Over the last year, the way we do things has changed drastically because of COVID. We’ve all had to pivot so we can find ways to continue moving forward in business and in life. One of the biggest challenges has been around learning. Even children are expected to go online to participate in their daily lessons with their teachers. That has been quite the adjustment for anyone who is used to hands-on learning.
And no one is more hands on than me when it comes to teaching my surf students. I love getting in the water so I can help them in the moment instead of standing on the beach yelling out advice in hopes that they can hear me. I’m looking forward to the day when we can get back to that!
But through the pandemic, we’ve actually found great value in teaching people how to surf using online tools. There is a full curriculum surrounding the fundamentals of surfing that everyone needs to know before they even get into the water, so Eleonora and I spent the last few months putting those lessons together to launch the Digital Surf Academy this year. We knew that people were adjusting to this new way of learning, but we were still a little anxious to see how well people would retain the information.
We are in Week 3 of the lessons and we are excited about the progress that is being made with our students. While the videos were created so that people can go at their own pace, we check in live several times a week to answer questions and provide support along the way. This interaction is what we look forward to every week. We have changed the way we teach and people are changing the way they learn.
With surf schools closed in most places around the world, this virtual learning has allowed people to still work on their surfing skills so they are ready to get back out there when the world opens up again. It’s not always easy to find a surf coach, especially for people who don’t live near water. Now, we can reach future shredders all over the world. Virtually learning has actually provided us with more opportunities to help people learn to surf, which we love We even post free content that everyone can take advantage of just by visiting our website.
In addition to learning through our online course, we’ve been doing one-on-one virtual coaching sessions where we provide specific advice that is guaranteed to improve your surfing after just one session. It’s worth spending the time now talking about how to become a better surfer so that when you can get back in the water, you will be spending that time catching waves.
While the pandemic was the catalyst for us to put our surf coaching online, we don’t see this virtual learning going away any time soon. We want you to learn to surf. We want you to catch more waves! The best way to do that is by starting with the fundamentals.
