Make Money While Cruising - List

[s/v Beth]

Tao- what do you mean my political diatribes are now welcome??? And if I am not righteous in my ethnocentric point of view, who is?? With talk like that I will just go over to SA...(not)
On the other side- its good to know I can help if I cruise with my stethoscope..

[smorris65]

I am about to move aboard, which will require relocating to the coast. i'm currently in Dallas. Anyway, I was planning on doing computer repair in whatever area I am in whether for cruiser's or anyone else in that area. Someone made the comment about competing with local workers. I will still be in the US but also competing with local companies. Any comments about whether this sounds like a reasonable idea?

[scheda]

Psh... I had this big long post up about what I do and why it's an awesome profession for travelling... but it didn't post.

So, quick version.

I'm a copywriter. I write ads for companies all over the world - but mostly for US targeted companies.

I find all my clients online, and I've never once had to meet one in person. I have a lot of phone calls though, which means you'd need some sort sat phone, but in my mind you should have that anyway.

One job pays upwards of $2k if you're even halfway decent at what you do. Two of those a month and you're sailing like a king.

[Eleven]

It sounds like you will be tapping a different market to the more traditional companies, your competition will be from small companies like yourself. The problem is establishing yourself but I don't see that you'll lose your existing customer base. Some local cold calling may increase it, either servicing end users customers or strengthening the existing providers.
The 'local workers' comment, I felt, was about taking work from local people. Out of the US it would be at a much reduced pay rate against established individuals and companies. By targeting them with your expertise they may well be inclined to use you when they are asked to provide services outside their own expertise. Making much money out of it will be hard, you are already tapping the richest market.

[boatman61]

How about making bombs and selling them to Paranoid American Cruisers....

[mintyspilot]

Originally Posted by boatman61

How about making bombs and selling them to Paranoid American Cruisers....

Don't start..... that guy worries me.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by mintyspilot

Don't start..... that guy worries me.

Don't sweat it... these guys are usually to scared to leave their back yards... only shame is the Caribbean's one of those back yards.
But even there they're freaked out....

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by scheda

I'm a copywriter. I write ads for companies all over the world - but mostly for US targeted companies.

.

Thats a great one. Use Skype instead of a sat phone for far lower costs

You would have had years in the business before being able to do it all by remote.

There seems to be very few media, ex-media people crusing. Weird. I thought the seas would have been full of has-been air talent, actors and hacks and lashings of muso's!

[GordMay]

Please forgive this unsophisticated middle Canadian his naive ignorance, but, what is a "lashing of muso's"?

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Please forgive this unsophisticated middle Canadian his naive ignorance, but, what is a "lashing of muso's"?

An island bar full of ... whos that guy that did the Marguritaville song?

You know, all those one hit wonders that made a million off their first album then dissappeared. I thought they would all be stumming their guitars in the Caribbean: "HEY! Didn't you used to be David Cassidy????????!!!!!!! Did ya ever get to drive the bus? Did ya? Did ya?"

[Sabbatical II]

If you're already out cruising with no way of earing income, only an easily learnable skill set will provide cash in the short term. I like the hairdressing idea because most male cruisers know they need a tidy up and even at a professional hairdressers I've paid $24 for a rough one and not gone back to complain. In fact, I didn't realise it was a rough one until I was informed so by the first mate. You could even offer free haircuts for a month to get practice and as a cruiser your not really relying on repeat business.

My plan is to keep the business I have taken 15 years to build, run it with a manager and monitor it a few hours a week by remote from my laptop. Then I don't have any trouble with working in a foreign country. The manager is just about to start and it will take a further 12 months minimum before I'm happy to leave the business to him. I too wish there was an easier way, but to build any business or accquire a skill set that can be legally used in a foreign country will take time.

Of course, if I took the hairdressing route, there could be an even bigger business repairing the haircuts done by me. That way two cruisers in the same area could bounce business off each other.

[hellosailor]

In the US it isn't hard to get a decent men's haircut for $10-15. But if you set up shop and hang around more than a few days--expect the local barbers, who pay for their licenses, to call up and report you in. No license? Fast and heavy fines.

Good for a few odd bucks here and there, but not a reliable way to make money, especially when you are competing against the folks who live there. And there's at least one barber in every port, village, or town.

[kumgang]

I think that I could play guitar while I'm at a port, or teach guitar or something related as I'm a musician. I could also teach Spanish (my own language). Of course I think also charter with my own boat to make some money. My loved woman cooks like nobody else on Earth so we could offer good food on board.

[osirissail]

Originally Posted by kumgang

I think that I could play guitar while I'm at a port, or teach guitar or something related as I'm a musician. I could also teach Spanish (my own language). Of course I think also charter with my own boat to make some money. My loved woman cooks like nobody else on Earth so we could offer good food on board.

Not unless you get the permission of the government of the country you are in at the time. You will need a work permit if any money or something of value is given to you for your work.
- - Musicians can normally get "free" permission to work since they are considered "artists," Everything else might cost you money and a lot of time to get the official permission.
- - A lot of cruisers "get away" with doing work without a "work permit" because they are in an area with no local population or the local officials can be easily bribed.
- - It is very dangerous to your cruising aspirations/hopes to try to ignore the laws of the local government especially where money is involved.

[beau]

I have spent the last 9 months studying stock market trading.
This is where where you indentify stocks that are trending up. You buy in with a stop loss in place (5%) and trade for 3-5 days and sell when the price is up 20-30 %.
Half the time you lose a small amount (5%) but the other half you win 20% or more.
It takes time to develop a good system but with a laptop and wifi, it can be done even with a sat phone.
Any others out there trading?