In today’s blog we asked Captain Alexandros Serpanos, Fleet Personnel Manager at Euronav, for his thoughts on a career at sea and any advice for those starting out in the industry.
What do you enjoy most about your career at sea?
There are unlimited opportunities for development, whether that be personal, professional or financial.
What drove you to pursue a career at sea? Who inspired you?
There wasn’t any source of inspiration, the primary drivers were my adventurous spirit and the total absence of financial resources.
What challenges have you faced in your career as a seafarer, and how have you overcome these?
In my opinion, the greatest challenge for a seafarer/officer, is feeling either unappreciated or undervalued by the industry’s stakeholders (regulating and enforcing authorities or ship managers/owners) which became more than evident during the COVID19 pandemic. I overcame the challenge by being stoic.
What advice would you give to young people who are looking to start a career at sea?
They should have vision, discipline, dedication, consistency and patience.
They should prioritize their physical and mental health by investing in proper nutrition, exercise, rest, reading and minimize practices such as smoking, alcohol, social media etc.
You can follow the hashtag #DayOfTheSeafarer for 2023 content and come back to this blog page tomorrow for another interview.
