I am often asked where my ideas come from. I am quick to point out to the one asking the question that this is an interesting inquiry. Answer: From living every day and, sometimes, paying attention to the humor in it all.

This morning, however, the title of this article came from a quote from a travel agent who specializes in African Safaris as I was clicking my way aimlessly on my laptop enjoying my second cup of coffee Read the rest of this entry »

If I got one thing straight during my eight years of sitting in front of the nuns of Notre Dame back in the fifties and early sixties, it was that all things considered, telling the truth was the right thing to do. Quizzes, tests, and exams were built around the concept. (True or false?) Overnight sleepovers featured the popular game. (Truth of Dare?) We were taught early on (via fictitious stories) that, if you didn’t tell the truth, your nose would grow Read the rest of this entry »

The year 2023 has come and gone and there isn’t much, if anything, you can do to change the outcome of your actions or inactions. The results, as they pertain to your business, are “in the bank” so to say.

What you can do, and you have just about all the ammunition you need, is to make 2024 a year for the record books. But, I caution against any unchained optimism.

It is common for you, me, and virtually every hard-working entrepreneur to jot down a few New Year Resolutions designed to fatten their wallet and keep their bodies in Read the rest of this entry »

It recently dawned on me that many travel advisors do not have a firm handle on what they do.

Of course, there is planning and researching, booking and the like… but what do you really do?

I asked myself this very same question recently and came up with an answer I could actually identify with. Perhaps my imaginary late-night interview might help you.

If I was ever interviewed on a Late-Night Talk Show, it would unfold something like this Read the rest of this entry »

You might recognize these three words as the popular motto of a very successful sports company. Nike is the name of the company, and I must admit that the slogan took off quickly and is easy to internalize.

You might have guessed by now, however, that I am about to take exception to this motivating mantra. As a brand-new year stares us in the face, I am asking you to step back for a moment to think about the challenges, opportunities, and success stories that lie ahead Read the rest of this entry »

To blatantly state the blinding flash of the obvious, another year has come and is nearly gone. What you did or did not accomplish in the year 2023 is now yesterday’s news. I’m sure you have a few things you can be proud of… and a few more things you wish you had addressed.

But as the British duo Chad and Jeremy reminded us in song back in 1964, Yesterday’s Gone, “But that was yesterday, and yesterday’s gone.” Read the rest of this entry »

When developing a game plan for growing your business, it is only natural to begin looking for new prospects in new opportunities.

The truth of the matter—you already have a boatload of names for you to begin reestablishing a relationship with at once. I’m talking about former clients who you are no longer doing business with.

The reason you don’t try to approach these former clients usually has something to do with the fact that you think you did something wrong along the way Read the rest of this entry »

Looking back over the past few months, I find myself smiling at the many household accomplishments I have made. I will be quick to admit that many of these have spent a long time in the “incubation” stage much to the chagrin of my wife.

It seems I can overlook things needing attention far faster than my wife. I trust I am not the only husband who can identify with this apparent “flaw.” In any event, the summer of 2023 was the year I scratched off a slew of items from my “To-Do List.” Read the rest of this entry »

There is a lyric in a country song that says, “Everybody wants to go to heaven. They just don’t want to go right now.” Oddly enough, that phrase reminded me of a similar soundbite that says, “Everybody wants to be successful. They just don’t want to pay the price.”

Whether you end up in heaven or not is beyond my immediate purview, but I can shed some light on how you can become more successful. The good news is that it just could be easier than you might think. Here are five reminders to help you get started: Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s message introduces two reminders that I feel are extremely important.  The first one reminds us of the Law of Attraction while the second reminds us of how to use just three questions to position strangers for future interaction. Let’s look at one at a time.

