Continuing our ongoing “Five Secrets to Success” series, in which we aim to discover the best tips that luxury advisors can offer that led to their business (and personal) achievements, we spoke with Amy Hellman of JB’s World Travel Consultants. She was featured in the December 2016 Trendsetters issue of Luxury Travel Advisor.
Hellman puts a large focus on the psyche as a motivator when selling travel—and, in return, in being successful in life. Dressing for success, abiding by a personal motto, and making sure she always enjoys what she’s doing are all part of the recipe. However, in its simplest form, Hellman says her success is derived from her communication with her clients. Here's what she told us:
- Be candid—I am an extremely candid person, and 99 percent of the time I say exactly what is on my mind. I have found that clients appreciate the honesty and truthfulness of my reactions and answers to questions. I feel that this helps to connect with the client on a deeper level and builds trust in our agency and recommendations.
- Use technology only as an aid—I refuse to let technology think for me. Instead, I treat it like a personal assistant and utilize it when necessary to quickly connect with a hotel 6,000 miles away or to be able to give a client an instantaneous answer, but I do not rely on it. I treat technology like a tool; while it is important to get the job done, I still believe that personal connections and networking are the most important secrets in a successful career.
- Spend money—I spend most of my money on traveling to better my knowledge of social, political and cultural issues that are affecting the world. The secret to ultimate success is just being happy in your life and what you are doing and accomplishing for yourself and others. I strongly believe that I am always one decision away from a completely different life and this helps to keep me grounded and focused on what I want and what is truly important.
- Develop a personal motto—Developing a person mantra allows me to sit down at my desk in the right mindset every day. My personal motto is: The only way to make yourself valuable is to keep yourself priceless.
- I do not believe in LinkedIn—I would like to save you the time of searching for my profile on LinkedIn, as you will not find it. I am holding steadfast to the ideals of the importance of the art of conversation. I would much rather chat about the professional connections I have and my previous experiences instead of being reduced to another searchable profile. Not only does this give us a great chance to interact but you also get to hear my voice and my passion. So let’s talk!
Be sure to keep checking out Luxury Travel Advisor for more Secrets to Success from our featured advisors!
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