Roslyn Ranse - Charting Your Own Course in the Travel Business

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Welcome to the Real People Real Business Show. My name is Stephanie Hayes, and I'm a business strategist who helps mature entrepreneurs design their wealthy exits. Whether that means building an asset-based business model for an eventual sale, or simply taking yourself out of the business while enjoying its continued growth. I love to speak with like-minded entrepreneurs to share their real stories in the gritty details on how they've navigated their own way through. On this show, you won't hear about the glamorized entrepreneurship journeys that you see online, and you won't be told how to make six figures in six weeks. Instead, you can expect to hear real vulnerable and inspiring stories that you can relate to that have helped create the foundation for each of our guests businesses today. I am so excited to welcome Rosalyn Ranse. Australia based. Rosalyn is a travel advisor and business strategist who's been in the travel industry for over 15 years. She's the founder of Travel Agent Achievers, where she educates and mentors other travel consultants to grow their business and put in place systems and processes that will accelerate their business and ultimately enhance their clients' experience. She educates her community through live events, courses, and masterminds, and she's also the host of Travel Agent Achiev. Podcast. Rosalyn has a background in sales and marketing, but once she had her son, she realized it was time to work smarter and not harder, and she decided to grow her travel business and mentor other home-based advisors to do the same. Welcome to the show, Roslyn. Thanks so much for taking the time to share your story today. Thank you so much for having me, Stephanie. It's awesome to be here and I can't wait to have this chat. I love that. It's it's super real. It's real. People we're doing this and talking the real stuff. This is awesome. I know. And you know what? That's what everyone can relate to and that's what they wanna hear because you know what? We have all been through the ringer and we have all learned, and if we can just share all of these stories with everyone else, I am convinced we can all continue to move forward. Absolutely. I agree. So tell me the story. So you, how did you get to where you are right now? Give me all the nitty, nitty gritty details. Ok. Alright. The nitty gritty, the down and dirty stuff. I'll give you a real as down and dirty as you can get. Oh my gosh. Okay. I don't know. You're talking with an Aussie here, Stephanie. This could get serious. Listen, there are so many Aussies where I live. I am totally used to it. So go for it. You get it. So I, as you said, I've been in the travel game now for about just over 15 years and prior to that I was working in international education in sales and marketing. Even further back than that, I was McDonald's, my very first job when I was 14 and nine. Was McDonald's and I loved it. I excelled at it. I just wanted to do all the things, but it was purely because I wanted to buy the Billabong bag or the Sports Girl t-shirt or the Nike shoes, whatever that was back then. I'm a little bit smarter with my money now then yeah, so sales and marketing became my thing, especially around the hospitality and tourism industries. So I worked for an amazing. International school for. Swiss hotel school really, and they were teaching the kids about hospitality and tourism and hotel management and what it was like, and go and be a general manager in a hotel. But it was the Swiss version in Australia. So that's where I got my first taste of real international travel because my job was to promote Australia as a destination for international students to come and study. So I spent a lot of time on the road there. I then. Moved to the University of Sydney and also onto Kaplan Education, which I know is quite big in the states. And so for me, I was the director of Australia and sales and marketing became my jam. It was everything that I loved, the whole business side of things, responsible for multimillion dollar budgets and working my way up the corporate ladder. And I thought it was fabulous, but I was also traveling a lot and I could very easily. quite happily. You know, travel to China and see all the amazing places there. But also talk about what it was like for the future for kids. You know, what, which, what opportunities were available to them and China, south America, Norway. It was fantastic to be there when it was March minus 20 degrees, and I could show them pictures of beach. And say, come to Australia. For me, that was living the dream, but it was also away from family and friends, and I missed a lot of opportunities in Australia with life and for me, that became really important. as I got a little bit older, not so much to be on the road all the time and living out of a suitcase or having these amazing experiences. And I feel, I know that I'm very blessed and very lucky and very privileged to have those experiences, but I just wanted to come home at the end of the day. And for me, I was getting to an age where I thought, I think that I, I just need to slow down a little and. I started my own travel business. Now I started my own travel business purely because friends and family were asking me, oh, rose, I'm, I'm going to Brazil. What should I see and do? Or, have you ever been to certain parts of Thailand and what should I, where should I stay? What should I do over there? So for me, that knowledge was very easy to come by. I'd already experienced it. I loved travel. I love snowboarding and skiing. That's my passion as well. A lot of the outdoor sports, and so it just became natural for me to talk about these sorts of things and