Dockwalking dos and don’ts: How to land daywork

Ask an established crew member what dockwalking is like and their immediate reaction is likely to be a grimace. Not because it’s a horrendous experience, but because they were younger, greener and guilty of making mistakes that embarrass them with the benefit of hindsight. It’s the yachting equivalent to going on your first date as a teenager: necessary but cringey!

If you’re an aspiring crew member this might make the idea of dockwalking sound less appealing, but don’t let it put you off. You have the benefit of being able to learn from the mistakes of those who have already graduated through the ranks; you can take on board their top tips and ensure your experience is far less traumatic.

We asked Sam Steward, the 2nd Officer aboard M/Y Phoenix 2, a 90-metre (295-foot) Lürssen superyacht, to devise a list of dockwalking dos and don’ts based on his own personal experiences. If you’re an aspiring crew member, you need to read this.

Do socialise

Growing up home educated and with a small group of friends, I always struggled to socialise and network when breaking into the yachting industry. I completely sympathise with people who may find it hard being in social situations, but you have to realise, the foundation of yachting is socialising. A previous owner of mine once said ‘80% of being successful is just showing up’, and I think that perfectly applies to yachting.

So, push yourself to be in more social situations, network, make as many friends as possible and BE NICE TO EVERYBODY. You never know who you are meeting.

Don’t over-socialise in the wrong places

Believe it or not, there are other ways to meet people and network instead of drinking yourself into an inevitable hangover five days a week.

If you hang out in the same bar every night hoping to meet crew, you’ll start to get a reputation. Remember, at this early stage of job hunting you can’t afford to have any negativity next to your name.

I used to play 5-a-side football in Biot (France) with crew agents, spend the day at Canyon Forest with friends or simply go for a hike around Cap d’Antibes with other yachties. I got to know people a lot better than I ever would have sitting in a bar every night spending my money to feel worse the next day!

Do arrive early

This may seem obvious to some but you would be surprised how inconsistent and generally poor people’s timekeeping is these days. You may be told by many that if you get some daywork, your working day starts at 8am. This is wrong!

Every yacht will have a watchkeeper and each morning that watchkeeper will unlock doors and turn lights off at 7:30am. Then the deck and interior crew will have their morning meetings at 7:45am or 7:50am before starting work.

You must be at the end of that gangway at 7:30am. Simply doing this will show the boat you’re keen, organised and professional. It’s a simple way to get some credit and separate yourself from the crowd. It’s always better for you to be ready and waiting, rather than the boat being ready but waiting for you.

Do live on your phone and laptop

I cannot stress this enough and it’s absolutely vital in regards to job hunting.

In recent years, dockwalking has decreased due to added security in ports and, subsequently, the use of online hiring has increased. With this in mind, you need to place an added importance on being visible and reachable. You would not believe how fast things move in yachting, and the reality is most boats will move on very quickly if they are unable to contact you.

Always have data on your phone so you’re reachable: never let a phone call go to voicemail and any WhatsApp messages should be responded to within 2 minutes (with your read receipts on). Emails should be responded to within 5 minutes, or if there are attachments/documents then 10 minutes.

These may seem ridiculous and unachievable, but you need to accept this is your new world. It’s fast-moving, ever-changing and if you can’t keep up you can quickly get left behind.

Don’t blend in with the crowd

This is possibly the hardest thing to do and may require some imagination.

Let’s start with your CV.

Let me ask you this, somewhere on your CV does it say, ‘I’m a hard-working, highly motivated professional’ - or something along those lines? Do you not think you should possess both of these attributes as standard?

They would assume you’re hardworking because you’re trying to get into yachting, which is one of the hardest things someone can do. Instead, get rid of those classic words repeated by thousands and tell them a story. They want to know about you as a person. There are so many great people in yachting and so many fascinating stories. They want to hear yours!

My CV (which I haven’t changed for 8 years), for example, talks about me playing American Football for Great Britain, growing up in a campervan and being home-educated. The beauty of this is it’s a talking point, and because it’s my life story I’m comfortable answering questions about it.

Secondly, with regards to dockwalking you have to make yourself memorable - and how you do this is entirely up to you.

Back in my early days of dockwalking, I used to do card tricks, and, magically, my business card would appear instead of the card they had chosen from the deck. Did it get me work right there and then? No. But it made me more memorable. I was that greenie doing card tricks, and very quickly I was getting more daywork.

The point is you need to use your imagination and find different ways to set you apart from the crowd. It’s important to have fun with it and enjoy the process. This leads me perfectly to my final piece of advice, which is probably the most important.

Don’t take yourself so seriously

I feel that your first job is built up and up by so many crew agents and industry professionals that you get all this added pressure and sometimes it feels like you’re interviewing to be a CEO of global corporation. The reality is your first year in yachting will be spent blading windows, cleaning scuppers, scrubbing toilets and making beds. That is the level that every greenie starts at.

I’m not saying you should be unprofessional, but you should try and do your job to the best of your abilities while maintaining a light-hearted attitude.

Have a laugh, enjoy your surroundings, spend your first year listening and learning but most importantly build a network of yachties as this will last for your entire career.

Everyone who knows me knows I try to be as light-hearted as possible and have fun with my job. I remember I once interviewed a deckie for a junior role on board a 72m. After explaining the role, the first question I asked him was ‘do you play FIFA?’. We used to have on-board FIFA tournaments every month and it got extremely competitive. Luckily for him he had played before!

Another favourite question of mine is ‘if you were a biscuit what biscuit would you be?’. You’ll learn more about someone from that one question than an hour-long interview.

I would say I’m a Custard Cream: sweet on the inside and handles well under pressure!

Just don’t take yourself so seriously.

Make it count!

I hope that my advice helps you in one way or another. I know how hard it is to break into the industry – it took me two years to land my first job. There will be lots of rejection, lots of frustration and sometimes you’ll feel a bit lost. Please don’t worry, this is completely normal.

All you can do is leave it behind each night and wake up the following morning with motivation, determination, and a plan of action.

If you do that, I have no doubt I’ll be seeing you floating around somewhere in the near future.

Good luck.

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