I remember the day like it was yesterday, when I first found myself attracted to a member of the opposite sex. And it wasn’t my idea Read the rest of this entry »

The first step in customer service is making your callers feel welcome. After 20 years of working with entrepreneurs and small companies, I have come to identify and endorse a common trait that is preventing a more rapid growth curve. “Talk is cheap!” As a former athlete myself, I remember hearing the sage advice that “you have to walk your talk.” The New York Giants head coach recently put this into perspective when he told his team, “It is time we stop telling people how good we are and start getting good.” Read the rest of this entry »

As is the case every September, the US Open Tennis Tournament takes place in New York City with the very best players coming to compete for a $3 million dollar prize. You read correctly. $3 million dollars for bouncing a ball back and forth over a net while grunting and sweating profusely in temperatures exceeding 100 degrees.

The money in sports, both in college and professional events has become somewhat bewildering… but that is a topic for another day Read the rest of this entry »

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a fellow sales trainer and public speaker, and I want to share a few of the highlights from our interview in today’s article.

I enjoyed “bantering” with The Telephone Doctor, but I know her as Nancy Friedman. Nancy was referred to me by my good friend and fellow speaker Stuart Cohen. He suggested that Nancy might be perfect to appear on one of my biweekly sales meetings for my Inner Circle sales group. As always, Stuart was right on the money, and Nancy was very quick to accept my invitation Read the rest of this entry »

Being “too busy” was just one of the key points (excuses) addressed during an interview I had in July with fellow author, consultant, and all-around good person Marsha Haygood. This is a common retort from more than a few people when asked why they have not followed through on some previously identified goal or objective. “I am/was/will be too busy.”

The truth is that we all have used that excuse from time to time, but the facts are Read the rest of this entry »

It is important that you learn the importance of not playing to the wrong audience. I’ve reminded you of this simple fact more than once. There are people out there who do not want your help. But this does not suggest you stop promoting your services to your marketplace. “But I don’t want to bother people.” That is the common response I hear when I ask clients why they are not attempting to remain more visible in their marketplace.

Read the rest of this entry »

My dad was a salesman. He regularly left home on two-week missions to sell more of his “electronic gizmos” in order to pay the mortgage for a home large enough to house my mother and their seven children. I was #2 and I remember those days like it was yesterday. “Mike,” you say, “who cares?” Stay tuned… I am talking to you. My dad loved to fly and he loved his work. Based on our comfortable living conditions while growing up in a big house that was open 24/7 to all shape and size kids, and their friends, he was a successful salesman Read the rest of this entry »

I remember as if it were yesterday, hearing the following words at the home of two Russian immigrants in Chicago. The husband was now an emergency room surgeon while his wife was a successful travel professional. Their home was modest, yet beautifully furnished. The good doctor said after passing the rolls at the dinner table, “If you can’t make it in America, you can’t make it.” Those words stuck with me over the years. That was more than 25 years ago, and I think of that sentence every time I present to a room full of travel professionals Read the rest of this entry »

Being my own boss (pulling my own strings) for over thirty years has taught me quite a bit about persistence, resilience, and discipline. While on the subject, feel free to toss in the words, focus, collaboration, creativity, boldness, disappointment, futility, and uncertainty. I’ve learned a lot through the years, although the more experience I’ve gained it seems the more I don’t understand. Here are five areas that still leave me scratching my head. Read the rest of this entry »

If I had to pick two words that consistently raised the cackles on my neck when sharing some advice with my stepson during his early years, it was his knee-jerk response. Here I was sharing my hard-earned experience in an effort to help him circumvent a foolish mistake, and he hits me with “I know.”

(Combine “I know” with an eye-roll and there was cause to immediately dial 911—just in case the old man might blow a gasket.) Read the rest of this entry »

Who Do You Trust?

A handful of seasoned travel agents will recognize these four words as the title of a TV show first introduced in the early fifties and hosted by Johnny Carson.

Fast-forward nearly 60 years, and these four words still represent an interesting question.

Exactly who can we trust today? Read the rest of this entry »

The headline read: “All Indications Point Toward a Banner Year For Travel Professionals According to James T. Bigelow”

You don’t know the writer, and he doesn’t know you. Yet I am quite certain that you are feeling better about your travel business knowing there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Things are looking up, according to some person known as an “authority.” In this case it’s James T. Bigelow Read the rest of this entry »