TEAM DYNAMICS IS NOT ALWAYS WHAT IT MAY APPEAR TO BE
Every dive should start with a plan, and every plan should start with something that’s often left out: “Who’s going to be our dive leader?”
And the right answer may not be who you think!
It may seem counter intuitive at first, but the safest option is for experience to plan, beginner to led. Let’s explain the thinking behind that maxim.
The story goes that it started with commercial, or perhaps police, divers: essentially mission-critical underwater operations where a single diver worked alone. The classic example, the situation that informed the development of the protocol, was a diver working in tight spaces or ratty, nasty conditions. Almost inevitably, that diver would be wearing commercial gear, including a diving helmet and breathing surface-supplied gas, while in two-way communication with a line-tender back on the surface and with a stand-by diver, also on the surface, ready to jump into the water at a moment’s notice.
Now here’s the kicker. Let us suppose the working diver gets themself into a bad situation. They need help. What would be the scenario presenting the best potential for a good outcome? Option one: It’s the senior diver who needs help, and now the junior diver must jump in to rescue them? Or option two, where it is the junior diver who’s in a fix and his or her more experienced buddy is coming in to get them out of it?
Of course, we’re sport diving, not repairing an oil pipeline or searching a tangle of dead branches and garbage for crime evidence. But the same principles can help us be safe and effective. Whether we’re talking about a group of holiday makers drifting over a coral garden or a team of cave divers adding line to an unexplored cave: our approach can use similar logic.
The way it works is simple. An experienced diver should draw up the plan because they have the knowledge to create something considering all the variables. They’ve experienced them and know how to avoid making mistakes. However, if the least experienced diver leads the team (two or three people), they are likely to stay within their comfort zone, and the dive will be enjoyable for everyone.
In cave diving, it’s said that this protocol helps a less-experienced buddy grow their comfort zone and relax a little knowing that their backup (the divers behind them) are well within theirs.
One proviso for following the “weakest diver leads” protocol is that, within many peer groups, the definition of “weakest diver” is somewhat fluid. For instance, many groups who regularly dive together are similarly “strong” in terms of experience. In these cases, “weakest” could mean the one with the least gas (always a consideration), the one trying out a new piece of kit, or the one who has to get up earlier than the others to drive to the dive site.
THE TAKE-HOME MESSAGE
This protocol effectively shifts the focus from ego-driven leadership (the most experienced person in front) to safety-driven support (the most experienced person as a guardian). It fosters a culture where the goal of the dive is not just to see the target, but to ensure that the entire team reaches the surface in the same state they began.