Knowing and Doing | Travel Research Online

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Knowing and Doing

We have a strange relationship with what we know. We know we should have a written business plan, and we know we should have a written budget. We know we should have a mission statement. We know we should always offer travel insurance to our clients or get a waiver.

When we hear best practices, or even the general principles of marketing, sales, and customer service, seldom are we surprised. Good business advice is not often a revelation, but a matter of common sense, reminding us of what we already know.

Moving from “I know” to “I always do” can be a major undertaking. There is a big gap between knowing something and doing something. We sometimes convince ourselves, in fact, that because we know something, we are actually doing it.

PictureWe have to realize ideas provide only the opportunity for enhancing our travel practice and business. But just as importantly, we must learn to adopt the methods necessary to bring the ideas into concrete form. Action is often the missing ingredient in short supply. We have to be willing to apply the idea to ourselves, to put it into action in our practice.

Too often we hear great ideas at trade shows and from our coaches, but we are slow to put the ideas into practice. They go into the briefcase for a later date and we continue doing business as usual. Consequently, we remain stuck in the same place as usual, wondering why all of the money we spent on training or the trade show or the business coach isn’t working.

Here is my recommendation: Retrieve your notes from the last trade show seminar you attended, or from the last session with your business coach. Find and highlight the core of the lesson, the professional advice at the center of the presentation. Narrow it down to a single idea you can accomplish it. Then, apply it to your practice each and every day. Put the advice into action and mold it to your personality and nature.

The next time you attend a training, find at least one nugget of information and absolutely integrate it into your practice. Gear yourself to move from idea to action. Soon, you will be bridging the gap between what you know and what you do. Just as soon, you will find yourself rising above business as usual.

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