to start a travel business. I started it with nothing, so I had. Other than my family and friends who I would be like, yeah, come on, book your travels with me. I stuffed up tickets, I did all the wrong things, but that was because I didn't have the education inside. What is, and it feels like a very archaic system, especially after what we've had over the last couple of years experiencing refunds and credits and everything going backwards. So for me to start a travel business was out of passion, and it was because I loved travel and I loved helping people, and I just wanted everybody to explore the world. I wanted the opportunities there for everyone. If they wanted to do something, I wanted to be able to help them achieve those goals. So travel, that was my, my thing. I loved it. I had the ups and downs. You know, starting a business isn't easy and nobody ever tells you. It's hard. They'll say, oh, do this, or Here's this marketing strategy, or jump onto this great sales thing. These are the only things you need to do in order to have a successful business, and it's really glossy. But for me, I knew a lot about business. I didn't know about the travel systems, but I knew that I had to make it work and I wanted to make it work. And I think that that was a big thing, the passion and the want and the will. I was very determined and I could see other people doing things well, and I knew that I needed to model off what other people were doing. I knew that I needed to keep growing and learning, and I started, you know, self educat. I'd been a big learner. So I was one of those people at the airport that you see walk into the news agency or into the bookstores. I was heading straight for the business books for years and I would read those on the plane, understand, listen to them, I'd follow, you know, people social media wasn't around. I'm not that old, but it wasn't a big thing. It was my space and Hotmail. Right. Hopefully, Stephanie, you get me with that. I am that old, by the way. Yeah. But it wa that was, that was really our opportunity, those areas for social media. So it wasn't about that. There was other marketing strategies that we had to learn. So I wanted to know all of those things, and that became, Part of my business education. I needed to go to conferences and attend events and meet other people in real life and find out how they did things That fueled me and what I learned. I also implemented. So I went from a, a really well paying corporate career that I loved traveling all over the world. In an industry, in an area that I was super passionate about into travel that I didn't necessarily know a whole lot about, the backend systems and suppliers and education became my thing. Yes, it was about the business stuff, but I also needed to know the thousands of suppliers I needed to understand the differences between Southwest Airlines and Delta and Qantas and American and. The hundreds of others that are out there, education was consistent and ongoing and I had to make time for it. Otherwise I wasn't up with everybody else. So education has always made a big thing. The travel business is very successful. . I have a team of staff that support me in that, and I love it. I work from home. I have the flexibility to work from anywhere in the world. My clients know that about me. They know that I, I can be off on a different time zone, but I am always available. And the one thing for me that I've always stuck by is that if there is an issue, if there is the, something hits the fan then I am there.. You know, if there's a disaster, I'm that first person on the phone. I am, I work really well under pressure, and so for me, that's, that's the place that I stay in taking care of my clients, nurturing them, making sure that they know that I have their back no matter what. But I also saw, especially over the last couple of years, so many travel advisors who love travel. But didn't understand the business side of things. So for me, when the pandemic hit, it was immediately, what does my cash flow look like? What does my marketing look like? Who do I want to talk to and how do I wanna get my message out there? Understanding that I needed to keep my customers and my clients up to date all the time. And how could I get to them as fast as possible in a broad sense, but also keep it really personal and. From that, all of the stuff that I was doing was working, but I saw so many advisors going backwards or struggling because they knew how to do travel. They knew how to book everything. They knew how to take care of their clients. But when it came to business, I was crushed to see. Advisors who may have earned commissioner honor booking, because that's how we have previously earned money on a small amount of commission. And I saw that money going backwards and advisors who had put food on their table with that money, you know, six months ago, 12 months ago, because a client was due to travel and we'd been paid previously. They were going backwards. And that was crushing for me because of the business side of things. So that's where I think education's really important. My travel business is still absolutely thriving. I specialize in large international groups and corporate clients that are going on conferences and retreats, those sorts of things. And then Travel Agent Achievers was born, but. I think now about four or five years ago, purely out of wanting to help the industry, just wanting to share my knowledge and experience through social media through a podcast travel agent achievers, but also through just sharing resources. Anything that I was putting together that was working for my clients, I then shared it with our community as well, and through the pandemic, that's where it's grown because there is such a need for business