Annie’s First Interview – “Get Frugal, Get Friendly”

April 16, 2015:

This may be the shortest blog post I’ve ever written.  Why??  Because you’re about to hear me ramble on for an entire hour, that’s why.  Oh wait, I’m sorry, an hour and fifteen minutes, in my first real, live interview as a … well, an author I suppose, but I think the term “authorpreneuer” © is more appropriate.  It seems these days I’ve got a lot of plates spinning.  But, that’s essentially the message I was trying to convey–get creative with your funding, frugal with your spending and you, too, can get out and spend more time sailing and cruising.  I was humbled and honored to be interviewed recently by Teddy J, the creator of Sail Loot, an innovative and informative website, to try and help Teddy answer the question folks want to ask every person who lives on a boat and cruises around the world — How the heck do you pay for it?  I hope I gave some insight and some inspiration to other budding cruisers out there.

Here ’tis.  Next time you’ve got an hour (and fifteen minutes) to kill.  Click to play:

 

 

If you’re short on time, I’d particularly recommend the “how to impress a hot guy” tips.  It’s basically–try anything adventurous and pretend like you know what you’re doing.  Works every time.

Phillip and I have been following Teddy J’s Sail Loot interviews for quite some time.  Teddy has interviewed many cruisers, live-aboards and marine innovaters who have traveled the world and launched a diverse range of cruise-funding endeavors.  One of the first interviews I heard was of the s/v Delos crew.

Captain Brian’s bio plays out much like my own.  “After years in the IT business Brian dreamt of bigger adventures and more meaning in his life.  He read the book “3 years on a 12-foot boat” and the dream to create his own odyssey and sail around the world was born. Three boats later and endless days of hard work, Brian’s dream became a reality when he bought Delos in Seattle in 2008 and has lived on board ever since.”  You can listen to Teddy’s podcast interviews of the Delos crew here:

Sail Loot Interview of Brian and Karin (Teddy’s podcast numero uno)

Sail Loot Interview of Brady and Josje (pronounced Yaaw-jsuh – beautiful name! – although I prefer her more common alias – Josjerama)

I also found Teddy’s two-part interview of Jeff Siegel, the creator of Active Captain, fascinating.

Jeff’s mind is always buzzing with new ideas and helpful technology.  He has a very honest and realistic approach to new business endeavors and speaks openly about his own failures and the lessons he learned in developing what is now the fastest-growing, most interactive marine navigational software on the market.

Sail Loot Interview of Jeff Siegel (Part 1)

Sail Loot Interview of Jeff Siegel (Part 2)

These are just two of the dozens of others Teddy has interviewed, all of whom have provided his listeners with some great insight about transitioning to a more balanced life.

  

In all, I was incredibly humbled to be added to this eclectic group of creative thinkers.  Thank you, Teddy J, for the experience and the platform to share my passion for cruising and my less-is-more philosophy with others.

While I was happy to talk to Teddy about the various, creative ways I have found to make money remotely, as it always seems, when you give you seem to get more in return.  Through Sail Loot, I was able to connect with several other cruisers Teddy has interviewed and help support them in their endeavors, which encouraged them to, in turn, help to support me.  It was actually the Delos crew who initially turned me on to Patreon.

Patreon is an awesome platform that allows artists of all walks (singers, songwriters, videomakers, bloggers, underwater basket-weavers, whatever!) continue doing what they love by allowing their fans to empower them in a direct and meaningful way.  I’m happy to say I am a proud patron of Delos on Patreon and (even on my tight cruiser’s budget) happily fund each of their wicked worldly videos.  I would highly encourage others to sign up to support them too.  It will be the best two dollars you’ve spent in ages, trust me!

Also, once I heard fellow boat-bum-turned-author, Ed Robinson’s, interview on writing and self-publishing, I reached out to him as well and asked if he would like to read my Salt book to perhaps provide an endorsement for the back cover.  And, look what happened …

Just goes to show you–when you help people, help tends to find its way back.  So, to answer Sail Loot’s burning question — How do you pay your way to cruise?

You get creative.  You get bold.  You get frugal.  And, you get friendly.

As Teddy would say, it never hurts to ask.  Offer something of value and then ask for support.  Worst that can happen is they say no.

Many thanks to all–my loyal followers (believe it or not – it’s been over two years now since I started this blog!), my supporters, patrons and friends.  I wouldn’t be here without your encouragement and support.  I hope you have found the posts fun, entertaining and inspiring.  Trust me, there’s always a way to make it work.  Get out there before it’s too late!

Enjoy the interview!