Great Expectations

My name is Dana Lattery and I am the head guide/outfitter with Fly Fishing Bow River.  We are a guide service based out of Calgary, Alberta and we guide the rivers in all of central/southern Alberta.  Having spent the last ten years in the guide/outfitter industry, I have seen a lot of things take place on a guided day of fly fishing, some good, some bad.  Some outfitters better prepare their clients for a day on the water, and some completely miss the boat on this. Throughout the 10 years, I have come to a conclusion that most errors come from lacking of being informed.  So, I have compiled a list of things to try and merge the expectations of guides and the expectations of clients so that there is a better day had by all on the water. Remember this list is just a starting point, and nothing can take place of great communication. So whether you’re a guide, or a guest looking to go on an amazing  guided fly fishing trip, take into consideration these points as you prepare for your next awesome day on the water.

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Bow River Rainbow in the Net

5 TIPS FOR A GUIDE 
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1. OBSERVE , SHAPE , PERFORM

• I can’t stress this enough.  You need to realize this is your clients day on the water, not yours, and you need to figure out quickly what they want to get out of their day.  Sometimes, what we want isn’t always what they want, and this should always be your first conversation with them. Now if you’re booking through an outfitter or a fly shop, they may have already had this conversation, but make sure YOU have the conversation.  You need to be on the same page as your clients, to ensure a successful day. We can all assume that the reason your clients booked with you is because they want to catch fish, and this almost goes without saying while discussing expectations, but it is always appreciated when you are clear about how the fishing has been going.  Never tell your clients “ you should have been here yesterday”, this is just an excuse and is not fair to them.
• Expectations can be as simple as this from one of my clients: “My goals for the day are as such, Good times, big smiles, fish, and great memories”.  Easily laid out, now it’s my role to shape these, and perform on them! Yes, you should go into more detail, as far as conditions and what are best techniques for catching fish at this time of the season, suggest, but never trump their desires.
• I have one client who comes every year and only wants to dry fly. We know that this isn’t always a possibility, but I make every effort during the day, to make it happen, at least once.  He also books his trip around the time of season where there is higher probability for this to happen, so together we are managing expectations.

2. Servant Heart
                - Serve your clients in every aspect of the day. In having a servant heart, this can help you in leaving your ego at the door.  What do I mean? I feel a lot of guides make this trip about them and trying to show how good they are to their clients. If you’re choosing to guide with a servant heart, you won't be able to have an ego.  Hands down the best guides I know on the river are those who truly care and serve their clients. This will help shape your attitude throughout the day, in knowing that all your actions, are serving your client.  Being cognitive to their needs throughout the day is very important, and you will be more aware of this if you choose to serve your clients. I can’t tell you how many times at the end of the day, the best compliment that comes out of a client's mouth, is that they felt taken care of all day!  Approach your day with a WE not a ME attitude.

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3. Punctual
 -   This could almost be at the top of this list, because if you wanna start your day off on the wrong foot, well, show up late.  Being late insults others, it also undermines you to your clients. It tells them you aren’t prepared enough in your day to be on time.  This might be day 92 in your season, but for them it’s Day 1, and they didn’t sleep last night waiting to go on this trip. Respect them and their time, so that they will want to respect you and your time throughout the date.  Being early also gives you time to visualize your day, and have a few moments to yourself to get mentally prepared for the day ahead. BE PUNCTUAL, simply that!

4. Be a Teacher
   - Be a teacher, not a teller. Nobody pays this kind of money to be yelled at all day.  A lot of the days success comes from the teaching and learning. Whether your clients are on their 500th guided trip or their first time fly fishing, everybody has lots to learn.  I always ask my clients how much they wanna be taught or corrected, or perhaps, they just wanna fish and do their thing. Almost 99% of clients answer me be saying “don’t hesitate to teach me some stuff, and let me know if I am doing something wrong”.  They have opened a door and are now receptive to my teaching. It is up to me, to be a teacher not a teller. I think this could be one of the most important traits of a guide, is the ability to teach people, if you can’t teach, you can’t guide. Again, check your ego at the door, and you’ll be surprised how much YOU can learn from your clients throughout the day, which in turn will only make you a better guide, as well as fisherman/woman!

5. Be a Friend

• Who doesn’t want to go fishing with their best friend? I know I do, and if my guide treats me like he does his friends, we will form a bond much quicker and our success will greatly increase.  This all goes back to the first 4 points. How you act on these will determine whether or not your clients give you the respect needed to help them have a successful day, and what better way to gain their trust than by just being a friend.  On any given day on the boat, we can be therapists, coaches, teachers, marriage counsellor, career counselor, entertainer, but the most important thing, for me, that I can be thought of at the end of the day is a friend! The greatest reward for me after a trip is when my clients give me a big hug and thank me for an  awesome day; now, a friend for life!
  

