Greg Esres wrote in message . ..
Share your tips and findings please =)

If I were interested in having a full instruction schedule, I don't
think it would be hard at all. The instructors I see who struggle to
get students generally don't do the basics

1) Show enthusiasm. Practice smiling and glowing when you talk about
flying airplanes. ...

I agree with everything you say as far as getting students.

As far as keeping them, I think the "basics" are, to provide
a good service and to make sure the customer knows what value
they're getting.

From the flight school perspective, this means the student goes
home from each lesson knowing what they've accomplished, what
they still have to work on, and what will be covered next. And
if an enthusiastic student cancels a couple lessons and doesn't
reschedule, make a phone call to find out what's up and if there's
a problem which could be resolved. Maybe it's a plane scheduling
issue or a CFI compatibility issue. But this kind of follow up
just rarely happens.

I think too many students get discouraged because after the first
few hours where everything is new and progress is rapid, they hit
a plateau where they're struggling and it's not clear exactly what's
been accomplished each lesson and exactly what the CFI wants to see
before the next step.

FWIW,
Sydney