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10 great quotes about self-confidence for seafarers

Not believing in one’s self and one’s abilities can be a problem especially for Third World ship officers and crews. Many are too diffident to assert their rights, and they often display a slavish attitude towards foreign senior officers. But even those who seem so sure of themselves may see their self-confidence eroded in the face of danger or extreme difficulties.

19th-century words of wisdom for 21st-century seafarers

I had the good fortune recently of finding a book with the unassuming title ‘Proverbs’. Published in 1854, it was written by Rev. William Scott Downey, an American Baptist pastor before he became an Episcopelian. It is a slim volume of 110 pages or so, but it contains some nuggets of wisdom for today’s seafarers and other maritime folks. Here are 21 of Downey’s proverbs:

10 uplifting quotes about faith for maritime folks

There is faith of the religious sort. There is also faith in the general sense — that is, immense trust or confidence in something or someone. It could be anything: a system, a particular individual, humankind, or life itself. Either way, faith is essential. A person without it is like a rudderless, anchorless ship drifting at sea.

Voyage to equality: Some great quotes about feminism

Women’s voyage to equality has been long and difficult. And it is not over yet. Even in the shipping world, where one hears a loud clamour for gender equality, women have a long way to go. Why, for instance, has there been no female elected to the post of secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO)? Or why is it that no seafarers’ union has ever been led by a woman?

Some choice quotes about workers on the waterfront

Digging up quotable quotes about the workers who load and unload vessels — stevedores, dockers or longshoremen — can be a real challenge. Try hard as I did, I managed to find online a mere handful which I thought would be worth sharing.

I should have expected this to be the case. Far fewer books and articles have been written about waterfront workers than about seafarers. Poems on the subject, at least those written in English, are as rare as the Casper Octopus. Doesn’t this speak volumes?

Some great quotes about language and rhetoric

Speeches and slogans abound in the maritime world. Yet, not many have mastered the art of rhetoric — that is, the effective use of language to influence or persuade others.

Certainly not the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The reason that its buzzwords and slogans are instantly repeated throughout the shipping industry is not because of it is skilled in rhetoric but because those who echo the IMO’s words do not question their sincerity or if they even match reality.

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