September 2021 may not look exactly as you thought it might, but why not take this somewhat challenging time to reinforce the best practices you put in place during the nadir of the pandemic? Schedule fun Zoom calls that bring clients and suppliers together and do whatever you can to keep the tone light. There’s nothing wrong with crafting a get-together to simply shrug your shoulders in simple wonder that we’re still dealing with COVID in a variety of ways. The topic will surely turn to future travel and it will be great to get clients dreaming again for 2022 and beyond.
Check in with your advisors, as well. They have pivoted and re-pivoted and you’ve done a great job to keep their spirits high but they might be getting a tad frustrated over the need to rebook still more trips or to hold their clients’ hands as they counsel them over conflicting news reports on the travel landscape.
Now, check in with yourself and recall exactly what got you through the past year and a half. Let’s cut to the chase, it was touching base with fellow advisors and comparing notes with suppliers who have become even closer friends than they were in years past. We really need each other to get ourselves to the finish line. We’re so close and the more we cheer each other on, the less frustrating our days will be.
Becky Lukovic is profiled in this issue and I found her views on the industry refreshing. She really counts on interactions with other advisors to fuel her enthusiasm and creativity for this business; she is always learning from colleagues. The standout comment she made was a quote from a session she attended with Anne Scully of Embark Beyond. “[Anne] said...that I should always treat my partners with kindness, grace and respect,” says Lukovic. This is truer now more than ever. Suppliers are going through their own trying times, with labor shortages and world events forcing them to alter programs. Empathy goes a long way.
What else inspired me about Lukovic? She says that at heart we’re not meant to be armchair travelers and that we’ll all be back out in the world soon enough, exploring and finding ways to make clients’ dreams come true. She also reminds us that luxury means different things to different people; it could be butler service in a fantastic hotel suite or a hike through one of the world’s greatest wonders. No matter how challenging times might be just now, all of that loveliness is still waiting for you, and your clients in the very near future, I promise.
For those of you who are out there exploring, please share your stories and for those of you who have recently sent your clients out into the world, we’d love to hear about it and share your successes.
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