Dean's Blog

What’s your version of a perfect job

Change is the only constant in life, what was important for me twenty years ago means little today, therefore my version of the perfect job has evolved. Years gone buy it was all about the boat, the destination and new experiences, whereas today its all about employment stability and my families needs.

For a job to be perfect you must be perfect for the job, consequently it is necessary to define your employability. Newbies and veteran crew are at the extreme ends of the employability scale because they fall outside the average yachts definition of ideal crew.

What works against you with one employer, works for you with another and developing an appreciation for what employers want is the first step towards finding a dream job.

Finding the perfect job takes time, planning, persistence and the ability to set and achieve goals.

Posted by Dean_1 at 13/05/2011 19:12

Spot on Dean. That's what makes crewing and the plethora of maritime industries, at all levels, so interesting.

Tried a desk job in 2007 after working with boats and I lasted four months. Thankfully, a friend of mine lured me back to the marine scene and I've never looked back.

It's not been easy (anything worthwhile never is) and I've had to continuously evolve and grow to stay employed but that is in essence why I love the marine business.

Stability shore side is just as precarious as it is at sea, especially in the current economic climate. My shore based Navigation/IT technican job has just ended abruptly, the (ex) boss is struggeling to hold it together finacially. Like anything in life, evolution is the key to surviving so I'm taking all my skills and putting them to get on a yacht full time in a relevant technical role.

There are no guarantees of success but at least I'm still smiling and the adventure continues! Now that is the perfect job.
Posted by: RH at 16/05/2011 15:08

"Pick your owner no the Boat" After leaving a job in Egypt, My Team/Couple partner and I utilized a few differnet crew placement sites, after applying to atleast 15 differnet boats we found a program that we liked, upon meeting our prospective owners we realized that they were green to the indistry and very high maintainance. We declined the job. After another week we applied to a very vague job offer on findacrew.net which turned out to be our "dream job". Upon talkin with the prospective owner we realized that this was the postion we wanted, in order to set us aside from other aplicants we listened carefully to what the owner wanted in a crew and also payed close attention to his complaints from previous crew and listed the attributes he would not want in na crew. We then tuned our resume and wrote a proposal. " A proposal can set u aside from other aplicants as u can include all the things the owner wants and also portray yourself as having the qualities he/she is looking for. Not many crew placement reccomend this action but it does put a personal touch and convey to the prospective owner that you are willing and able to check off every box in his "what were looking for". we now have a 6 bedroom house a beautiful yacht and a fat fat salary. Try this, it may work for you as well.
Posted by: cayman at 18/05/2011 17:46

As with all things in life, I think being happy is first and foremost. And in order to find that 'happy' job, you likely have to try a few first. What makes for a happy job? Well, we're all hoping to find a boat that pays really well, has awesome owners (who are never around), travels to remote destinations (or perhaps you'd rather sit on a dock to have a bit more of a 'land' life?) and where all the crew are hot looking and extremely cool to work with! But you know, and I know, that's hardly ever the case. I once got off a boat a day after getting hired, because once I was on the boat, the Captain changed into this ego-maniac who treated his wife (Chief Stew) like crap. My gut told me to get off and to keep looking.
Best job? Was one where the Captain was encouraging. One where he pushed me to do more than I had in the past and where I was requested to take on more responsibilities. The pay was within the range for what I was doing and was very fair. What more could a person want?
But we have to remember this isn’t going to happen in 2 months. Yes the turnover is high as people rush to move up as fast as possible. Two years in the industry and crew feel like pros. I like to look back sometimes to when ‘I had it good’ meaning where ‘I was happy’. Perhaps by taking a step back and seeing the big picture (hey, I’m in a good place right now) we can realize that perhaps, just maybe, we’re where we’re supposed to be right now and are currently in a ‘perfect job’ situation 
For those seeking positions, I list job postings I find from around the globe (with contact info) on Five Star Crew on Facebook, almost daily. Happy hunting!
Posted by: Karen( Visit ) at 21/05/2011 05:21