has sailing compromised your career prospects - or maybe enhanced them?

[dylanwinter]

Having a job (I hesitate to use the word "career".) hasn't been nearly as deleterious to my sailing as getting married and having a kid. Though sailing hasn't hurt my job, it hasn't helped it either. I have many coworkers who sail, but none of them have been able to provide coattails to pull me up through the ranks. For such purposes, golf would have been a much more useful hobby.

I am sure that golf is a better game for networking

I myself am not old enough to start playing

Dylan

 

[seanfoster]

I have longed to cruise around the world since I was in my early teens, (I'm 40 now) and although I have dabbled many times and owned a number of boats ranging from 19-28ft I haven't taken the plunge...yet.
Although I have a good career (I'm a civil engineer) I am always concerned about giving it all up, heading off for 5 or so years and coming back to not being able to get a job, being out of touch, and not having enough put by for my future. I'm sure in 20 years time I'll wish I'd just gone and done it!

 

[dylanwinter]

I have longed to cruise around the world since I was in my early teens, (I'm 40 now) and although I have dabbled many times and owned a number of boats ranging from 19-28ft I haven't taken the plunge...yet.
Although I have a good career (I'm a civil engineer) I am always concerned about giving it all up, heading off for 5 or so years and coming back to not being able to get a job, being out of touch, and not having enough put by for my future. I'm sure in 20 years time I'll wish I'd just gone and done it!

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Mark Twain,

http://www.keepturningleft.co.uk/blogs/literary-sailing-quotes/

what I am doing at the moment allows me to keep shovelling yet have an adventure at the same time

 

[seanfoster]

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Mark Twain,

So true!

 

[Woodlouse]

Since most of my working life has been on or around sailing boats I would say that sailing has rather enhanced my career. However, that doesn't mean I haven't chucked away or turned down several good jobs in order to do the sailing I want to be doing.

 

[prv]

One year, I tried suggesting that instead of giving me a bonus (which I didn't really need, and the tax man was having 40% of it anyway) that instead they gave me some extra days holiday to take as I please instead.

That got a firm no, and I had to settle for giving 40% of my bonus to the tax man again.

It's stinking, inflexible, stick in the mud attitudes like that, that make me never ever ever want to work for somebody else again unless I become really really desperate.

To its credit, the multinational corporate behemoth I work for would be able to accommodate that. Just before the start of each tax year (which is also the leave year) you get the opportunity to add or subtract days on your forthcoming leave entitlement, with a corresponding alteration to your salary for the year. I generally "buy" four extra days each year, but I know someone who adds two or three weeks, valuing the time more than the money.

I don't think sailing has enhanced or detracted from my career, but work has definitely put a crimp in my sailing

Pete

 

[onesea]

Sadly my X wife, and divorce did more damage to my career than sailing ever did...

Sailing over the years has probably helped more than its hindered...

 

[nimbusgb]

.......

One year, I tried suggesting that instead of giving me a bonus (which I didn't really need, and the tax man was having 40% of it anyway) that instead they gave me some extra days holiday to take as I please instead.

That got a firm no, and I had to settle for giving 40% of my bonus to the tax man again.

Of course you could have put the bonus into a pension and got it all tax free!

 

[Blueboatman]

The Blueboatman corporation never really gave up ( or grew up) on the idea of those glorious long summer holidays of childhood, and lots of playing about on the water...
I would never, nor ever wanted to, ever bring kids into this world ( but am the sailing uncle heyho) so it was very easy to not compromise on this...
Sadly the ' big pension' payoff for carp employment isn't looking too good for anyone so, who knows?

Weekend commuter sailing I tried and detested, fortunately the BBM Corp is very tolerant of working odd hours, avoiding show house, show car, show club status, so sailng survives the realities of working

I always assumed that at age 70 I will be perfectly happy navigating a desk and making useful creative money having devoted a fair number of years to 'sailing off into the sunset in my 30s' which has proved an excellent career move, ironically!

 

[capnsensible]

Enhanced, most definitely!

 

[TQA]

Well I went cruising for 7 years mostly in the Caribbean in my 40s. When I was preparing my self for job interviews at age 49 back in the UK I realised that one of the questions I was likely to face would go something like this.

"What have you learned in last 5 years that you can bring with you to this organisation."

My best replies were

" I am now a damned good shot with a speargun."

and

" I know how to bribe a South American customs official."

 

[dylanwinter]

Well I went cruising for 7 years mostly in the Caribbean in my 40s. When I was preparing my self for job interviews at age 49 back in the UK I realised that one of the questions I was likely to face would go something like this.

"What have you learned in last 5 years that you can bring with you to this organisation."

My best replies were

" I am now a damned good shot with a speargun."

and

" I know how to bribe a South American customs official."

how on earth did you settle back into a job?

Dylan

 

[maby]

I work from home and am under strict instructions to travel as little as possible to save transport costs and hotel bills - I can work from anywhere with a decent internet connection, so the marina is home a lot of the time!

 

[uxb]

I've never had a career, nor any interest in having one. I probably wouldn't do much work at all if I didn't have to finance surfing, skiing, motorbikes and sailing.
The thought of wasting my life in an office working to enrich someone else is not acceptable to me, even if it was my own business I would still see it as a waste of a life.

