Today I am joined on the Pasion Struck podcast by Captain Sandy Yawn, the star of the Bravo TV hit series Below Deck Mediterranean. We discuss Captain Sandy’s new book, Be the Calm or Be the Storm: Leadership Lessons from a Woman at the Helm.
Everyone faces a time in their lives when they must take the reins. It can be a group, an organization, a family, a classroom, a patient ward, or even just your own self. As a female captain is uncommon in a male-dominated field, Captain Sandy Yawn has overcome obstacles to rise to the top.
Captain Sandy, a superyacht captain and the star of Bravo’s Below Deck Mediterranean, shares in her debut book, “Be the Calm or Be the Storm: Leadership Lessons from a Woman at the Helm,” the leadership skills and critical thinking inherent to being a captain that can empower anyone to navigate their way to a successful life based on the leadership lessons she’s gleaned from her resourceful and resilient life.
So many people like myself are surrounded by fear. We make choices out of fear. That is what I had to learn not to do. I choose faith over fear. If I do the next right thing and choose, I have the power to make that choice. I’m okay with the consequences.
Captain Sandy Yawn
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Listen Notes, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube below.
Enjoy!
In This Episode, Captain Sandy Yawn And I Discuss Her Latest Book, Be the Calm or Be the Storm.
In our interview, Captain Sandy Yawn aims to motivate others to triumph over adversity by sharing her story of rising from rock bottom to becoming a prominent maritime industry leader. She candidly speaks about her family’s history of substance abuse and her battles with drug and alcohol addiction, including arrests and life-threatening incidents. We delve into her process of selecting and evaluating her crew before embarking on a charter, including identifying potential and bringing out their best qualities. Captain Sandy also stresses the importance of perseverance and trust in overcoming challenges at sea, as unexpected events can arise despite thorough planning and preparation.
The interview with Captain Sandy Yawn covers the following subjects:
- How do you create awareness that you have a choice?
- What led Captain Sandy joining Below Deck Mediterranean
- The keys to adjusting to change
- The power of faith in overcoming fear
- Why do you have to demonstrate control as a leader
- Charting your own course when you find yourself adrift
- Overcoming pirates and fires at sea
- And much, much more!
- Have any questions, comments, or stories you’d like to share? Drop us a line at [email protected]m!
- And much more…
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More From My Interview With Captain Sandy Yawn
During our interview, I asked Captain Sandy Yawn how she ended up on the Bravo TV hit show Below Deck Mediterranean.
Captain Sandy Yawn explains, “Most things in life that I’ve done since I got clean, I didn’t seek it sought me right. So opportunities come your way when you do the next right thing, and you’re a productive member of society. And I believe in fate, and I think it was fate. I was hit by a car and had kidney cancer. This is all within two months, and then a breakup within that two months.
In that two months, I got the call as I was healing about Below Deck. Because I thought, wow, my career’s over. I lost the business; it was like everything was falling apart, even though it was staying clean. I chose things that really weren’t good for me. Do you know what I mean? Because you can be doing the right thing and still choose the wrong thing. And so basically, it landed in my lap, and I thought, why not. It landed in my lap. People in my industry told me that it was going to kill my career, don’t do it.
And I thought I was really on the fence about doing the show. And I thought it was presented to me. So I’m going to take the opportunity. And there’s no love lost if I don’t do it; I’ll step back into my career, this opportunity. I feel I was given this to reach other people, the millions of people that Bravo reaches.
You can climb out of a hole with help. You can have a career in the maritime industry that people had no idea existed. And this is the result of getting clean and doing the next right thing. And working hard. People think this job is easy. It’s no. We work hard. And there are a lot of sacrifices. And for me, that opportunity was a gift. And I didn’t want to not take that gift.”
Thanks, Captain Sandy Yawn
If you enjoyed this interview with Captain Sandy Yawn, let her know by clicking on the link below and sending her a quick shout on Twitter:
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Resources From The Show With Captain Sandy Yawn
Please note that some of the links on this page (books, movies, music, etc.) lead to affiliate programs for which The Passion Struck podcast receives compensation. It’s just one of the ways we keep the lights on around here. Thank you so much for being so supportive!
- Website: https://captainsandyyawn.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BelowDeckCaptSandy/?ref=br_rs
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/captainsandrayawn/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CaptSandyYawn
- Podcast: http://www.captainsandyyawn.com/podcast
My solo episode on what it means to be a person of courage: https://passionstruck.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-person-of-courage/
Want to hear my best interviews from 2022? Check out episode 233 on intentional greatness and episode 234 on intentional behavior change.
My interview with Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman and Dr. Jordan Feingold on Choosing Growth and transcending self-doubt, fear, and anxiety: https://passionstruck.com/jordyn-feingold-scott-barry-kaufman-chose-growth/
My interview with NYU Stern School of Business Professor Scott Galloway on Why America is Adrift: https://passionstruck.com/scott-galloway-america-is-adrift/
My solo episode on why micro choices matter: https://passionstruck.com/why-your-micro-choices-determine-your-life/
About Today’s Guest, Captain Sandy Yawn
Captain Sandra Yawn (“Captain Sandy”) is a leader, hero, international speaker, and businesswoman whose exceptional leadership style has helped her to break through every obstacle in her path – from the glass ceilings and near-fatal accidents on land to pirates and fires at sea! As a renowned superyacht captain with over 30 years of international maritime experience, Yawn’s integrity and courage have earned her an outstanding reputation as an elite class of captain and recognition from the International Superyacht Society, which bestowed upon her the prestigious Distinguished Crew Award for her bravery in the midst of a catastrophic fire and pirate threat that occurred in 2006 off the coast of Yemen.
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John R. Miles is a serial entrepreneur and the CEO and founder of Passion Struck. This full-service media company helps people live intentionally by creating best-in-class educational and entertainment content. John is also a prolific public speaker, venture capitalist, and author named to the ComputerWorld Top 100 IT Leaders.
John is the host of the PassionStruckPodcast. The show focused on exploring the mindset and philosophy of the world’s most inspiring people to learn their lessons to living intentionally. Passion Struck aspires to speak to the humanity of people in a way that makes them want to live better, be better and impact.