Go Big or Go Home! | Travel Research Online

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Go Big or Go Home!

A while back, my family decided we should all go to the casino for an afternoon of fun, and maybe even a little profit. Now, I am not a big gambler; but, I figured, it costs at least a hundred bucks to see a movie these days. So, I was fine with a few hours.

One of the players at our blackjack table kept repeating these words, “Go big or go home.” As a businessperson, I am used to taking calculated risks; but I have to admit we gambled big with the future of our travel agency.

Outwardly, we were very successful. We sold a high volume of contemporary product and because of this, we were often treated like VIPs. We were flown first class to inaugural events, served lavish dinners with industry executives, and so on.

However, internally we were hemorrhaging money and in real danger of going out of business. We were a high service business trying to compete on price for the volume and the perks – it just doesn’t work.

So, we made the biggest bet since starting the company. We turned our business model 180 degrees and began focusing on attracting affluent customers as our overall sales strategy. Go big or go home!

Many people are intimidated by affluent prospects and I was no different.

I was raised on an artist’s commune in the 1970s. On a scale from one to ten, our social and financial standing in the community was probably in the negative numbers.

Even after years of working on cruise ships, I was still intimidated by people based on my perceptions of their income, profession, and positions of power. But as I came to know many of these folks, I realized my fears were unfounded. In fact, the more successful they were, the nicer they tended to be. Most of them started out like me, with little or nothing, and earned everything they had.

I was the problem. I was seeing them for what I thought they had become, not for who they really were. If I was to build my business with luxury prospects as my client base, I needed to learn to handle my own issues.

Fast forward to today. I still have many of the same fears, anxieties, and insecurities I had then – I just choose not to let them control who I am.

Do you have the some of the same perceptions about your prospects? Are they standing in the way of the success of your career or business? Once we learn to get out of our own way, the sky is the limit!

 


Dan Chappelle is a sales performance coach and professional business transformation advisor. His training and consulting firm help develop sales focused business leaders and entrepreneurs in the travel and tourism industry. His bestselling book, Get Your S.H.I.P. Together: The Wealthy Travel Agent Guide to Sales is available on Amazon.com. Begin your journey today to becoming a Wealthy Travel Agent. To learn more, visit www.DanChappelle.com

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