Brendan O’Shannassy has captained superyachts all over the world. He’s now written a book, Superyacht Captain, Life and Leadership in the World’s Most Incredible Industry, to share some of his incredible stories and lessons.
A master of multitasking, Brendan who was currently in the Red Sea told Express.co.uk: “Leadership at sea is like an eternal squash court where you never leave it.
“The ball never stops bouncing and your opponent never misses a shot. There’s high consequences if you get it wrong. You end up as Costa Concordia or Exxon Valdez.”
Forever etched in the memories of seafarers, The Costa Concordia disaster killed 34 people when the Italian cruise ship struck a rock and capsized in 2012.
Exxon Valdez spilt 11 million gallons of oil when it ran aground in 1989, creating one of the largest environmental disasters in history.
READ MORE: When Posh Holidays Go Horribly Wrong – cruise ‘agony’
While Brendan isn’t transporting oil, his bosses have high standards and are used to getting what they want.
He said: “I remember a very lovely weather day where we were at port but I said we should not go to sea.
“It was a beautiful day in the harbour. But there was about an 810m swell running offshore.
“The yacht owner wanted to go out. I said we can do this, it won’t put lives in danger, but it’s going to be awfully uncomfortable. And we might break a few things.
DON’T MISS
The yacht owners might have a lot of demands, but for Brendan, dealing with the owners’ many staff is often the bigger challenge.
He added: “There’s half a dozen people involved in someone going for a walk.
“There’s the executive assistant, personal assistant, medic, security, a nanny, just so a child can ride their bicycle.”
He jokes that superyachts have ruined Bond films for him. There’s no way that villains would ever be as under equipped or travelling in such a small yacht.
Brendan O’Shannassy’s book Superyacht Captain, Life and Leadership in the World’s Most Incredible Industry, is published by Adlard Coles on April 14.