Concern for the mental well-being of seafarers has long become a mandatory topic at maritime seminars and forums, standing alongside physical safety. Even when a shipowner provides gyms, recreation areas, sports grounds, and free Wi-Fi on board, none of these can guarantee psychological stability. Today, as ever, communication remains a person’s greatest asset. It helps seafarers complete their contracts from first to last month – and find their place within an unfamiliar crew.
In Ukraine, psychological consultations and training courses for seafarers are gaining increasing demand. Greta Prykhodko, a psychologist at UTC Admiral, told The Maritime Telegraph about the importance of building communication within the crew, the behavior model of a true leader, and much more.
MT: What psychological challenges do seafarers face during a voyage?
Crew members often find it difficult to adapt to life at sea. Among the key stress factors are confined space, constant vibration, time zone changes, daily routine, and limited social interaction. Unlike shore-based workers, a seafarer cannot simply leave the workplace, meet family and friends, or release accumulated tension. Any remark – fair or not – can unsettle an already stressed mind. Therefore, the command staff bears an additional responsibility: to unite the crew into a cohesive team.
MT: How can a positive psychological climate be maintained on board?
Every experienced mariner will say that a well-coordinated, professional crew is the key to any successful voyage – and building such a crew is a real science. During my lectures, I explain how important it is that our words align with our body language. Gestures and facial expressions can convey an entirely different message from what we intend to say.
Nonverbal communication can even help overcome language barriers – particularly in crisis situations, when words may fail but gestures can still bring understanding.
MT: Are there principles of effective communication between leaders and subordinates? What can demotivate a person?
There are several fundamental rules that help one become both a good leader and a valuable team member. It’s possible to unite the crew only when everyone is treated equally. A captain, chief engineer, or any other leader must not have “favorites.” Criticism and praise alike should be expressed carefully and in private. Remarks made in front of others are one of the fastest ways to demotivate a crew member.
In today’s multinational crews, it’s easy to forget that every person has a different background, skill level, and experience. Sometimes a seafarer does the best he can in a given situation. It’s essential to emphasize that criticism targets the work, not the individual. Follow the principle: “If you reject, propose.” Even justified criticism is far less effective than explaining how the task should be performed correctly.
MT: How to earn the crew’s respect if you are a captain at 30?
The ideal crew dynamic exists when formal and informal leadership are embodied in the same person. But when a seafarer becomes a captain or chief engineer in his early thirties, it can be challenging to build authority among older subordinates. Sometimes the influence of an informal leader can outweigh that of the appointed one. Many have seen situations where deckhands follow the boatswain’s orders rather than those of a young chief officer.
If you have under your command such a professional as, for example, a boatswain with solid experience of working on ships, use this opportunity to supplement your knowledge in one field or another. The tactic of “my opinion is the only correct one” is a sure step toward remaining just a formal leader, without earning the respect of your team members. Authority is not something that comes together with a position in the command staff; it can be gained only by proving yourself as a reliable person whom others want to follow. Be afraid to look like a soft-handed officer! Show in practice that you weren’t born with stripes, that you started from the bottom just like your subordinates. Communicative flexibility, the ability to listen to another’s opinion, and to adopt effective examples of behavior are the qualities that will make you a good leader.
MT: How should a formal leader interact with an informal one?
Never compete with an informal leader for influence among the crew – doing so will only undermine your own authority. A wise leader delegates certain responsibilities to the informal leader, forming a partnership that, through synergy, builds not just a ship’s crew but true team spirit. Positive communication is the key to keeping the crew motivated and not counting down the days until the end of the voyage.
MT: How to get rid of prejudice toward other nationalities?
Another stumbling block often found in the modern fleet is prejudice toward other nationalities – or, on the contrary, toward one’s own. Prejudice has never been a rarity, but it is nothing more than the result of labeling. In our minds, trying to classify the people around us, we often assign them traits that belong to someone else’s individual character. By being biased toward this or that nationality, we make life harder first of all for ourselves, because every nation and every individual has their own advantages and shortcomings. Before you draw a line between “us” and “them,” think about what positive things you can learn from a person of another nationality. Anyone can build friendly relations with anyone. It depends not so much on your interlocutor as on you – and how you make a person feel toward you.
MT: Is it true that language is the main barrier to effective communication?
It may seem that effective communication on board depends only on your command of English. In fact, language is not the main obstacle. Even with modest English, you can establish good relations with people of different nationalities, faiths, or temperaments. The rule is simple – treat your colleagues openly, learn to listen to them, and put yourself in their place. The gestures and facial expressions that accompany your words should match what you are saying; then the level of trust toward you will increase many times over. Believe me, your desire to reach out and make contact with other crew members will not go unnoticed. When others see how easily you communicate, they will reach out to you themselves.
MT: How can communication help achieve success in different spheres of life?
Without the slightest exaggeration, I can say that a person who possesses communication possesses the world. Having communicative flexibility, one can find a way out of almost any situation in all spheres of life – whether it is career advancement or building personal relationships. If a seafarer finds it hard to establish communiation with colleagues, he may work for many years in the same position. My advice is simple – treat people the way you would like to be treated. You don’t have to constantly prove your capability as a qualified specialist; show simple human qualities like attention and sensitivity. Show yourself as a person ready to support a colleague and lend a helping hand.
Being able to communicate is important not only for the ship’s command, as leaders of the crew, but also for the ratings, because, as they say, a bad soldier is the one who doesn’t dream of becoming a general.
