October | 2017 | Travel with Rosana Chermisqui Travel with Rosana Chermisqui Providing travel business advice and guidance to travel agents Menu Skip to content Home About Contact Facebook Twitter Instagram Search Search for: Month: October 2017 Achieving Goals October 31, 2017 October 30, 2017 / travelwithrosana / Leave a comment Dear Travel Agents, Let’s talk about goals. Success is about setting goals and achieving them, and once we get there, we celebrate and ….. Well, allow me to tell you about my personal goals. Since the time I was a little child in Brazil from a very simple background, I dreamed of visiting 75 countries. At that time, I had not even imagined going to live in the US, but I always nurtured this dream. Why 75? Probably because that was the total number of safe countries I could think of in the entire world, back in the late 70s when I was 18. Fast forward – I am in Australia, celebrating my 75th country, and going to New Zealand – number 76. So what is next? Should I “retire” and live happily ever after, or should I set another goal? If I set another goal, what does that say about me? That I am never happy? Interesting thoughts, especially if we apply them to all other kinds of goals in life. Then what? In my case, I have decided to set other goals and visit 120 countries, including Antarctica, (then having traveled on 7 continents). I’ll plan these trips better, because I have so much experience from achieving my first goal. I am more mature, and am treating myself in a more kind way. All this comes from experience and age, for sure. I googled how many countries there are in the world NOW. According to my search: “There are 195 countries in the world today. This total comprises 193 countries that are member states of the United Nations and 2 countries that are non-member observer states: the Holy See and the State of Palestine.” Politics aside, most websites agree with these numbers. However, some countries are unsafe, so that limits me a lot in achieving my next goal. Fortunately, I found one website that says there are 247 countries in the world, because it counts every single island, even Twain, and others. It will be my choice to decide how I will achieve my new goal. After all, it is my goal and if I do it, it will be my way. How about you? Are you working on achieving your goals? Follow me at: Facebook @ travelwithrosana Instagram @ travelwithrosana Twitter @ travelRosana Blogs @ http://www.travelwithrosana.wordpress.com Falling in love with Africa October 24, 2017 October 23, 2017 / travelwithrosana / Leave a comment Dear Travel Agent, How many of you sell some of the countries in Africa to your clients? Personally, I love Africa for every reason: cultural, adventure, beaches, history, animals and awesome hospitality. I haven’t been to all the countries, and not all are safe, but many are. We should all take advantage and visit. I could spend hours talking about each of one of the countries I have visited, and the others that are on my bucket list. Let me give you a little teaser and ask you to investigate more about these places, ask suppliers for more material, and promote them to your clients. EGYPT – I have been there twice, and took one of my favorite pictures there (I am not such a good photographer), of the Nile River. It is a safe place to visit, and people feel very embraced by the rich history and the beauty of the country. My suggestion is to do 4 days on the Nile River, and if time allows, don’t miss Abu Simbel on the way back to Cairo from Aswan. SOUTH AFRICA – when we went in August (winter time in the southern hemisphere), it was great. Not so cold, and not crowded at all. I fell in love with the diversity of activities in Cape Town and the history of Johannesburg. Safari was delightful, since most of the trees had no foliage so we could see far ahead. We incorporated Victoria Falls into this trip, so we also experienced ZIMBABWE and did a safari in BOTSWANA as well. KENYA and TANZANIA – If you can, offer this trip to your clients during the migration (in May or October). It is great to combine the two countries. As they say: “Hakuna Matata,” or “Poli Poli!” You can see the beauty of the cycle of life, and find the serenity one feels there. On my short bucket list are: UGANDA, MOROCCO and SEYCHELLES. What countries in Africa do you recommend to your clients? Follow me at: Instagram @ travelwithrosana Facebook @ travelwithrosana Twitter @ travelRosana Blogs@ http://www.travelwithrosana.wordspress.com How I wish… October 17, 2017 October 15, 2017 / travelwithrosana / Leave a comment Dear Travel Agent, Have you ever wished that you started your business years ago? Or wished for more friends? More followers? More money…… How easy is to go on in the land of “How I Wish”! People do all the time, and this causes frustration and anxiety. These thoughts can happen to anyone at any time. It also happens to people who you believe have everything, because truly, no one has everything! I love reading the posts of travel agents celebrating their first booking. I still remember mine, and the emotions I felt. The feeling of accomplishment was gigantic, it couldn’t fit it inside myself. Or how I felt on my first trip to Europe… My first time in an airplane… My first cruise… (I brought so many medications because I was sure I was going to be seasick!) I love the feeling of arriving in a new country and being amazed by a different