beyond me. It’s not crazy physical, it involves water, amazing marine life, explore places 99% of humans will never see in real life, and you get to travel the world doing it. In this post I will share with you a few key life lessons scuba diving has taught me.
The sport has helped to reinforced a few of those fundamental blocks most of us were taught as children. The top three that come to mind are respect, patience, and compassion.
Respect – During your scuba training you will be told a few very important things over and over. One of those things is, do not touch anything. You must leave nature as you found it.
Patience – You cannot force nature to come to you. Consider me one of those crazy people who swims towards sharks and then gets sad when they swim away. Underwater photographers will spend 18 hours underwater waiting to get the perfect shot. And, I’m told that’s a short time. Not every day of diving is going to be a perfect day of diving and that’s okay.
Compassion – Inevitably, the more you’re exposed to different aspects of life and different ways of living, the more you learn, grow, and care about those things.
Building on compassion, advocacy comes to mind. Naturally, the more compassion you have for something the more you’re willing to advocate. Most, if not all, scuba divers are conscious and active in ocean conservation and protections products, advocates for eco-friendly products, they tend to avoid single use items, they’ll always have their own reusable water bottle, (some of us use ours for coffee, water, and alcohol … to sanitize of course) and we like to inspire our friends and family about all the little things we can all do to become ocean hero’s.
Scuba diving can and will take you all around the world. Diving has something for everyone, wreck, deep, cave, and so much more. You’ll travel near and far seeing some of the most remote areas on the planet. Having incredible, life changing experiences, watching turtles graciously glide through the water, listening to the sound of dolphins, or seeing a whale shark the size of a limousine.
The ocean has these magical powers. First, you feel totally weightless. Second, you will feel so small in the giant ocean. Third, while you feel so small, you completely forget about all your problems on the surface. I believe that’s the definition of serenity.
In addition to these few life lessons, you’ll always be learning.
Whether you’re improving your buoyancy, wondering what kind of fish just swam by you, or learning about the culture of the country you’re diving in, you’ll always be learning and growing.
Many open water divers go on to obtain their advanced open water certifications and most will even complete a rescue diver course. Diving is amazing, you’re always seeing beautiful things, but, it can become life or death very quickly so it’s critical you’re mentally prepared, know your skills, and know exactly what to do in an emergency.
You will make lifelong friendships all over the world. At surface, you might not even speak the same language but, once your underwater we all communicate the same.
Lastly, you will have peace & quiet. No phone calls, text messages, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp etc. Just the sound of your own breathing. Of course, maybe you’ll hear a boat passing or if you’re lucky, the sound of a whale or a pod of dolphins.
Hope you enjoyed this post on scuba diving life lessons!
What are some life lessons scuba diving has taught you? Leave them in the comments.
