TSA is a ball!!! The people you meet and the tricks you learn are invaluable.

I hope to meet you at one of their tournaments.

Redfin offers good advice. How many times have we ventured into our "dream" job and found out it wasn't so "dreamy."

Only way to know is to give it a try.

Not so sure about up and moving to another state. You might try here local first.

My .02...

Amen to Redfin!!!!

Oh the pressure to produce can be very hard on your nerves. Make sure you have a for sure income !
Go for it ....
Rudy Lackey

I am glad to see personality mentioned. Thats something that is extremely important. I would say its almost as important as catching fish.

I use guides on a regular basis to entertain clients and personality is critical . I am in sales and most of my clients go to get away and have a great time on my expense. I look for a knowledgeable guide that has a sense of humor. Most of my clients are not full time fisherman so patience is a virtue. Best guide is one that can keep you entertained by catching fish and keep you rolling in the boat.

I have guided part time and full time since 1980. This year I have officially retired from guiding due to tendonitis and worn out rotator cuffs from throwing a cast net too much. It is the hardest WORK you will ever do, IF you intend to build it as a business. Put every dime you make into the bank because it is like farming, you never know when you will work or if the crop will raise. Have an understanding wife, my first one didn't. It's really not a family life. I have guided from New Mexico to North Carolina for striped bass, and a lot of places in between. You will spend half your time STUDYING maps and satelite photos if you want to be good. BE honest with yourself and your clientele, no fish/no pay and your business will grow by your honest reputation. (most folks will pay anyway when you have an off day just out of the goodness of their hearts). Very few clients I have ever had were bad, I could count on one hand the number, so from my experience that was never a problem. As was said have a second income, unless you get corporate sponsors you will never get rich fishing. You must LOVE being outdoors, rain, shine, wind, cold. You must enjoy all types of people (you are the captain of your boat and YOU determine what kind of crowd you fish with) if you allow alcohol on your boat you will eventually have to deal with a drunk. I had years and most summers where I fished from March thru October with less than 2 days off, usually a minimum 12 hour day and sometimes 16 hour. I doubt you would ever hear one of my clients say they had a bad day. Best I ever made was $88,000.00 after adjusting for expenses, average was in $35,000.00 range BUT I kept the best tackle money would buy, and a new rig every 5 years too. Unlike others who guide here it was/is a challenge to me to fish with clients on new waters, a home lake is fine but you get in a rut. I won lots of money and prizes fishing Striper tournaments too,won state striper championships in Tennessee, South Carolina,and tied for National Champion
on 3 different tours, but they all folded or are folding. It is a big tax write off and is a good business to hide income in. You can expense the boat, truck, mileage, boat gas (not truck gas) all tackle, ice, supplies, office space, computer, cell phone,professional fees, license, parking, airline travel (if associated with the business), advertisement, meals BUT you have to show a profit at least every 3 years cause if Uncle Sammy audits you he may declare the business a "hobby" and go after you for back taxes. With the internet and many fishing websites it is easy to advertise, in my opinion when the business gets going good your loyal clients will keep the business going (sometimes too well).With gas prices going out the roof you better have a good business plan, and I suggest first sitting down and putting your plan to paper then letting your accountant vet that. There are a lot of people who have claimed the "guide" moniker, but very few had a clue what they were getting into. After all there is no test to be a "guide" you pays your guide license fee and "voila" you are one but in name only. Your reputation will be EARNED, and then ONLY by hard work, dedication, and above all "honesty".

If you think ya got what it takes then be like Nike - Go for it.

Lateral Line Trophy Guide Services Ret.

I�ve thought about guiding for years, but never have taken the plunge. I would have to keep my day job and guide part time if I tried it. I have to have health insurance for my family through my work. I�ve been self-employed before and I can not afford good insurance on my own! Be sure you keep that in mind.

Thanks guys,

I really do appreciate all the info.

Lot's of good advice from the Guides! I would add that you might want to consider focusing on a specific type of fishing/fish, or niche. My Son and I have marketed our Guide Service to Families and Kids, and do a lot of the "easy to catch" type fishing with White Bass being our bread and butter. While Kids require more attention and are high maintenance, we enjoy it and it'a a niche that other Guides don't always want to pursue.

Some Guides are versatile enough to catch Whites, Stripers, Hybrids, Crappie, Catfish, Bream, etc., but it's best to zero in on one or two and really hone your skills.

Lastly, I really agree with the financial advice given. I worked thirty years in the Corporate World before early retiring to pursue my dream. If you can't afford to go about three years without much business in order to build a Guide Business, don't try it Full Time. We fish six days a week (all but Sunday), and offer AM, PM & Night Trips.

The two main reasons you see lot's of Guides come and go are (1) Financially tough to make a living, and (2) It's much more physically and mentally challenging than they were willing to cope with.

After sounding a bit negative, I'm ten times happier now than I was in the Corporate World, (Haven't been on an Airplane or in a Meeting Room in five years! ) and my Son and I have a successful business that allows us to enjoy God's Outdoors everyday!

Good Luck!

Royce
www.gonefishin.biz

All these guys are right...I started guiding in 1999 and I found out really quick that its not what I thought it was. Don't do it for the money and you had better be a fish finding machine because the first time one of your best holes goes south...you only have a short time to figure them out...very stressful!
Steve

Royce and All, This thread has been very enlightening for me. After 23 years in the Army and another 24 years in the Corp world, I am now in my 2d week of fulltime Stiper Guide Fishing on Texoma...This past week with the scorching temps has been very hard for fishing and on the old soldier. All the details discussed by each of you, I have experienced ( I think)...Bottom Line, I will be here until the end and enjoy each moring that I wake up and thank the Good Lord for giving me one more day...as opposed to my buddies who didn't make it back from Vietnam..joebear

Last note: If you have a wife "make sure she has a job".

A question for all the guides that have posted on this thread. What do you think of a sandbass tournament trial? We had so much fun with the first two that Boston Bob came up with I thought we might try and take it to another level. We still have alot of kinks to work out but thought I would ask the pros for some advise.

Just want to say, Thanks to all that have taken the time and replied to this thread. You all have given a large bit of advice and info on this subject and it is very much appreciated.

Thanks again very much,
Kelly