Wrap your foot around the mast base - Wrapping your front foot around the mast base as you're turning upwind minimizes the number of steps you will need to gain the new side of the sail, greatly improving your chances of success.
Step over early - Step around the mast early while your board still has speed. You don't need to be going straight into the wind, stepping around with your board heading towards 11 or 11:30 is ideal. 12:00 being straight upwind and 6:00 being straight downwind.
Keep the rig away from you - Keeping your rig at arms length from you the entire time helps keep you balanced.
Trade places with the rig - When you're stepping around the mast think of it as trading places with your rig. Keeping your rig at arm's length and backwinding it slightly helps keep your balance. As soon as your new front hand is on the boom, bring the rig across your body and upwind.
Drop low and use a wide grip to bear off - Once you are ready to bear off and sail away grab the boom with a really wide grip, drop low anticipating a lot of power, transfer your weight to your front food and expose the mast to the wind in order to steer your board downwind and in the direction you want to sail away.
