Working a fulltime job aboard your boat whilst in the Carribean or Keys?

[dannc]

Had to go read how far along Starlink is in building out its satellite network.

From https://www.businessinsider.com/spac...00-mbps-2020-9

• There are 700 Starlink satellites in orbit.
• Each launch puts up another 60 satellites.
• In August they put up 180 satellites.
• Musk said they need 1,000 satellites to for the system to work economically.
• With five more launches they would be have 1,000 satellites in orbit.
• The network has low latency and download speeds over 100 mega bits per second. Notice bits not bytes.

Sounds like they would have 1,000 satellites in the next month or so.

The big questions are:

1. When can we hook up to the network?
2. How much will it cost?
3. What is the actual upload and download speeds?
4. What kind of antennae is needed and does it require stabilization for boat use?

Later,
Dan

[daydreamer]

Cruising is a full-time job.

Living in a parked boat (marina or a few certain anchorages) is not. That's more like a hobby, as far as consuming time, attention, and resources.

I'd bet most Americans would do okay with a full-time job and a hobby, but that most would not find two full-time jobs to be a happy experience.

[theDangerz]

Originally Posted by Chotu

All I can say is it won’t be what you are dreaming of.

It’s just going to be the same sh*t with a different view and a lot more headaches (mechanical failures, internet going down, a full day to grocery shop, anchoring restrictions, squalls rolling through requiring and anchor watch when you are mid zoom call, etc)

Mark those words.

I know it’s the dream, but once you are actually doing it, it’s just normal life. And a much harder life than land life. It requires a lot of your time.

Really????
"Same sh*t different view"
Isn't that actually what many of us have been dreaming of and hoping for for years??

If the realities of cruising (mechanical failures, internet going down, squalls, anchor alarms, etc) are enough to chase you away from the lifestyle of your dreams than whether or not you're working won't have any impact on that.

Clearly, everyone's experiences are different.
We've been living aboard and cruising for 2 years and love EVERYTHING about the lifestyle. If I would have known or believed years ago that I could easily still work from the boat like I'm doing right now we would have left decades ago.

Even now during covid I'm working far too many hours a day, but you know comes with it?
Taking a break in between calls to snorkel or dive. Sailing between and exploring new islands and cultures. Watching sunrise and sunset with my wife and living the life of our dreams (but also doing so decades earlier than we ever thought possible because were willing to and and able to work at the same time!)!

Mark these words...

Dont allow yourself to be scared out of your dream based upon stories of people who clearly didn't enjoy cruising (or maybe haven't yet actually tried). It's your dream.
Go get it and see for yourself!

[Franziska]

@Jpeak2

Maybe you should not stay precisely in your current job. Perhaps you can adjust to working as an independent and that way have more control of your workload, exact work type and communication needs.

Few years ago I changed from being a reasonably well paid employee to working freelance.
I do earn less, but I am happier and I organize my work now increasingly in a way that the location makes no big difference.

This year I also changed the computer hardware that I can actually work from the boat. As I am specializing in 3D, 360 degree CAD & visualisation and graphic design, I need a powerful computer though, but I rarely need to see my clients in person.
Most of times WhatsApp and Email is sufficient and occasionally we talk on the phone.

Uploading completed projects can be scheduled as to when a fast connection is available.

While I have worked from the boat before it was always more complicated as I was more tied into an organization.
Currently I practice all of the above even though I am currently living on shore. But, the work flow is just the same.

What will be different when back on the boat is that maybe I take on a bit less work when on the boat, as it allows me to have more time for actual traveling and taking care of urgent things like dragging anchors.
Be prepared that you may not go on every beach trip either, but this is a small sacrifice if you can enjoy your surroundings immediately after you have finished work.

If you really have a dream you will be flexible enough to find a way to turn it into reality!

Good luck, Franziska

[DeValency]

Originally Posted by theDangerz

Really????
"Same sh*t different view"
Isn't that actually what many of us have been dreaming of and hoping for for years??

If the realities of cruising (mechanical failures, internet going down, squalls, anchor alarms, etc) are enough to chase you away from the lifestyle of your dreams than whether or not you're working won't have any impact on that.

Clearly, everyone's experiences are different.
We've been living aboard and cruising for 2 years and love EVERYTHING about the lifestyle. If I would have known or believed years ago that I could easily still work from the boat like I'm doing right now we would have left decades ago.

Even now during covid I'm working far too many hours a day, but you know comes with it?
Taking a break in between calls to snorkel or dive. Sailing between and exploring new islands and cultures. Watching sunrise and sunset with my wife and living the life of our dreams (but also doing so decades earlier than we ever thought possible because were willing to and and able to work at the same time!)!

