Few years ago, some friends of mine introduced me to Scuba diving.

In order to dive in a safe environment we had to take theoretical lessons and practical ones in the pool before jumping in the sea. Everything was really exciting. One thing though i remember always (besides to breath from the mouth) is what our instructor taught us about a successful dive: “Plan your dive, Dive your plan”.

As simple as it may sound, this is a huge thing to do. Your dive begins way before you touch the water.

It starts in the briefing, where you talk about the location of the dive, its nature, the weather conditions, potential risks, dive in point and exit point. We talk about who’s your buddy (or partner to stay with during the whole dive) and who’s the dive leader / master.  We discuss in details what exactly we are going to do (maybe go inside a ship wreck or just a fun dive). We get a quick reminder of safety issues then we gear up. Bottom line is we Plan it.

During the dive, the dive master would stick to the plan, divers are well aware of what’s coming next so usually no surprises. Keeping an eye and checking constantly with your buddy and dive master makes the whole dive a safe and pleasant one. In some occasions, we face a situation where we need to adjust plans. Sometimes visibility might be poor or the water currents are too strong, divers will quickly adjust and modify where appropriate but always keeping in mind the dive plan.

Once out of the water, a debrief session to discuss and evaluate the whole experience. A very crucial step in our dive cause it will allow us to fix any mistakes, eliminate bad diving habits and help us plan our next dive.

So why am i talking about my diving experience? Simply because it’s like running a project.

Plan your project carefully and execute your plan. You might face issues, modify and adjust then move on. Once done, evaluate, learn and you’ll be better equipped for your next one.

Happy Diving.