Although Coronavirus has brought the yachting world to a standstill, leaving many yacht owners, crew and captains homebound, it has provided the perfect opportunity to make those necessary amendments to your current CV.
It’s one of those jobs that always ends up at the bottom of the priorities list, but hopefully our ‘10 do’s and don’ts for a Successful Yacht Captain CV’ can help to guide you through this process!
The Do’s
Do Customise your CV for every application – Ensure your CV is relevant for the role.
Do proof read and proof read and, oh, proof read – Use your friends, family and recruiter to be honest with your CV.
Do detail your achievements – Example, completed six refits on time and on budget, maintained a crew turnover of less than 10% over 18 months, xx amount of repeat charter guests.
Do use white space – Often less is more. Some of the best CV’s of Captains with 20 years’ experience are still on one page and not crowded.
Do think how your CV looks printed in colour or black and white – There’s a possibility that your CV may be seen in black and white. Ensure that your CV is readable and doesn’t rely on colours to make it stand out.
The Don’ts
Don’t write your CV as a Ships Captain – Think more corporate like a company CEO, the role of Captain is head of finances, head of human resources, strategic planning, operations director, compliance manager to name a few elements. Many Captains say that manoeuvring is such a small part of the role.
Don’t use clichés – This is harder than it seems. Certain key words appear is 100’s of CV’s and you need to stand out. Motivated, initiative, organised, hard-working, leader are all commonly used works. Make your CV stand out.
Don’t turn your CV into spam – Do of course network and field your CV. However; pushing it to too many can dilute its impact and it can get lost in a pile. You fail to be able to present your CV with a cover letter, make it job specific or have a recruiter represent you.
Don’t spend money with a professional CV writer – Unless you know they specialise in Captain CV writing. We see 100’s of CV’s a week that have been professionally written and have alignment errors, grammar mistakes and are ultimately generic.
Don’t exaggerate – Dates/experience/qualifications, there’s really no need to exaggerate, just keep it honest.
We hope these do’s and don’ts help you to refine your own Captains CV, and give your CV an advantage in the current market. For more guidance or to discuss potential Yacht Captain Job Opportunities currently, please get in touch with one of our team and we’ll be happy to help you land the role that’s suitable for you!