What do you do for a living

I started off as a fitter machinist,then went into refrigeration briefly and ended up a sparky. being a tradie I choose to work as labour hire because I can't find an employer willing to let me have at least 12 weeks holiday a year. Yes I'm old and heading for retirement.

Thanks Don for starting this topic,and for outlining such a good life.
you understand what really matters.

I am working part time as a paediatrician,in private practice,having given up the joys of being on call and Management 11 years ago when I retired from the public health system.
this allows time for family,friends ,and fettling old boats,ie my Cav 32.
Also fond of tall ships.
Work does sometimes get in the way of other plans,but it it so rewarding,I will keep it up while the brain still works.

cheers,
david

I started off as an engineering surveyor, had a stint in retail having a couple of shops, then had a cleaning company for 15 years & have been in the rigging game for the last 20 years subcontracting building commercial buildings - mainly car yards etc.

I will be retiring this Xmas :)








Cheers,
Larry

Navy seven and a half years trained as fitter/machinist and engine room artificer, trawler engineer, motor mechanic, motorbike mechanic, bull dozer mechanic, motorman offshore drilling rig, coastal engineer on tourist vessels, pipeline welder, panto-graph engraver, fitter at Port Hedland, real estate development land salesman and manager 15 years, investor in real estate (still), Master V and charter yacht operator, cable ferry driver for Bundaberg Sugar, fitter at Gladstone Power station, semi retired at 55 now fully retired at 68 but there is always something to do when you have rental real estate.

You always have a job when you own a yacht.

Crikey I've had so many jobs I've lost count. Started life as a boilermaker/ welder and worked at Whyalla shipyard then went on to plant operating for a local road paver. Moved to Quorn SA. (where Missus was born) and built the Pichi Richi engine sheds (Missus's brother Reg started the Pichi Richi Steam Preservation Society). From then on Missus and I have been together 24 hours a day in various businesses from owning a restaurant in Adelaide to renovating Victorian era houses. One interesting reno was the Albert Mill in Nairne, built in 1857 and derilict . three floors we turned it into a coffee/eatery on ground floor, an antique shop on the middle floor and a house on the top floor. We sold the Mill to take up the restaurant in Gouger St. We've been fencing contractors and couriers for Russel Ebert Deliveries. In amongst all of this I found time to take a Master Class 5 course in case we went into the boating business. That eventually became useful when I was invited to skipper a paddle wheeler for a friend of a friend at Echuca Northern Victoria. The boat was too big for a Class 5 so I had to take a Class 4 exam which Obviously I passed so I ended My working life as a Paddle Steamer Captain. Been retired now for many years and Missus and I are still together 24/7. What a great life I have had....I hope you can all say the same thing.

Had a choice at 21, crewing a catermaran doing dolphin tours out of Monkey Mia or a career in comms. Went with comms, specializing in fibre optic cable systems. Did a few years running around the world working on submarine fibre cable systems, then came back and set up my own business in comms distribution. Bailed out at Xmas after 15 years as the CTO, and since I'm having a break which I'm enjoying immensely.
Too young to retire yet!

After a Chemistry degree, worked while I qualified. Ended up as Chartered Engineer (specialising in Fire Engineering), Chartered Risk Manager, Chartered Insurer, Certified Project Manager and Qualified Quality Manager. Too many exams!

My most memorable job was as a risk engineer specialising in UK church & historic buildings. All the UK cathedrals, St Paul's, Eton College, Oxford & Cambridge Colleges etc.

Ended up with 150 staff and 3 offices in NSW.

All the while, I also worked as a professional musician doing 150+ gigs a year.

At 47, with a big job in Sydney, I packed it in and did 5 years working and volunteering in remote Australia. Maatsuyker Island, Tas to Cape York with everything in between. Accompanied, of course, by the lovely Anna.

We never spent big - we preferred a camp & hike - so we have enough in our real estate, investments and super to enjoy life.

Now it's time for some sailing!

Cheers

Bristol

It's an interesting idea Don. S.E. Tasmania does seem to be a tourist hotspot at the moment. You do have some strong boatie (but not sailing) competition from Pennicot.

I guess you've really got to pin down the market, cheap thrills for backpackers, a somewhat more expensive adventure experience for the 30 to 50 range or a gentle sight see for tourists (or any combination).

