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Quitting Your Job, Sailing Away... Is it always rosey?

81K views 477 replies 88 participants last post by  SanderO 
#1 · (Edited)
#2 ·
Get on with it! I bailed at 37. Most folks I met regretted not leaving sooner. Yes, go, get some sea miles, get your ya ya's off, see the world. come back, resume your career, get married, have kids etc. Your going to work until your 70 anyway. Enjoy your health and open mind while you can. Plenty of naysayers who want you to be on the grindstone here...What do you have to lose? So it might not work out, but then you've tried, no harm in of failure for trying.
 
#4 ·
Well I'm finally in the serious planning stages to leave it all behind.
No I don't think it's going to be rosey the entire time, breakdowns, bad weather, dealing with officials in countries I don't speak the language.....In my books all going to be part of the adventure.
If I was in the financial place to do it 15 years ago at your age I would have gone no question!
I'm 2-3 years from casting off the docklines, most of this will be spent selling property, buying and fixing/setup of the new boat, few shakedown cruises, taking a couple nav courses as a refresher....
Been training for this since I was just over a year old!
 
#5 ·
Like anything else in life, there are no guarantees, but you know what lies ahead if you don't go. If that's not what you want, then go. There's no telling what you'll find if you do. Could be better, could be worse, but ya darn sure won't have to wonder if ya shoulda.
 
#6 · (Edited)
For some it will work out perfectly.

For many it will work out well enough to last a year to a few years before they get tired of it.

For some it will be annoying within a month.

For a few its a Darwinian experience....

partly depends on how well you know what you are getting into and what buying decisions are made. Then there's what training and preparations before anything longer than a few hours doing laps on a lake.
 
#7 ·
I would love to hear some thoughts and opinions on this - I hear of people quitting their jobs, walking away from their lives and sailing away - and I only hear the positive side to these situations. They speak of being happy and having no regrets, but what about the flip side? I rarely hear of the failures and people who regret making the leap.

I'm ready to make this decision now, to sail away or not. I'm currently living aboard my Catalina 27 on Lake erie, no house, everything I own in storage and I'm free to sail down to the bahamas. I'm not looking to do this for life, just to take a year or two off from normal life and then go back to work in my industry.I'd be giving up a high paying job as a nuclear power plant tech, a job I hate though and I'm pretty unsatisfied with my life as it is now. I'm a 33 old guy, single and no kids, but would like to settle down and get married at some point, hopefully with kids, so this trip may certainly put the kibosh on those plans. I have lots of options and thoughts to weigh....
Are you kidding? This is a no-brainer. You have everything to gain, and nothing to lose:

1. You're only looking to do this for a year or two, as a "gap year" or mental health break or personally enriching experience.

2. You're young and have no ties and everything is in storage.

3. You have a job skill that is in incredibly high demand, and a job will be waiting for you the moment you need it, so you have a safety net.

There is literally no downside to this for you.
 
#8 ·
Regrets are different than the reality just not being the dream you thought it would be. I am sure there are those who regret the decision to cast off. Read the Rebel Heart saga ending in a navy rescue for one. Hard to see how they wouldn't regret that decision.

I am sure there are far more people who cast off and it's just not livin the dream is they imagined. But, many of those people either are not going to publish the reality, or will share through rose-colored glasses. No one wants to admit failure. And even for those who do not particularly enjoy living aboard and cruising, I think regret is a real strong word when it comes to any travel and life experiences.

This is one blog that comes to mind that I loosely followed as it unfolded because it was a young couple in a small, old boat. They bobbed around the Bahamas for a few months and then sold the boat and came home. I don't think that's how they pictured it going. If you read the blog you can tell the female half just was not experiencing the dream she thought she would. Here's a particularly telling entry Great Mysterious: Green Turtle ATTEMPT but even the fun stuff seems overshadowed with how difficult it was to actually live on a small boat.
 
#9 ·
You're in a very specialized field of work. One that I would think you could easily slide back into if you wanted/needed. That might work for you.

In the meantime, GO!

You're able bodied and young enough to go out and enjoy yourself. Who knows, you might be able to find a girl along the way with the same plans/dreams as you. You never know what, if any, physical or mental limitations you may have in 30+ years from now.