culture, colors, smell, etc. I also love the posts of people thanking God for another day, and celebrate having another opportunity to start again. What happens to the memory of those wonderful feelings when people spend their time thinking, “How I wish I had …..?” How can we guide our thoughts to think about our blessings instead of “How I Wish?” How many of us imagine that others wish to be just like us? Life is not always fair, and I am writing all of this not only to remind you, but also to remind myself to be less critical of myself, to treat myself more kindly, and to be my own real best friend. Life is too short, especially when we spend our time frowning and wishing we had, or we were, or we did. To all the beauty in the world that only those who really love themselves can see and celebrate, raise your head high and smile. You deserve to see the beauty and feel happy! Cheers to you! Follow me at: Instagram @travelwithrosana Facebook @travelwithrosana Twitter @travelRosana Blog @ http://www.travelwithrosana.wordpress.com Budgets and Travel October 10, 2017 October 8, 2017 / travelwithrosana / Leave a comment Dear Travel Agent, How many of your clients can travel often, and how many clients have been referred to you? This is a rhetorical question; I am not actually trying to do a survey, but just want you to reflect on these questions. A travel agent’s world would be a perfect place if only all their clients would travel few times a year, and if they all referred their friends and families, and their friends and families would take their recommendation and become perfect clients, and so on…. Unfortunately, not every client can travel that often because a word in the dictionary, “budget.” Others don’t travel to some destinations or even cancel their plans because of another word, “fear” (of hurricanes, terrorism, earthquakes, security, epidemics, etc.) Let’s focus on BUDGET. It is definitely a very personal and delicate subject that needs to be discussed with each of our clients. Some wise posts on social media, or comments in general when socializing can put a great spin of this conversation, and demonstrate the benefit of the business of travel. I do that quite often in my posts, by using comparisons: Travel is cheaper than Botox, it doesn’t hurt, and it lasts longer! An experienced travel agent may be able to help you better than a therapist can. Tell them your problems and she/he will send you to a paradise destination. For cigarette smokers, quitting a pack a day habit can pay for travel once a year Traveling once a year keeps the doctor away. (Think how much more relaxed and less stressed one feels, which can help reduce the effects of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc.) By giving your clients food for thought, you can help them prioritize things in their lives, and provide incentive to budget more for travel. You are just stating the truth, and showing them reasons that living a full and enjoyable life has an impact on the other word: FEAR. We need to live every day to the fullest, enjoy every picture, every place and every memory. Life in this world happens only once, so we need to make the most of it. Follow me at: Instagram @travelwithrosana Facebook @travelwithrosana Twitter @travelRosana Blog @ http://www.travelwithrosana.wordpress.com A Calling Versus a Profession October 3, 2017 September 28, 2017 / travelwithrosana / Leave a comment Dear Travel Agent, I try to read the posts, Tweets, blogs and check the Instagram accounts of as many of my friends and followers as I can possibly can. It is important to me to know what travel agents think, and how they deal with their current and prospective clients. I see how much each and every travel agent cares, and how important it is to them to do a good job. Rarely (almost never) do I see questions about which vendors pay more commission, but only about which ones give better service. There are no classes for CARING, nor there are classes for wanting to make a client happy. Some people are born that way, and some aren’t. Self-centered people do not care as much about making others happy, nor do they put their clients center stage. The travel agents who succeed are the nurturing ones – self-assured, caring, respectful and who want to make their clients happy. Having a backbone is as important as the nurturing, because the CARE needs to be pointed at both sides: the client/prospective client, and the travel agent/self. Being a travel agent is more than a profession, it is a calling. There are many times that agents are connected 24/7 to make sure everything is alright, that the client is safe, even before he/she knows that there could be a problem. It is like a big successful play where the actors are the clients, and the travel agent is the backstage crew. The actors look beautiful and get standing ovations, thanks to the caring and loving work from backstage. The play is the beautiful world they travel and enjoy – taking many pictures, smiling throughout, and telling others what a journey it has been! To all the travel agents and those who work backstage making sure life is a great success to many, cheers! Follow me at: Instagram @travelwithrosana Facebook @travelwithrosana Twitter @travelRosana Blog @ http://www.travelwithrosana.wordpress.com Search for: Follow Blog via Email Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. 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