5 Yacht CV Mistakes to Avoid
Updated: Jul 31, 2019
1. LOUSY HEADSHOT
"Don't judge a book by its cover" is not an adage used in yachting.
When you work in an industry that demands perfection every minute of every day, that extends to personal appearance too. I am not advocating that you need to look like a supermodel to work in yachting. You do, however, need to be and look 'polished'. In a recent survey I conducted of captains and senior crew, the number one reason they would send a CV to the bottom of the pile is because of a bad photo.
Your CV headshot should clearly show your face with minimal shadows, have boats or a marina in the background, and you should be wearing something formal (although a polo for deck crew is acceptable).
2. CV IS MORE THAN 2 PAGES
It is sloppy to have a CV more than two pages and communicates that you either do not care for the person who is reading the CV's time or you lack the clarity needed to be concise and use your space efficiently. Yachting is a high-stress industry and efficiency is a crucial component to a successful yachting career (and more sleep). If you have already shown that you are inefficient and sloppy, it sends a subtle message to the reader that perhaps you are not the going to be the person to lighten their workload (which is one of two things you should be trying to express in your CV).
3. TERRIBLE TYPOGRAPHY
A well-laid out CV is one that is legible, easy to read, concise, consistent and appealing to the eye. To be able to do this, you have to know a thing or two about typefaces (font families), point sizes, line lengths, line- and letter-spacing and colour schemes. Say what?
Spot quiz - should you use a serif or sans serif font for your CV? Excuse me?
Exactly my point.
4. POOR USE OF WORDS
Responsible for...
Tasked with ...
Completed ....
My duties included...
Implemented ...
Managed ...
Every single word, sentence and paragraph needs to have a purpose. Boring copy will not get you noticed when 99 other people are using the EXACT same words as you. If you have used any of the six examples above in your CV more than once, I bet the person who reads your CV's eyes glaze over, and they die a little inside.
Jokes aside, you need to pack your CV full of power verbs. Instead of 'implemented' try spearheaded instead. Alternatively, 'managed' could be changed to orchestrated. There are endless possibilities, and if writing is not your strong point, I highly suggest finding or hiring someone who can help you pack a punch with your language.
5. UNCLEAR OBJECTIVE
Do you want to be a captain on a 40-50m or chief officer on a 70-80m? Are you looking for a chief stew or purser role? No-one wants to hire wishy-washy crew who are not sure what they are even looking for. If you are unclear on your objective and what you want, how could you possibly be the right fit for the yacht?
Is your CV holding you back from your dream job? Do you agonise over what should and shouldn't go into your CV? I spend all day thinking about CVs and how to make them better and have personally looked at thousands in my yachting career that spanned over ten years. My extensive experience as a purser enables me to identify inconsistencies and gaps in your CV (for all departments) because of my in-depth knowledge regarding each role on board. Get in touch if you want to find out more about how I can help you on your journey towards finding a better job on board and shortening the time you spend looking for jobs.
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