| At a travel conference a few years ago, Michael Akana, member of The Travel Institute’s Professional Educators Program, conducted a workshop called “Resiliency.” In it, he explored psychographics of travelers and discussed how to identify those prone to contextual anxiety, such as culture shock, and how to guide them toward expanding their travel options. “Resiliency” focused on a relatively small population – those who will face anxiety or significant barriers to travel. Yet, the same principles can be adapted to expand our own impact and improve the travel experience across our client base. In our exploration today of Transformative Travel, we will discuss five principles.
1. Same package, different experience. Everyone experiences travel differently. When we qualify a client, sometimes the process stops at basic qualifiers of demographics, budget, and travel preferences. What we need to ask is “What will this travel accomplish for you?” Or “How does the upcoming trip fit into your future plans for travel?” We may get stumped with a dismissal of the question with a statement like “Well, we do this every year,” but even this response gives us valuable insight. Perhaps the client values predictability and ritual. “So, tell me some of the rituals or routines that are important for you.”
2. Attitudes and behaviors can change when traveling. Travel can be stressful, or it can be freeing and relaxing. I don’t assume the way clients present themselves to me will be the same way they experience their vacation. Some people who manage others during the workweek are happy to let go and be carefree on vacation. Others are on edge when they lose their daily routine and feel they need some means of controlling their experience when away from home. Where is the client’s mindset when traveling versus during the planning process? Ask questions about feelings. “Tell me of a memorable moment from your last vacation.” “What did the experience feel like?” Timely follow-up helps capture the freshest memories. Of course, if clients insist on keeping to facts and avoid talking about feelings, we respect their boundaries.
3. Dream big. Picture specific destinations. Have an end goal. “Why should I expand my travel options?” Some make a list that they call “the bucket list” – all the destinations they want to visit before kicking the bucket. I don’t use the term unless the client brings it up. A pair of questions I like to ask are 1. “Where would you like to go?” followed by 2. “Where do you need to go?” Are there places they dream about, heard about, or have some historical or family connection to? Can we move from travel as a desire to travel as a necessity?
4. We are resilient. We can overcome barriers. We can face adversity and recover. Sometimes desired destinations seem out of reach. Perceived barriers could be financial, physical, or perhaps don’t fit into the travel plans of a travel companion. In my own travel, I identified barriers, such as finance, fitness level or experience. Is the barrier language? Let’s say someone thinks renting a villa for a few weeks in Tuscany would be a waste without knowing how to speak Italian. We could say they can get by in English or point to the Florentine dialect of Tuscany. Or…maybe… suggest conversational Italian classes showing that your interest and your relationship is long term. Identify the barriers and help overcome them, together.
5. We can transform. We can adapt and grow. Travel can expand our horizons. We can grow from the experience. Focus on people, desires, and goals versus just asking for a laundry list of excursions. In certain discussion rooms, I had heard that “You can have anything you want in life. You just have to be willing to change what you want.” I mistook the phrase to mean that you get what you get, and you have to settle for it. However, that approach misses entirely a wonderful, embedded promise. Our baggage, our assumptions, our competing desires, and responsibilities may, at the moment, inhibit us from reaching our desired goals. To change, we need to first be willing to change.
These reflections may muddle the division between client and advisor. Erasing that division is somewhat intentional. We cannot offer what we do not have. We can face the challenges ourselves as well as lead our clients toward a rewarding travel experience. We can transform – a step at a time, a destination at a time, and an experience at a time. You know the joke with the punchline “You can’t get there from here.” So, tell me, friend, where I need to get to first. We will start there, and together, we will figure out the rest.
By Michael Akana, ECCS, CTC, co-author of soon to be released (scheduled Spring 2023) The Travel Advisor’s Handbook. |