Right now, you can live your life, not be a slave to it. I know what it's like to work without any job satisfaction. You can work yourself day in and day out for that paycheck, but you know there's more out there you could be doing with yourself. You already know what you want, go out and do it.
 
#11 ·
Dude, go ahead and SAIL AWAY before your doubts make you miserable. If you don't - you will never know and always second guess your choice. Give it a mighty try. No, it will not all be rosy. You will have crappy days. Stuff will break, weather will be miserable, you will be in trouble. But you will have awesome days too. Lots of them. And if two months from now you change your mind and decide to go back, you have not lost anything. We always regret the chances we did not take.
Have a blast.
I'm less than 2 years away from casting off.
 
#13 ·
I was almost exactly your age when I pulled the plug for a few years. Similar business too, I was a professional mariner, highly paid, highly skilled but I absolutely hated the job.

I was about 4 years of goofing off I guess. Lived on an old (1974) cheap ($6000 USD) boat.

I found I kind of transformed into a kind of different state of being. Shorts and crocs in the summer, a sweater with crocs with socks in the winter. Simple food, no electronics.

It worked out well, met a girl, had a kid, now I'm back on the treadmill but in a new industry I like much better and generally much more satisfied.

But are there down points to quiting your job and living in poverty in a 200 square foot space with few to no amenities? Is that a question you need to ask? It worked out well for me, but if comfort, wealth or status is at all important to you it might not work out that well.
 
#14 ·
At age 27, I was fast-tracking in my career and making lots of money, so I quit, moved west, and became a ski bum. I did that until I was tired of being poor, jumped back in to the professional world, built up my bank, quit again to ski, kayak, climb, etc. During that second stint of having a job is when I did my bareboat charters and got infected by the sailing bug. Now I'm 59, working again, aiming to quit one last time and go cruising. My friends are comfortably retired or about to; I have several more years of slavery, after which I will always be scraping by. I'm very glad I played hard when I could, instead of sight-seeing and crawling around the golf course now.

BTW, my time playing was not an issue either time I chose to re-entering my profession.
 
#17 ·
i have been out here since 2011 in my own boat and opb for a year before that. and lived aboard since 1990----
yes it is worth every nanosecond even with hauling water, making electricity, experiencing gear failure and boat failure--repairs are fun in different locales. heck even finding places to change my clothes before my emergency room and critical care and pacu management shifts was fun.
as all material goods are easily replaced, there is no reason to remain in one place nor mourn the loss of stuff.
whatsa behind me is a not a important.
HOWEVER, to be successful in a full time cruising lifestyle of any permanence, one MUST become friends with inner self. is most important. there is your key for happiness--within your self. make your life fun. so many fail because they are not able to enjoy being with themselves. sad to watch and more difficult to listen to when they whine about their miserable lives..
i am glad i have always been a happy soul. makes a difference--my wrinkles are not upside down frown wrinkles ha ha ha ha ha
 
#19 ·
Yes. Do go now. Life happens to all of us. Will you "regret" the decision if you find you have pancreatic cancer at 40?
Or a life altering stoke the day before you retire...
Or even marry the girl of your dreams have a special needs child that demands everything you have, money, time, giving up your dreams?
Or, or, or...

Its not really hard to come up with ways for your life to be altered in ways you didnt expect. But if you want to really live its best to make sure you are using the NOW to your advantage.
 
#20 · (Edited)
All your response are awesome, thank you so much! I'm shocked that there were no replies warning of being careless and throwing your life away. It is nice to hear so much positive feedback, I feel that I really want and need to do this or regret it for life.

I'me leaving Saturday for a 2 week sailing trip on Lake Erie, and I'll make the decision then about going or not. I figure a short trip on the water will help put my head in the right frame of mind to make the decision.
 
#21 ·
Dunno. That might be like going shopping when hungry. Never a good idea.

Only you can decide if your life has been "thrown away". Because it belongs only to you. If you feel your time is better spent doing something you love than running the consumerist rat race, or vice versa, its a personal value judgement that only you are qualified to make.

