We were lucky to catch up with Sheila Folk recently and have shared our conversation below.
Sheila, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
A product of a highly creative, intuitive, and accomplished professional artist and a smart, driven,!successful businesswoman, coming up with practical, creative solutions has always been a part of my DNA. Once I recognized that as a key strength of mine, I knew I could achieve anything I set my mind to! I saw results, got used to knowing what it feels like to succeed, and built my confidence in myself from actually experiencing the benefits of combining my personal strengths with commitment of still and plain, old-fashioned hard work!
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
When I began my travel industry journey (And what a journey it has been!), I was somewhat naive about what lay just beneath the surface!
I quickly realized that the bad news was what was missing! The industry was infinitely inept and disappointingly unable to provide what I needed to succeed. When I found only emptiness, where solid guidance and support should have been, I experienced what I now know to be a full-on panic attack!
“What on earth am I going to do now?” I cried, as I frantically dug deeper into my research. “Where are the answers I need? What are the steps I need to take beyond settling on a company name and logo? How do I get there from here?”
The devastating truth I uncovered was that the travel industry had failed people like me—people who were excited and enthusiastic industry newbies!
The travel industry offered no guidance, solutions, or formula for success. I’ve never felt so ill-prepared and alone. I was in this all by myself and had no safe place to fall…
After having a very brief pity party, i did as I am wont to do. I put on my big-girl panties and went to work!
First, I asked myself the all-important question:
“What’s missing; what do I need to be successful?”
As I pondered this seemingly simple question, I began to formulate a strategy in my mind. Not only would this strategy pinpoint the missing pieces, but also it would be the basis of my business plan that would drive my success—$8M in sales over the next three years!
I boiled down my strategy to four areas that eventually became the keystones of my Travel Industry Solutions business:
—Mitigating risks.
—Managing details.
—Ensuring efficiencies.
—Building relationships.
By tackling each of these areas and creating systems to ensure they are thoroughly addressed, fully functional, and optimally effective, I had in place my own personal formula for success. And by making my tools and tactics available to others, I have filled a need within the entire travel industry.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
While each of us has our own unique set of strengths, no one individual has it all! I would say the first step is to recognize your greatest strengths, and the second is to identify and address your greatest weaknesses!
I know my strengths and capitalize on them every single day. But I also know what I’m NOT good at. I find and access people who excel in those areas to pick up the slack and help me cover all the bases!
Another area you’ll never see me compromise on is my work ethic. My marketing folks would refer to this as tenacity. I, on the other hand, think of it as grit, and it is explicitly a part of who and what I am!
For me, the bottom line is PASSION. I would not do what I do if I were not passionate about it. The best advice I could ever give a young person is to figure out what your true passions are and then design your future around them!
When you are passionate about your work, you would be willing to do it for free. Now, don’t get me wrong here.! You always should be compensated for the value you bring to the table. My point is that passion is the difference between surviving in your work and thriving in it. If you are not thriving, it’s time to make a change!
The truth is that you can learn the specifics you’ll need in any given industry, profession, or job. What makes a difference is the real person you are and the unique qualities you bring with you. Your character, strengths, and values all contribute to the positive contribution you make to your workplace.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
At Travel Industry Solutions, we’re all about collaborating with industry leaders and partnering with others in mutually benefiting endeavors. We love the synergy of working with other program and service providers and always seek out opportunities and welcome discussions about combining forces for enhanced results! Our close relationships with host agencies, consortia, industry organizations, suppiers, and technology support businesses are invaluable to us.
We’d love to hear from anyone who wishes to connect, discuss ideas, and explore opportunities with us, please reach out to us at:
Shemain Grasso
VP Sales + Partnerships
[email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.travelindustrysolutions.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travelindustrysolutions/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/travelindustrysolutions/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/65807935
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@travelindustrysolutions
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