educat. But real stuff, like tell me the how to, not just the, oh, and this is the grand idea that you can earn a million dollars. I don't want that because I don't think that it's realistic for a lot of people, and especially in the travel and tourism industry. What I see is it's a lot of moms and dads and parents that are working from home that want to be able to make some money in order to take their family on holidays or it's a secondary source of income. There are those that treat it like a big business or that want to sell a million dollars worth of travel and beyond, but the majority is there to ensure that it's a lifestyle and to have fun and be passionate about it, and be able to then take their families on holidays. So that's where things are at now and what great timing to have started up the business before the pandemic. Right. I'm imagining that lots of sort of blossoming travel advisors were really grateful to have that advice and that camaraderie, that community when they were experiencing that, that trouble, right? Yeah, I mean, for me, that still brings goosebumps to my arms and tears to my eyes because pre pandemic, it wasn't about necessarily, The business going backwards. It was about, I am so busy, I don't know how to handle this, so I know how to book travel, but now I'm rocking in the corner in my bathroom because I don't have the systems in place. But I don't know that I need systems. I don't know that I need a marketing strategy. I don't know that I need a content plan. I don't know that I need all these things. And so what I was seeing was very successful advisors that were working. You know, 15 hours a day, no time for their family. And the reason why they got into business in the first place was so that they could have a work-life balance that wasn't happening. But then the pandemic hit and everything went backwards with trying to give back money and get credits, and there was no income coming into their business. Mm. . And so it was this complete flip side. So for me, with travel agent achievers, as I said, as soon as that pandemic hit, I knew that there was going to be a switch flipped. What could we do to get ahead of it? And it was, for me, it's all about the community and making sure that everybody is there to support one another. The travel industry has always been quite competitive. So if you, Stephanie, You know, three blocks away from me, or even three suburbs away from me, or even three cities away from me. Prior to the pandemic, there was a lot of competition where advisors were saying, oh my goodness, like she's stolen my client, or she, she lives over here and I work over here and my client should be coming into my door front. No, like for me and my personality, it's people will come to you because of. Not because of your location, not because of where you live or what office setting you have. People wanna deal with people like real humans. And so that is really special to me, having that human connection. And in business, I think that you are gonna work with the people that you like and that they like you. And if you don't like each other, why are you doing it in the first place? Like that's absolutely. Yep. Absolutely. And I think, you know, I live in an area, I live up an hour south of Whistler in British Columbia. And well, hello. Can I come and visit you? Yeah, it's, it's Australia, it's sec. It's like little Australia here. little Australia. I know. I've actually got clients there at the moment and I'm very jealous. Yeah. Yeah, I'm right. I'm right in a, a little town called Squamish, which is right between Vancouver and Whistler. So you Yes. You know, it's outdoor recreation capital of the world and that sort of thing. So we're a very, yeah, we're a very travel and in recreation, tourism central, you know, kind of location. So I understand the abundance of , you know, like these clusters form of people who are serving that industry. And then it starts to get, you know, bigger and bigger and bigger. And, and there's always gonna be sort of a, a pressure point at which, you know, too many incumbents mm-hmm. drive down prices and drive down profits. Yeah. And that sort of thing. So the economy will adjust itself. But I think when you have this big disruption, like the pandemic was, you also had at the same time, People taking the step into entre entrepreneurship in droves. And I wonder like, did it, did it balance out? Were there people leaving, were there people joining? Were there new incumbents all over the place? Yeah, so definitely in, in travel there has been a, a huge drop in travel advisors and I think because it's just become too, The reality, it's very hard to be making money. And as you say, when there is a lot of competition, a lot of people will drive down prices as well, and that that can certainly disrupt a business. And this is where for me, as, as part of Travel Agent Achievers and the work that I do now, is it's collaboration over competi. We all have unique abilities. We all have something that is unique in what we do. Every single one of us, even if we say we're a travel agent or we are a a retailer in a certain area, and in your specific situation where you are in a, a smaller town that thrives on tourism, having tourism businesses work together and talk about the challenge. Or talk about what works for them or what makes them unique, I think is really special. Having that collaboration instead of driving down the prices, because that's not gonna help anyone. People will always be driven to a destination because of something. But yeah, I think that there's just many opportunities and definitely in the travel industry now we are seeing advisors starting to come into it that are brand new or that are keen to have a, a sea change, a life change try. Something