Once that's done, it's spreadsheet time for costs and income.

If you can break even, enjoy the experience and have a "free" boat to sail at other times, that might be a good outcome.

Market research is tricky. You could come up with a few options and take friends & acquaintances out in exchange for their frank & honest feedback.

The Tassie food experience is really strong at the moment, so if you can offer something a bit special in this area, that's a big plus. Maybe lunch at the wooden boat place in Franklin would tie in with the sailing theme, perhaps with a little chat or tour. Or sushi from that great place in Geeveston. I haven't been there, but what's the Kermandie Hotel like? The other boatie places that come mind are the Woodbridge Hotel or Alonnah Hotel.

Great idea anyway. I'd go if I was on hols because I'd like the sailing experience and enjoy trying new boats. As a little extra, you could sign the logbook of anyone who participates in the sailing, so if they are going for qualifications, they get a few more logged sea miles - if they don't have a log book, you could have some preprinted certificates to issue.

Cheers

Bristol

Navy Fleet Air Arm for 26 years flying in Grumman Trackers (sometimes serving and flying with Ramona) between 1973 and 1984. A couple of years on helicopters then various management positions.
The most memorable were XO (2ic) HMAS WATERHEN minewarfare and patrol boat base and Commanding Officer HMAS PLATYPUS submarine base, both on the north shore in Sydney.
Did an MBA and moved into management consulting in a variety of industries in Sydney.
I've always been a bit of a financial nut so have owned a number of properties in Canberra, traded derivatives (mainly options and physical stock) and invested in the share market.
I am still in the Navy Reserves but have really retired and play with Triumph sports cars (two TR2s and a TR6), spend a lot of time running the NSW chapter of the club, sailing MB and travelling with my wife of 40 years.
And enjoy our 4 kids (just got home from a day watching the Swans and then the Waratahs with the youngest son) and delight in our 4 grandkids.

Being a tradie ,I can at least cruise oz and pick up work along the way. Not ideal but I'm over the yellow shirt slave trade. My parents push the line every time I see them. " son go now and sail away today ,tomorrow is to late . You will have the money if you keep working full time but most probably won't have the health to go with it" my parents from 55 worked less and travelled more around oz ,they are now 80 and still travelling. ( I was thinking about doing it 5 years ago ,I spent two years getting my boat into top seaworthy condition then had an accident. I could no longer walk more than 50 metres or row to my boat . Workers comp wrote me off ,no insurance payouts now, it took me two years and all my money to get back to good health ) . I have now taken there advice,as you should ,they know best. I leave in two weeks. If I have to sell the house later ,so be it ,I've seen what happens if you loose your health. So in 15 years time you will see me in Bunnings looking after you,I will be the old bloke who has lots of stories to tell. Sorry to rant.

Welp, I'm a youngin at 38 and still working.

In IT, maintaining call centres. You know when you call a company, press option 1, then option 2 and end up in the wrong department? Yeh, that's usually my fault. I'm still a bit weird amongst my friends in that I've been with the one company for 19 years (ok, I've moved around a fair bit internally before getting to this job). Got a couple of irons in the fire for some new jobs as the last couple of months I've been pretty bored and disatisfied with my work. Could be a new job internally, or with a bit (or a lot) of luck, working with one of our suppliers.

I think after just that one more step up the career ladder, I'll be pretty happy though. Just need enough to pay off the house, maybe upgrade the boat at some point in the future and I'm done. By that point, my daughter will no doubt be banking at the Bank of Dad ATM, so after I make it through that, it'll all be sweet.

Wow!! Such diversity!!

Finished high school and spent 3 years in an administrative role for a quasi-government agency.
Joined Customs and was a Customs Officer in Brisbane, Gladstone and Bundaberg for 16 years. The district offices were great as I had the job of clearing all smallcraft and liaising with folks in remote areas promoting the CustomsWatch initiative.
I resigned in 2005 and extremely happy not to be associated with the organisation it has become.

Since then, I have raised my two amazing children, getting my little one over some significant hurdles from a very traumatic birth. I have toyed with degrees in Humanities, Midwifery and Surveying. Clearly, I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up

I had heaps of different jobs until I had children then I settled down and have run a Pest Control business for the last 22years