My great uncle...really into lawn care. He retired from the USAF...and it was his passion. He wanted to grow the perfect lawn. He was out there with a pair of scissors and a ruler to edge it. It was the most perfect green carpet I've ever seen...was like walking on a sponge. He'd sit out there on his patch of perfect grass in a lawn chair with a good book and a beer...totally satisfied. He could have traveled, could have got into any number of things...but the best use of his time was his lawn and his garden...and something that gave him that much happiness...well...I can't think of a better use for his time.

Moral of course being...to hell with what anyone else thinks. Do what you want. Chase that feeling.

The rat race will always be there for you if you change your mind.
 
#23 ·
22 posts and no one quoted THAT quote for which it is now known Mark Twain never said. I'm proud of you all.

Go. Do it. Have fun (or not). Let us know how you're doing when you get wifi.
 
#26 · (Edited)
While that quote gets thrown out a lot, I like this one a bit more: :wink

"I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it."

What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of "security." And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine - and before we know it, our lives are gone. What does a man need - really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's all - in the material sense, and we know it.

We each must choose our own path through life. Do we follow the course laid out for us by others, or dare we chart our own destiny?

But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, the dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed.

Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life?

-Sterling Hayden - Wanderer
 
#24 ·
Ok, I didn’t quit my job, but for what it’s worth…

I’ve been dreaming since early childhood of living on the ocean. Now after seeing my children through college and surviving a divorce, I thought it was time to be a little selfish.
I managed to rid myself of 98% of my “worldly possessions”, move to Florida (from Minneapolis), buy an old sailboat and live aboard for 3 of the harshest months of my life.
It took me about 4 weeks to get into a routine just managing the basics….food, washing clothes, dishes, maintenance…. At the end of the third month one of my dock mates had a disagreement with the marina owner and the marina decided to no longer allow living aboard. Having to make a hasty decisions, I moved into a small condo on the ICW and bought a couch….yikes!

That was 3 months ago…now I visit my boat on the weekends and long for the days of being back aboard full time. In fact, it is really hard to describe just how much I miss it….the waves slapping the hull at night, the occasional ring of a halyard hitting the mast (yes, I’m one of those guys), the real sense of independence, jumping in the water anytime the mood struck, banging on my guitar with the wind as my chorus…..grass is always greener on the other side of course…but boy I really miss every second I’m off the boat away from the water.

I considered the experience as kind of a trial run. Could I live this way and enjoy it….yep!!

I hope to be back aboard next summer with the boat in tip top shape and ready to sail to the Bahamas for an extended vacation. To me, the sea will always be home. Even if it means having to spend a little time on land every now and then, it just makes the return to sea that much sweeter.

From my viewpoint - Go for it while you still can! A bad day on the water beats the best day in the office. I'd rather be knee deep in bilge water than knee deep in ---- at work!
 
#25 ·
Scubadoo, I hope you get the chance to liveaboard again! It sounds like the perfect opportunity for you to get away is now. With the kids gone, don't let yourself get weighed down by possessions again! I'm in my 3rd month of living aboard and I love it (despite it only being a 27' boat). There truly is something comforting about the sounds a boat makes at night!
 
#31 ·
Donna and Captain, thanks for balancing out the conversation with some negative aspects as well! I truly do love clean socks, so that could be a problem...

Captain, I am fearful that I may be "one of those people" who may end up hating the lifestyle due to maintenance issues and lacking the comforts of home. I've been living aboard for about 3 months now and spending every free minute working on the boat, so I'm hoping I'm acclimated to the lifestyle
 
#33 ·
Donna and Captain, thanks for balancing out the conversation with some negative aspects as well! I truly do love clean socks, so that could be a problem...

Captain, I am fearful that I may be "one of those people" who may end up hating the lifestyle due to maintenance issues and lacking the comforts of home. I've been living aboard for about 3 months now and spending every free minute working on the boat, so I'm hoping I'm acclimated to the lifestyle
Wait. Huh? Negative? Me? All I'm saying is do it because you want to, not because a bunch of strangers say it's a great lifestyle. The only way you'll know for sure is to try.

As a matter of fact we're planning on being one of capta's "Commuter Cruisers" because we actually love where we live but Donna's personality takes a nosedive in the winter when it gets cold.
 
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