that they are passionate about, that they love, that they haven't been able to do for a few years and they're now realizing that. I wanna actually get out and explore this incredible planet that we live on while we can, if we can. And so, yeah, I am seeing some people jump into the industry, but I have seen a lot of people leave. Yeah, and I think you make a really excellent point that I wanna touch on again. And that is applicable, not just in the travel in industry. , I can't get my words out today, in, in really any industry, and I see this with a lot of sort of coaches, consultants, they look out on the, in the, in the market and they say, oh, there's someone else doing business coaching. I should probably like, I, I'm already defeated. And I'm like, people are hiring you because of. They're hiring you because of who you are, and they you know, you appeal to them for some reason and you're not gonna appeal to other people. But, you know, then it's goes, goes the same for everyone else. And so, I, I wonder like in a, in an industry that I think is becoming inc, you can correct me if I'm wrong, but is increasingly becoming more niched and more, more personalized. Yeah. You know, it used to be just a commodity where we would roll up to any agency you could get. booked on any kind of flight and there was, it was very like not personalized. Right. And I think now there's this emergence of these really interesting niche tourism, niche vacation type agencies, and I wonder if you could comment on that. Absolutely. I think that that is important because what I'm passionate about is, you know, the adventure side of travel. I love that. But I also love. Retreats and the business conferences and those sorts of things. So taking 300 people away with me is. My jam. I love that I'm able to organize everything from start to finish, but I also love traveling with friends, family, and a smaller group of people. For me that's like 10 to 20 at the most so that I can go and have my snowboarding holiday. Or go mountain biking with friends and family or here camping. Yeah, yeah, that's right. In British Columbia. That's right. . King Whistler. There's nowhere, nowhere else you're gonna go. Furniture . I mean, there are so many places that you and also Whistler, two of my favorites. I will never forget my travels. There. Never. No. Cause it's very, very special. So I definitely see that there is an emergence now with nicheing and finding that one area that you are incredibly passionate about, because that's where clients will find you based on that passion and that niche and that experience. So what I encourage advisors to look at now is either specialize in a Destin. Or an experience that can go anywhere or a type of person. So the three different areas, a type of person that you love working with. So if you, if you love taking senior citizens away on a cruise, do that. If you love a destination, I have clients who are destination wedding experts, but specialize in Thailand. So become a destination expert or an experience you love snowboarding. Find all the places that you love skiing or snowboarding or spending time in the snow and specialize in that, and then become known for that. And that's where I also see the collaboration over competition really coming together for the travel and tourism industry because I know that I can recommend clients that come to me and say, Hey Rosa, I really want a specific experience, or I really wanna go to Lao and I. Cool. I personally haven't been to Lao, but I have been to Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia all around it. But I know someone who specializes in it. Connect those guys together. Right. And I think, yeah, go. Sorry, go ahead. No, I was just saying if that client is then very happy with that person, that person is gonna pass it on. I really believe that there is that opportunity that we can't work together. Yeah, I think it's, it's like across industries too that that's, that is the case more and more so. And I think finding a good, I don't wanna say travel agent, but travel advisor Is almost like finding your, your, your good mechanic, right? Like once you find them, that that's repeat business. That's the person you go to. And I th there's so many different types of people in the world that I can only imagine that being quite specific as an, as an advisor is gonna help you. Like maybe you are the goth. Travel advisor who, you know, focuses in, in like goth destinations. I don't know. Yeah. What about all the people, the goth people who identify that way and wanna travel and wouldn't that be a great fit? Well, you'd be booked out absolutely all the time, right? Absolutely. Or travel together, as I said. So it, it is either the type of person, the human, or, you know, they, it might be that they all love. Oh, what was the one thing recently that I heard somebody who was specializing in not pickleball, but it's like a sandbag that you throw in corn. Cornhole . Yes. Cornhole travel. Did you know that there are massive competitions on cornhole travel cornhole competitions around the world? Yes. See that is a very specific niche and people will go together. To either a competition or want to travel so that they can play together. They're finding their people and I love that. And so this one advisor said to me, well, look, this is, this is what I specialize in. And I'm like, amazing. Let's talk about that. And she's like, really? I'm like, yeah. Do you want to take a whole group of people that play cornhole on a cruise? Like they love it. Absolutely love it. So you'd be surprised. There are many people that specialize in very unique. Experiences, destinations, or you know, whatever. What's the great thing about that? Specificity is it's so easy to find your people, right? And