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Every diveboat Captain I’ve met was retired from something else so the pension counted toward the income but most seemed to be doing it just to get out, not for the money.
The last few years at Beneath the Sea there has been a Captains school in one of the booths. He was telling me you need a lot of shipboard time toward your license but the good news is those logged boat dives count toward the hours, I hope you have been keeping a log and have done some liveaboards :)
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Greg - 3/27/2015 4:27 AM 
It would be a dramatic change in lifestyle. Both in the income you receive, which translates to the stuff you can buy or trips you can take. And in the pace and enjoyment of work.
Do you want a less lucrative job, that may require fewer hours of your time...and the time spent at that job is more fun because it is something you enjoy. Or do you want to work longer hours for better pay, and be able to afford more expensive stuff and take vacations every now and then?
Anything you do will eventually become a chore and you may not like it so much...so you have to compare the job you have now, to the job you would have as a boat captain and scuba instructor (and don’t forget that means you’re also the sales/marketing guy, the accounting guy, the customer service guy, the maintenance guy...you will wear many hats).
Doing what you love isn’t an option for most people unless they have hardly any responsibilities or they have money in the bank. Or they are willing to sacrifice and live a less expensive life.
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The grass is always greener?....as I look at your situation, I don’t believe - in the long run - that becoming a captain/instructor will provide you financially with what you might be expecting...there’s a lot of competition out there and experience will not be in your favor. Your passion for diving and the infatuation for this life may quickly lose it’s luster...then, as you said, where’s the next job offer going to come from? Do a lot of soul searching and gathering facts from those who have done this before before taking that "giant stride"!
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I assume you’ve checked this out; marinerslearningsystem.com I saw them at BTS this weekend and they said there was a lot of work moving snowbirds boats up and down the east coast which means getting paid to burn someone else’s gas.
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Capnd - 4/02/2015 7:45 AM
i have checked out a few training options but not this one in particular . I have also heard about moving boats however as of yet have not gotten any input on where to go see how to get involved in such a thing . if anyone has any information on this please let me know . thank you for the information .
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As far as the captains license logged dives do not count towards your hours required & being a licensed captain is very high liability job. You need lots of experience operating all types of boats & electronics as well as knowing how to trouble shoot problems of all systems. Anybody can drive a boat in open calm water but docking & high seas can become very dangerous quickly. It is far more stressful than you can imagine if you are not ready also when moving other peoples boats they are not always properly maintained.
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