Alberta Mountain Streams

5 TIPS FOR A CLIENT

1. Manage Expectations

• If this is your first time taking a Guided trip for fly fishing, or your 100th time, this is a very important step into making your trip be successful.  A lot of time when booking your trip, you are asked by the outfitter what you want out of your trip. Yes, it’s a fishing trip, but the outfitters need to know what's important for you in your day, so they can properly design your trip around that.  If you are new and are wanting to learn to be a better fly fisherman/women, or are experienced and just wanting to fine tune some skills, but have a certain style of fishing you want to do, this is important to inform your guide/outfitter about. Also, just because you went over these when booking your trip, don’t assume your guide is aware, and make this apart of your first conversation of the day! If you have any special requests on your trip, make sure you inform your guide/outfitter with enough notice so they can properly prepare for this.  This is your most important step of the day, don’t get in the boat without having gone over your expectations. 

  2.    Be Honest
        -  Be honest with yourself and Be honest with your guide. I can’t tell you how many people show up on a trip and tell me for 30 minutes about how amazing they can fish, and that they have fished all over the world, and been on so many guided trips.  This may all be true, but once you pick up your rod, your guides gonna know right away how much of that was real. The more honest you are with your guide about your skill set, the better they can plan a trip for you. We can shape our tactics for fishing that day based on your ability and experience, so it is very important to be Honest about where you are at on your journey of fly fishing! If you have the right guide, there should be no concern in where your abilities are at, they should be able to work with everyone, from New fly fishers to the most experienced, but just make sure you are honest about this before you get started for the day!

3.      Attitude/Respect

• A huge part of the day’s success comes down to yours your guides attitude.  The weather and the fishing are a few things that you and your guide have very little control over. What we can always control is our attitude.  The first thing I let people know when they get in my boat, is today is about having fun, and to have fun we are ALL going to need to have good attitudes.  I mean, really we are floating or standing in some of the most beautiful places in the world, and that doesn’t suck, so don’t let your attitude ruin it. Yes, at times, it can get frustrating, and that is ok, but if you maintain a positive attitude, the boat will all benefit from it, and ultimately you.  If you are competent on undoing tangles, feel free to help your guide out by undoing a few of your tangles. If you are competent in tying knots, ask your guide if he minds if you help out in this aspect, it’s a great attitude to bring to the river. Don’t let your energy be a drain on the boat. Don’t let anxiety of having to catch fish get in your way of enjoying the experience.  This anxiety can be felt by the guide and the others in the boat, and I personally think there is less fish caught on an anxious boat! Most guides own their boats, and all the equipment inside, and they rely on this to perform for their job everyday. Respect the guides gear, boat, and anything else he/she has let you use for the day. Have the conversation with your guide at the beginning of the day, “what happens if something breaks”, this shows them you are already conscious/respectful of using their stuff, and that's a great attitude. Be respectful of cleanliness in the boat, and in the guides vehicle.  Carry out more trash than you brought in. Be respectful of the fisheries they take you too, Choose to have a Stellar attitude, and this will all come second nature.

4.     Don’t Guide The Guide

• If you are paying good money for a trip to go fishing, there is a really good chance( if you’ve done your homework) that you’ve hired someone who is probably on the river almost every day, and they have a very good grasp of what's going on. Nothing is more insulting to a guide, than when you tell them where you should be fishing all day.  Feel free to discuss things that you would like to try, and ask your guide if they think it would work. Respect the time your guide has put into that river, and their knowledge of what should be happening. We can all learn so much about fly fishing from a guided trip, saturate this time to soak in knowledge. Guides aren’t saying they are “better” than you, they just know that watershed inside out, so let them teach you about it! This will majorly increase your experience and your success on the water that day.
  

5.     Tip your guide

• If you are new to guided trips, talk with the outfitter as to how the tipping should go down.  Realize that guides really rely on their tips, just like staff at restaurants. This is a very touchy subject for some people, and although not mandatory, in this industry, its very customary, and is appreciated more than you can know! Make sure your tip is based on your all around experience not just how the fishing was, because guides can’t always control that aspect of the day.  Figure out if your guide has met or far succeeded your expectations. These are a few questions I ask myself when figuring out what to tip my guide at the end of the day. Did they guide you with a servant heart? Did they make sure you weren't just day 93 to them, but day 1 to you? Did you leave there feeling like you made a friend at the end of the day? Did your guide have a wealth of knowledge for the fishery? Did they adapt to conditions and work hard to stay ahead of the curve on the river? Did they exemplify professionalism in every aspect of the day? Would you repeat?
  

Fly fishing is fun! There’s no other way around it. We as clients and as guides can all do our part, in preparing for these trips, that they can be filled with laughs, stories, fish, and ultimately memories! We need to also understand that as different and unique as each client is, each guide has their own uniqueness as well. We should not feel the need to conform to any standards, but to use this list as a guideline to help shape a successful fun day on the water! Hope to see you on the river sometime with a tight line and a big smile!!


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