My First Travel Convention
I’ve Landed in Vegas………FINALLY!!
First I must express that I almost didn’t attend my first travel convention even though I had already paid for the airline ticket, the room, and the price to attend the convention. To make a long story short, I had oral surgery a month ago, and had to have 13 teeth pulled due to trauma inflicted on my mouth from 25 years ago. I had a bad fall in Jamaica that resulted in nerve damage to my mouth where the nerve damage caused slow deterioration of the roots of my teeth and my bone. As a result, I am having to get permanent implants….but boy is it a process. So with that I have to wait for my mouth to fully heal to get my permanents, so for right now I have temporary implants. Until I get my permanents, through the healing process post surgery, I will have to get new temporaries here in there to accommodate that healing. However, the night before my trip to Vegas my temporaries came out. I became an utter mess and told myself that I just wasn’t going to go. My flight was scheduled for 6:00 am and its was 9:00 pm at night; I wasn’t going to go. However, it was my husband that suggested I change my flight and go to my dentist in the morning to see if he can fix them. That is exactly what I did and my dentist, Dr. Gragg, did his thing and I was able to attend the convention. I was grateful to my dentist, his assistant Ashely, and my husband for coming up with a solution during my time of distress. We all need help sometime. :) But since I had to take a later flight, I arrived late to the opening banquet which included being awarded a pin and an IATAN card which is a international recognized honor to receive as a travel advisor. You receive this card if you make so much in commission in sales for a year. With this card you are recognized as a bonofide travel professional and receive many perks once you have one from getting half off in travel certification programs and discounts on airline travel. It was a great ceremony and everyone was so full of life, and even though I was exhausted, I knew that it was a good idea to attend and I’m glad I did. It is my 2025 goals to do what i need to do to earn this pin and one can achieve it selling travel part time. All in all this experience was one of the best I have ever had when it comes to convention for work. The support, enthusiasm, and positivity was refreshing in comparison. In this industry you are truly in a judgement free zone.
THE NEXT FOUR DAYS…………
There is so much I could say about the next four days and every bit of it is positive. I need for you to understand that after working in public educaiton since 1997, and I still do and enjoy it, the high energy, smiles, and just all around positive attitudes of the others in attendance that included my mentors, the bosses, and the people representing the travel suppliers; words can’t express how refreshing it all was to be around such positive energy. I know now my inner self was craving it. People who work in education can be cynical and it seems like what is reported is always depressing information no matter how hard you work, on top of the constant scrutiny. Being in this positive, free environment is something I know now I have been craving in my professional life after 25 years. I not only learned a lot from the various travel suppliers from aroundthe globe, I also recieved a lot of materials and ideas on how to market myself through the use of social media, traditional advertising, and attending vendor events. I am now energized and willing to accept the idea that if I just accept the idea of “slow pace wins the race,” and keep building, I have chosen a 2nd career/retirement job that will lead me to more smiles, fun, and ultimately income in the end. The best that has come out all of my experiences over the past year is I now understand that you can always have a new beginning better than the one before. I can’t wait to share my future travels with you; sky’s the limit!!!
“Oh the Places You’’ll Go!!!!!! ”