Twice last week, my clients have paid me a lovely compliment along the lines of – “it’s so good to get a response and for an agent to be patient with me.” “You don’t get upset if I need to change things.” – Similar comments from two different clients…. and it got me thinking!
1) Of course I love what I do – what’s not to love? I spend my days planning exciting trips and holidays for people, each day I journey around the world, often several times over!
2) Are there really travel agents out there who get all uptight and angry if people need to re-arrange things or make changes? I mean it’s our job; we work in a service orientated industry so surely our role is to assist and work with people’s requirements, even if it’s not all smooth sailing? We are putting together people’s dream trips, our clients’ whole experience should be joyful from start to finish!
And my thoughts have also led me to question, or most importantly think about – so why do people do jobs they really don’t like or heaven forbid, don’t want to do or dread going to work to do every day? I mean, yes – I know we all need to make a living, earn money and provide for our families and lifestyle, but most of us spend at least 40 hours per week working. Surely, it’s so important to do something we love to do, something we are passionate about?
I’m a firm believer that every morning we all get out of bed and we have a choice to make at that instant – is it going to be a good day or a bad day? And whatever we decide at that point will usually be true!
If we are doing a job that is satisfying, rewarding and fun (within reason of course), then almost every day should be a great day! Every day should be enjoyable, give us a purpose and make us feel happy. It’s unrealistic to think that every day will be perfect without stress or pressure but if every day is this way, then maybe it’s time for a review.
It’s often said that people do not just work for the money, and I do tend to think this is true… people like to be recognised for their efforts and to be rewarded along the way, and not necessarily all financial rewards. It’s also about feeling important, contributing to a team or delivering a great service to clients.
I do know that I am lucky, I work in an industry that is exciting with something happening different every single day. It can be a job with sometimes lots of pressure and often lots of deadlines but the benefits and rewards by far exceed the stressful side of things, or I think so anyway. As I said at the beginning, I love what I do, and it looks as if this shows… and I guess this means my mission, of doing something I love to do every day, is accomplished.