Mark these words...

Dont allow yourself to be scared out of your dream based upon stories of people who clearly didn't enjoy cruising (or maybe haven't yet actually tried). It's your dream.
Go get it and see for yourself!

There is a huge spectrum of experiences, as wide as the number of cruisers times the number of their boats times the number of the places they stop at.

Both descriptions are realities for every cruiser and the ratio is changing almost every day. A lot of it is personal preferences and very specific situations. It is nice to show-off the entire world the high times (I do it myself, of course) but we rarely share the difficulties - and there are a lot!! In fact, sharing the actual cruising life difficulties with friends on and off shore is a great thing.

Yes, having a new relatively reliable boat helps a lot, but we know that technical problems starts much sooner than expected and then what? Are you fix the failed plumbing or going snorkeling? Are you wasting a whole day (if you’re lucky) to find a common part needed or enjoying the breeze (or the hurricane) on deck?

Are you anchoring in a great turquoise waters bay or being kicked out without water and diesel (March 2020, the Exumas...) by the authorities that were always great in taking your good $$?...

And it goes on and on. This is a cruisers forum, not a YouTube channel, although I do appreciate the realistic youtubers channels that go between fun and misery all the time - I’d call it reality - not a reality-show. (We had enough of it for the last four years )

Calm seas, fair winds and good luck with this f****g heat exchanger.

[theDangerz]

Originally Posted by DeValency

There is a huge spectrum of experiences, as wide as the number of cruisers times the number of their boats times the number of the places they stop at.

Both descriptions are realities for every cruiser and the ratio is changing almost every day. A lot of it is personal preferences and very specific situations. It is nice to show-off the entire world the high times (I do it myself, of course) but we rarely share the difficulties - and there are a lot!! In fact, sharing the actual cruising life difficulties with friends on and off shore is a great thing.

Yes, having a new relatively reliable boat helps a lot, but we know that technical problems starts much sooner than expected and then what? Are you fix the failed plumbing or going snorkeling? Are you wasting a whole day (if you’re lucky) to find a common part needed or enjoying the breeze (or the hurricane) on deck?

Are you anchoring in a great turquoise waters bay or being kicked out without water and diesel (March 2020, the Exumas...) by the authorities that were always great in taking your good $$?...

And it goes on and on. This is a cruisers forum, not a YouTube channel, although I do appreciate the realistic youtubers channels that go between fun and misery all the time - I’d call it reality - not a reality-show. (We had enough of it for the last four years )

Calm seas, fair winds and good luck with this f****g heat exchanger.

I couldn't agree with you more!
We don't have a youtube channel (because we hate being in front of the camera and have no desire to change a lifestyle we love into "work" that we are likely to eventually hate because of it)... but we are and have always been committed 100% to telling/sharing both pros and cons and sharing both highs and lows, as we have done throughout our journey both with friends/families and a loyal following of others.

Anyone who tells the cover story without the backstory (in my opinion) didn't really tell the story at all.

BUT... all of that said, all the hardships and work that is the reality of living on a boat really don't seem to me to be the deciding factor in the question from OP.
The question is about the realities of what it's like to work full time on a boat, not how much it sucks to live on a boat for some people who are clearly over it.

Most of the posts here are negative, but not actually about working from the boat, just about the realities of living on a boat.

If the constant maintenance and weather watching and issues moving in and out of various anchorages/countries is enough to make you give up the boat life than you clearly shouldn't be doing it... but in my mind that's not really an answer to the OP and an actual disservice to someone looking/hoping to make a leap and follow their dream (even if it turned out not to be the lifestyle for you).

Is living on a boat hard work? Of course it is.
Do I have to often choose when to fix the plumbing vs when to snorkel, of course... but there's often time for both, which is exactly what makes it a dream life that in my opinion is 100% worth the effort.

You know what else I consider hard (or even harder) work?
Waking up at 6am 5+ days a week to look at my own snarling face in the mirror while i put on a necktie, go sit in an office for 8-10 hours hating every single second of it and go home thinking about how i wasted another day of my life (and probably subtracted a few more in stress alone) while I save up for a week or two of freedom to go snorkel off the back of a boat.

Freedom comes with a price... and it's usually hard work.
Choosing/creating a life where you can put in the hard work AND have the benefit on a daily basis rather than once at the end of each year to me is a win/win. At least until we can all afford to do it without the work involved - then by all means, lets do that!!