‘Our Big Adventure’ – Just Saying Yes to Living Aboard

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Taking the plunge into the living aboard a boat lifestyle – how one boater has made the dream a reality [Podcast]

Anchors AweighAnchors Aweigh Boating Podcast is a podcast for all boaters, from aspiring to experienced. Featuring in-depth conversations with boating experts and industry leaders, and packed full of tips, tricks, gear, and industry info, boaters of all levels will come away with new skills and knowledge each episode.

Living aboard a boat is a lifestyle that many talk of and dream about, but few follow through on. I mean, what’s not great about seeing the sunrise and sunset over the water every day, exploring new places week in and week out, ditching your morning commute for a morning jump on the water, and slowing life down to a manageable, relaxing pace?

Well, there are some hurdles to get over en route to creating this lifestyle but Jim Palmer has done it for himself and his wife and has some inspiring advice for anyone else with a big dream who just needs a little push to follow it.

liveaboard boatingJim Palmer is a marketing and business building expert and in-demand coach. He is the founder of the Dream Business Academy and Dream Business Coaching and Mastermind Program.

He is the host of Dream Business Coach TV, the hit weekly Web TV show watched by thousands of entrepreneurs and small business owners, and he is also the host of Dream Business Radio, a weekly podcast based on Jim’s unique brand of Smart Marketing and Business Building Strategies. Jim is best known internationally as ‘The Dream Business Coach’ and creator of No Hassle Newsletters, the ultimate ‘done-for-you’ newsletter marketing program used by hundreds of clients in nine countries.

Jim has authored seven books and speaks and gives interviews on such topics as entrepreneurial success, newsletter marketing, client retention, how to build a profitable business and how to create your own Dream Business.

Jim is a cancer survivor, has been married for over thirty-five years, has four grown children and two great children. Recently, Jim and his wife Stephanie JUST SAID YES to their dream of living on a boat. Join their adventure, which is chronicled on Our Floating Home.

Jim and I spoke about growing up boating, how they decided to live aboard, finding the perfect boat, and a whole lot more. This one is definitely worth a listen all the way through as Jim packed a lot of inspiring advice into this half hour, much more than I could fit in the blog. Enjoy!

Be sure to click on links to listen to the full podcast interview at the end!



sea ray boatEarly Boating Experiences

I grew up boating. My grandparents had a cottage on a Lake in Western Massachusetts. My parents grew up in that cottage. I remember I learned how to water ski there on this little 14’ boat with a 40 hp Evinrude engine.

I just really love the water and boating. My parents had a boat. My older brother is big time into boating. My own boating career started four years ago. We bought a 30’ Sea Ray that we kept at the top of Chesapeake Bay.

Deciding to Become a Liveaboard

A little more than a year ago, Stephanie was retiring from her career and came home and said ‘I think its time for a big adventure.’ We didn’t know quite what that meant. Eventually she said hey, what if we lived on a boat? We sold our house and we bought a 50’ Carver motor yacht.

How the Adventure is Going so Far

We are so in love with this boat. I loved my Sea Ray, the only difference is Sea Ray had so many great t shirts and Carver makes nothing! We have been loving life. It is slower, easier and we can feel disconnected from everything so much easier. It’s an amazing lifestyle.

How Boating Equals Stress Relief

We had about an hour and twenty minute drive on Fridays from our home to our boat and we could feel ourselves de-stressing on the drive. When we stepped on the boat, 100% of whatever was going on that week was forgotten. It was an amazing way to de-stress. We could go ten minutes, drop anchor, and feel like we were on vacation.

new boat christeningHow to Follow their Adventure

We started a blog – ourfloatinghome.com – everybody was so curious about where we were going and how to stay in touch.

I just wrote a blog post called ‘Simple, Slower, and Chores’ and I describe how simple life is on the boat. We get up, I go up and watch the sun go up over the water, have breakfast. I love watching boats. We’re always looking at the water. It’s a slower way of life. We have no commute. We’re not dealing with traffic. We’ve got reality TV just outside our boat.

And then for chores, when I had my home, I was tired of cutting the grass and shoveling the driveway, all that stuff. The thing about the boat, it’s always gotta be clean, something always gas to be fixed, and I don’t mind! I would so much rather wash and wax my boat than mow my lawn or weed whack!

Planning their Route, or not

It’s less planned out than you might think. We came up with an 18-month plan. It’s not bothering us that we don’t have a specific reservation or know where we’re going. I’ve structured my coaching business to do three days per week. All the calls happen Tuesday-Thursday. Friday through Monday we can be mobile. If we pull into somewhere we love we can stay there. We’re totally flexible and loving not having an exact idea of what we’ll be doing.

Useful Technology for Living Aboard

I have so many apps. I have an app called BoatTracker which will tell you your average speed, top speed, how long you were out. That’s a very good way for me to keep track of oil changes and things like that. It will also show you with a satellite where you were with your entire trip.

There’s another one I got called Anchor Alarm. When you set your anchor, you use your finger and draw a little area that the boat is allowed to swing. If it heads out of the circle you have drawn, it will alert you. The other thing I use is Navionics. It’s always updating and is really cool.

‘Just Saying Yes’

Some people say you should have waited a year and maybe, but are you ever really ready? Sometimes you just have to say yes and go for it. Sometimes you can overthink things, the what if. When you get really excited about doing something big in life, you get romantically excited about it but then the other side of our brain kicks in and we start playing the what if game.

On using social media to further boating education…..We both belong to a lot of these Facebook groups. There’s a Facebook group called LiveAboard, Trawler Living, Carver Facebook groups. There’s boat repairs, so many things you can learn from other people. There’s an education out there if you’re willing to look and be open minded.

Possible Future Boating Plans

There’s a thing called the Great Loop! We started reading these books and it’s something we are considering. We’ve read several stories of people who do the Great Loop, it takes them about a year. One of the things that appeals to us when you do the great loop, most of it is slow. You’re seeing parts of this country that nobody really sees.

Please, listen to the whole podcast. The blog really doesn’t do this one justice! Happy boating! And to all the Northern listeners, I hope you delay the shrink wrapping as long as possible!

Listen to the full Podcast:

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Listen on iTunes: Jim Palmer – September 1, 2017 (free)


Listen on Google Play: Jim Palmer – September 1, 2017 (free)


or Click Play below to listen online here:


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Matt O'Hara

View posts by Matt O'Hara
Matt O’Hara is the owner, along with his wife Rebecca, of Freedom Boat Club Lake George and the Queen Boat Co marina. After a 10-year career in media sales in Boston, MA Matt and Rebecca decided to relocate and open their own Freedom Boat Club, where they could share their love of boating and Lake George by helping others get on the water. The best part of the new career has been the joy they see families having on the water day in and day out, making memories that will last a lifetime. Matt has combined his background in media with his move to the boating industry to launch Anchors Aweigh, a podcast for boaters.
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