Agencies, daywork, and the first yes

Register with two or three serious crew agencies. Not twelve. Keep your profile current: tickets, photo, availability, location. Answer the phone. Answer the WhatsApp. The girl who replies in four hours has already lost the berth.

Be in the place. Antibes, Palma, Fort Lauderdale in November. Sitting in another country 'waiting for the right boat' is how seasons pass you. Daywork is the interview you did not know you had.

When you get a trial, treat it as a charter. Hair, nails, shoes you can work in, a small kit: lint roller, steamer knowledge, a smile that is not a performance. Ask where the laundry is before you ask about the sun deck.

The first yes is rarely the dream boat. Take a good 30–40m with a chief who trains. You will learn more there than as the extra pair of hands on a 70m that already has a machine.