I Quit!

Know when to quit and when to stick it out

I am reading the book The Dip by Seth Godin. Being successful is about knowing when to quit and when to stick it out. To explain, Godin quotes ultra-marathoner Dick Collins: "Decide before the race the conditions that will cause you to decide to stop and drop out. You don't want to be out there saying, 'Well, gee, my leg hurts, I'm a little dehydrated, I'm sleepy, I'm tired, and it's cold, and it's windy...' and talk yourself into quitting." If you're making a decision based on how you're feeling at that moment, then you will probably make the wrong decision.

The book is aimed towards entrepreneurs, but it has excellent advice that can be applied to any job. When you are mid-season, and you are exhausted, fed-up, irritated, dehydrated and unhappy, you are more emotional than rational. Before you go into the season, you need to outline all the conditions that need to be present for you to quit.

How much time are you willing to put in?

If the choice is between burning out or quitting, it is worthwhile talking to your captain or HoD before you burnout. Yachting involves tremendous hard work and extremely long hours. Efficient time management is crucial.

Having proper SOPs onboard eliminate a lot of double jobs. A good rule of thumb on charter for interior crew is never to have your hands empty. This means when you leave the crew mess, take a pile of laundry to return or folded rags back to a pantry, if you are in a guest area on your way to lunch you can check the pantry for dirty rags, change the bin, or remove any food that needs to go back to the galley.

On deck, make sure you prep things the night before so that in the morning you are all ready to go with water sports. Keeping your lockers organised will also help reduce the time it takes you to find things. Remember to stay hydrated! Exhaustion plus dehydration can lead to nausea, vomiting and collapse.

How much pain are you willing to go through?

Remember that we all get irri