We would start our day by reporting to HQ for a team debrief, and the team lead would issue tasks to pairs of us. This would include doing beach patrols, cleaning lifeguard equipment such as sea doos and rescue boards, and closing off sections of the beach prone to seasonal rip currents. We would also have 1-2 training sessions of both free swimming (out to a buoy and back) and using equipment such as the lifeguard ring and rescue boards. That was a typical day.

Pros

The real upside of being a lifeguard was having the privilege of working alongside a great team and also just being able to spend the entire day at the beach – the fresh sea air and sun is a wonderful combination for good health.

The other pros of the job were being able to fulfill a great sense of duty – saving someone’s life in the ocean is incredibly rewarding. Free snacks and drinks – we were lucky enough to have some energy drinks and bar companies sponsor us.

Cons

The downside was having to deal with uncooperative members of the public from time to time. Another would be having to work on cold and rainy days and picking up trash on the beach.

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