The night before a chief interview

They are not hiring a personality. They are hiring a nervous system that can hold a table, a team, and a surprise guest without dropping the standard.

Prepare three stories: a charter you saved, a stew you trained, a mistake you owned. Speak in specifics. Numbers, names of tasks, what you would do in the first 48 hours on their boat.

Ask about the owner, the calendar, the team you would inherit, the budget, the laundry. A chief who does not ask about the laundry is not ready.

Wear what you would wear to meet the owner. Hair done. Hands done. Shoes you could still work in. You are not a guest. You are the woman who makes guests feel like guests.

If you do not get it, ask for the reason once, politely, and go back to being excellent. The next boat can hear that you asked.