Pressures of work, instead of sailing

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I wonder how many people have had to give up the opportunity to go sailing because of work-relatd things, hm? Like loads of emails or a new project that has come up. Or is it normal to just heyho, forget it all, hang the consequences and let some other mug deal with everything in their absence?
 
We don't have any other mugs.
On the other hand pressure is a strong word for our business responsibilites. Besides we switch the phone through to the mobile.

An afternoon is the usual opportunity. Last year was bad for sailing as the weather tended to be good in the morning and went off after about 3.00pm.
About 6/7 hours is our maximum window unless we plan a couple of meals on board and a bit of dusksailing, which is nice in the summer.
We are a bit 24/7 really. 2004 we worked 48 days right through and another period of 42 days. Just the odd day off now and then. Last year we planned empty nights a bit more.
 
I wouldn't just ignore the pressures of work and expect others to deal with it in my absence, but, I do have a very good understanding with my manager. If I haven't got any work too urgent, or someone else can easily cover it, then I can decide in the morning to take the afternoon off and go sailing.... I wander if it is something to do with the fact that he enjoys being out on the water /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
With sailor man I am afraid!

Too many times I have been the one who was there, now I must admit to drawing a firm line.

I like the "Lack of planning on your part does not constitute and emergency on mine!" saying.
 
Depends. Loads of emails would not be a reason in itself to cancel a boat trip. Letting down a customer by ignoring a plea for help, would be, though. A lot of what we do is repeat business, so keeping em happy is fairly fundamental to continued employment, and hence further boating...

dv.
 
At least the phone and email goes into "ignore all but friends and family" mode at 17:30 sharp, which wasn't always the case. Sometimes earlier if quiet.

dv.
 
Grrrrr

I've got to use a crane very close to a nth London rail line for a very tricky job - only time Network Rail will let us do it is from 6am this Sunday. I could have just breezily said "Oh Dave I'm sure you can handle it ... I'd like to get down to the boat this weekend.." but the inner guilt and the moral opprobium this would have attracted from the office was just too much.

But after this sacrifice, when I gaze from the window at clear blue skies next week and announce "I'll be working from home for the next couple of days .. " they'll smile and nod knowingly and I'll be in perfect odour. And it will be at least partly true - faffing about on the boat is excellent time for thinking through work things.

The old man drummed into me the maxim to always look to the welfare of your men and your animals before you look to your own comfort and it seems to have worked pretty well.
 
I try to keep things monday to friday 9 -5 and have the work to live idea in my head but it dont always work like that does it . In the summer if im in the workshop i pull the boat over to the river bank and have lunch on her then back after work for a few beers and fishing.
If i can wangle an early friday and a tuesday start then im laughing but if a customer is in need ...... well the do pay for the boat /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
 
Oh dear this sounds a bit sad, but I have always put work before anything. In fact apart from the odd weekend away I dident have a day off in 4 years. To try and re kindle a hobby my wife was even keen for me to get a boat. Now we have arranged set long weekends away on the boat, but e mails and mobile phone have intruded on the sanctury of the cabin and I can often spend hours on the phone whilst away.

Like what has been said earlier, we have customers with repeat business, and we try not to say no.
So yes work does get in the way of boating, but it also pays for boating.
 
i have abandoned plans for a 2 week holiday on the boat in June, because of my current contract, for three reasons:

- We are working to very tight timescales and as the leader I can;t afford to let them slip
- I am actually enjoying the work, and taking pride in seeing it through
- being self employed, I have to make hay while the sun shines.

.... but I am trying to make the most of the boat at weekends, instead of gardening and decorating !!
 
I gave up being my own boss, dropped about 35k a year so that
a) I would get proper holidays of more than 3 days at a time, and not all bunched up at Christmas or January
b) I would be at home more than 2 nights consecutively
c) I would get every weekend off
d) I could goof about thinking of sailing midweek, and plan my life, not my work.

18 months in, and I am no longer jittery, I have balanced the budget successfully (no more ad hoc litres of Single Malt) and positively look forward to each weekend on the boat. Oh, and I dress very casually, so that I dont look like the boss, which is fun.

No regrets, no going back, if we manage to run the company in a solvent manner.
 
Case of getting the balance right I think.

I just got the opportunity to help a good friend of mine fetch his recently purchased 'retired' old MFV down from Troon to Woodbridge next week. Lovely old wooden boat & I wouldn't miss the semi-circumnavigation of Britain for anything. Only problem is that I have a couple of important meetings on Thurs that I wouldn't dump on someone else either...

So it will be Troon-Dublin-Falmouth then maybe Littlehampton, from whence I shall put on a suit and catch the early train into town, smelling somewhat of old fish very likely, to complete the business before hot footing it back for the next watch!

As someone who habitually works from home or from various different offices it's no great problem to work afloat occassionally anyway, as long as you can get a GPRS or WiFi signal.
 
Neil,

I agree, but culturally we have a long way to go as a nation before 'working afloat' is seen as acceptable by the system....

I too often work from the boat on a Friday afternoon, so that we can have a relaxed start to a weekend, but generally have to keep relatively quiet about it at work as it wouldn't be seen as fair play I suspect... (although in reality I get more done in that relaxed mental state than I ever do in an office)
 
QUOTE

The old man drummed into me the maxim to always look to the welfare of your men and your animals before you look to your own comfort and it seems to have worked pretty well.


An old army saying:
feed the horses before the men, the men before the officers and the officers before yourself.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Neil,

I agree, but culturally we have a long way to go as a nation before 'working afloat' is seen as acceptable by the system....

I too often work from the boat on a Friday afternoon, so that we can have a relaxed start to a weekend, but generally have to keep relatively quiet about it at work as it wouldn't be seen as fair play I suspect... (although in reality I get more done in that relaxed mental state than I ever do in an office)

[/ QUOTE ]

If you phone the office, they will know your little secret.

Friend of mine took his work to the boat one Friday afternoon and got a call from his boss... "you're on that bloody boat arent you"..... he could hear the seagulls.

Cheers

Richard
 
More likely to cancel due to too much / too little wind, or let down by crew.

I seldom pass by a chance to disappear to boat if the weather is right. 8o110x to 'em. Lock up and go.

Work is the curse of the sailing classes!
 
[ QUOTE ]
If you phone the office, they will know your little secret.

Friend of mine took his work to the boat one Friday afternoon and got a call from his boss... "you're on that bloody boat arent you"..... he could hear the seagulls.


[/ QUOTE ]

Which reminded me of an overheard in a Solent Marina a couple of years ago; "I'm on my way to the office" from a bloke heading down the pontoon towards a large motorboat called.........................................................

.................................................."The Office"
 
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