I have packed in good jobs to go off surfing and do the odd season or six and it hasn't made any difference to the career I don't have, or impacted my earning potential. Only ever stuck in at one job until I'd built and paid for my house, then quit.

This has all come about by chance as I've never had any kind of long term plan beyond having a good life- by my standards.

I am indeed a lucky bugger. And very happy.

 

[Koeketiene]

Compromised No. Thought the requirment to work has compromised my sailing.

+1

Born to sail - forced to work

 

[seanfoster]

I've never had a career, nor any interest in having one. I probably wouldn't do much work at all if I didn't have to finance surfing, skiing, motorbikes and sailing.
The thought of wasting my life in an office working to enrich someone else is not acceptable to me, even if it was my own business I would still see it as a waste of a life.

I have packed in good jobs to go off surfing and do the odd season or six and it hasn't made any difference to the career I don't have, or impacted my earning potential. Only ever stuck in at one job until I'd built and paid for my house, then quit.

This has all come about by chance as I've never had any kind of long term plan beyond having a good life- by my standards.

I am indeed a lucky bugger. And very happy.

I don't understand, don't you worry about your old age? How can you afford to build a house with just a few years salary? Please give me your formula because I'd desperately like to follow it!

 

[TQA]

how on earth did you settle back into a job?

Dylan

So easily it was scary. After two weeks it was as if I had never been away.

I had been pretty unwell, stuck kidney stone, major life threatning kidney infection so was only just getting back on my feet when I started back.

I had planned to be away 5 years,was away for 7, but did wake up one morning anchored off a 7 mile beach in the Bahamas with a reef to snorkel off the back of the boat and knew I had had enough. I wanted a car again and to be able to go to the same supermarket every Tuesday and KNOW where the soy sauce would be.

 

[uxb]

I don't understand, don't you worry about your old age? How can you afford to build a house with just a few years salary? Please give me your formula because I'd desperately like to follow it!

Why would I worry about old age? There is nothing I can do about it except do what I reasonably can to stay healthy and hope I don't get seriously ill. If i do then I might gain some comfort from the memories of all the things I've seen and done. But that's not going to happen.
I also don't need to worry about money because I will have as much as I have and will adapt to that ammount. I had a valuable lesson several years ago when I was suddenly and unexpectedly made redundant after just taking on a large mortgage and then buying a new car.ive been VERY debt adverse ever since.
You will find a way to get by, in fact I never spent as much time surfing as when I was almost destitute.Great times....

Building a house can be extremely cheaply done if you take your time, buy stuff cheap off eBay (bathrooom fittings, plumbing,bogs,insulation,flooring bought over a period of 3 years.)and do all the work you are capable of yourself- and only build what you need to live in- I failed a bit at that last one, got a wee bit carried away....Oh, and it was close to six years working.
Most folk dont because they think they can't and are to busy wasting their life at work trying to have a career...
Oh, and not having kids allows total freedom from care, worry and debt, can't understand why anyone would want to lumber themselves with the evil little ba5tards

Boatie Bit: Ive made a profit off of two of the three previous boats I've owned - and broke even on the third after 15 years of ownership by buying a decent but shabby one and doing it up. Of course that only applies to the purchase price.....

 

[Babylon]

Sailing - and my ex-whiff - have definitely enhanced my career prospects!

Eight years ago I was a happy, hard-working bloke designing and making one-off pieces of high-end bespoke furniture for a pittance, and taking a two-weeks off each summer for some solo motorbike touring.

New woman came along, got preggers, got me to marry 'er and then said 'get rid of that motorbike!'

So I decided to take up sailing, on the basis that it would eventually be a more family-friendly activity.

Wife then showed her true colours: high-maintenance, off work 'sick' all the time, didn't want her career anymore anyway.

Suddenly I was too stressed to be able to concentrate for sometimes hundreds of hours on exacting work, and too miserable to be able to design, let alone be nice to my clients.

I also realised that I needed a lot more money to fund the wifemare.

So I expanded my workshop and started taking adult students, and any big commissions were then farmed out to subcontractors to make.

The money started coming in.

The marriage became more horrible.

I spent more time on the boat to get away.

Eventually I forced through a divorce.

I nearly lost the house and the business in the process, but made certain I didn't lose the boat!

When I got back on my feet, and as a part-time single parent, I reduced the length of the training courses I provide and increased my fees.

I now make a good, regular living and have eight weeks each summer to go cruising!

I apply the same principle to teaching, running my business and fathering my son as I do to skippering: push everyone (including myself) toward their potential but keep them happy and well-fed at all times!

 

[dylanwinter]

good answer...good story

So easily it was scary. After two weeks it was as if I had never been away.

I had been pretty unwell, stuck kidney stone, major life threatning kidney infection so was only just getting back on my feet when I started back.

I had planned to be away 5 years,was away for 7, but did wake up one morning anchored off a 7 mile beach in the Bahamas with a reef to snorkel off the back of the boat and knew I had had enough. I wanted a car again and to be able to go to the same supermarket every Tuesday and KNOW where the soy sauce would be.

really enjoying this thread

makes me think about me and sailing

and KTL

I am very lucky to be where I am now

good tales from UXB and babylon

more stories gratefully received