Why hello savvy travel expert!
Tracy and I celebrated Travel Agents Day in Long Island at the annual LITAA event with some fun travel agents. I love getting out of the office and meeting face-to-face with all the amazing, super interesting clients we serve.
In today’s Travel Expert Insider, we’re talking about something really important that’s critical to your long-term success AND happiness.
I sometimes hear new business owners (or more often, the spouses/partners of these new business owners) say something like this: After we get X number of clients or make X number of dollars, then we’ll invest in marketing and education.
My response: “So, how are you going to get those clients and that money if you don’t have solid marketing skills?”
In all other areas of life, training is what clears the path to success — whether it’s a formal degree, an apprenticeship, or hours of dedicated practice.
Imagine someone contemplating going to med school and saying, “Well, I’ll just do a few small surgeries first, see if I can make a few diagnoses, and then decide if I want to invest $300,000 in my education.”
If that sounds crazy, it’s because it is.
Creating and running a successful business takes investments. The upfront investments of time, energy, and money, and ongoing investments to build new skills, stay on top of trends, marketing, and expanding yourself personally and professionally.
Is this a risk? Absolutely! Risk is built into being an entrepreneur. It’s part of what makes it a thrilling adventure for those of us who are made for it. If you have no appetite for risk, then owning your own business is almost certainly not for you — and that’s okay. There is zero shame in getting a job and working for someone else.
There is also a law of averages at play. That is, you’ll probably make some relatively small investments that pay off big, and you’ll probably make mistakes that cost you. If you keep working at it, can ride out the bumps, and are open to learning the maximum amount from every success and failure, then eventually, you’re much more likely to gain the momentum to keep you humming along even through the dips.
Investing in your business — and your life! — is a process that doesn’t end. Even when you reach success, whatever that looks like for you, the work still needs to be done. You have the opportunity to take on new challenges, to serve in new ways, to grow in ways you would never have predicted. Success is not a fixed point. It’s not a destination. It’s an invitation to continue expanding.
When you’re contemplating taking that leap and investing in your business, think of the Zen proverb: “Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.”
Investing in your business is work — but it’s beautiful work that brings you more gifts than you could imagine.
Love & Success,
Heidi and Your Marketing Team
P.S. My passion is to help entrepreneurs build the businesses and lives of their dreams. I created the Travel Expert Marketing Academy to be one of the best investments you could make in your business to see that happen. The Academy will….
– Save you time – no more trial and error marketing strategies, or having to keep up with the constant changes to Facebook, Google, etc.
– Help you lay a rock-solid business and marketing foundation for long-term success
– Give you a support system
– Help you define or redefine your niche and ideal client avatar into one that you thoroughly enjoy and that makes you money!
– Help you create an effective marketing system that consistently brings in new IDEAL clients
– Help you streamline and automate as many of your business and marketing processes
– Help you get the dream booking with a planning fee in a feel-good non-salesy way
– Help you leverage the internet and become a little more tech-savvy
– Help you grow as a person – become happier, healthier and richer!
In a nutshell, we’ve designed the academy to be the most valuable tool in your business.
If you’re not yet a member of the Academy, I invite you to come to a FREE preview (held online via webinar).
Get the details and register now here.