your marketing becomes a lot more targeted, a lot more focused. Marketing is hard when you're trying to sell to everyone. Right? And that's why we always advise that you're not selling to everybody, that you really do have to know who you're selling to. I wanna go back a little bit. You said so many things that in your sort of introduction that sort of peaked my curiosity. I'm half Swiss, and so interesting to hear that you had the experience with Switzerland as well. But I wanted to go back to where you were educating yourself in terms of all of the the business things that maybe you didn't know already. And I think that's a trap that a lot of people can fall into, especially when they're first getting started and. They, how, so the question I have for you is how did you decipher what was, what was important to you and what was not? And like filtering through all of the, the information that's out there to sort of narrow down what's gonna help you. Yeah, so for me it was, and there there can be a lot of rubbish , I think. It's the people. So listening to tapes and CDs. Okay. Yeah, I'm really sure on the age. But then as podcasts came out, who did I like listening to what books and the language inside the books really made sense to me. So some of them can be really dry and I could pick it up and read a few pages and go, nah, this is definitely not my scene. Put that back down. But I was also looking for where do I feel as though I need help? Where do I see a weakness in myself or that something that I could strengthen? So it's like as kids, you know, they play soccer or do gymnastics, and I talk to my eight year old son and I'm like, mate, if you practice your soccer skills every day, you will get. It's practice, practice, practice. And we live right near the beach. We're four hours north of Sydney in a place called Port Macquarie, and I am literally across the road from the beach and I can walk him down to his little nippers training. So, you know Bondi Rescue the TV show. It's like that, but for kids. So that's how we do our lifesaving training here in a. They start when they're six. And so Jackson's now in the under nines and he's competing out on these big boards in the ocean. And he comes out to me and he's crying sometimes. I'm like, mate, you did so well. These are the things that I really saw in you. But do you wanna practice this one particular technique? Is it the takeoff leaving the beach, or is it getting on a specific wave and moving your body back so that you can catch that wave instead of losing your board? I think in business and for me, In education and continually learning, it's what is that one thing that I know that I need help on? And if it is marketing, wow, there's so much out there. So start looking at, okay, marketing, do I really need help with social media? Do I want to put together a podcast? Who are great in these areas that I can go and learn from, and this is even when you and I talk about nicheing in the travel industry, I think that that's the same in business as well. There are people who are great at certain things and working with somebody like yourself, Stephanie, as a business strategist, you are able to pull out a lot of different contacts or resources and say, Hey, these are some areas or these are. Unique ideas on how you can move forward, because I don't think us, us as humans or as business coaches or as mentors, we have all the answers. I'd say that I do not have all the answers when I'm talking to travel advisors, but I do definitely know some people that can help along the way. So, you know, if I, if I wanna learn a particular thing. In business, then I will find who is the best person for that, or that I can resonate with because I don't think that there is a best person in everything. It's who do I like, who do I like listening to, working with, understanding who's gonna give me the how to, because I know how I learn and that's how I then want to be taught. Exactly. And it comes back to that same, that same concept of the fact that someone's going to. Work with you because of who you are and therefore you should be more of who you are and you should just double down on what makes you you and makes you unique, rather than try to fit into some vanilla, you know, persona that we think we need to be. And I think that's a really, really huge lesson. Now, it's so funny that you say vanilla because one of my good friends is called her nickname. I call her vanilla, and she's like, why are we calling? And I'm like, because you just so you mainstream, babe. I love you. But it's, it's all following everything along almost like, like McDonald's, right? Franchise. You've gotta follow the systems and follow the processes. And I'm like, I love you, but let's see what you can put in that's your own flair on something. Absolutely. Absolutely. Can we shift shift our topic just a sec, just a little bit, because I think what also is gonna be really interesting for our listeners to hear more about is the way that you've diversified your income streams, right? So you obviously have your travel business, which is very passion-based and what have you, but then you've also built the sort of education mentorship side of the business. So tell me a little bit more about managing both. Two sides of the business, how they're different and what it's doing for you and your growth. Hmm. Oh, big question. So the two sides of the business, I knew that I needed help. I you can't. Grow two things because you have that split focus. So for me, I have support staff in my travel business, so I remain the face. I can do the sales, I can do the marketing, that's no problem. But I have support staff that can help with the systems and the organization and connecting with clients and making sure that that all flows. I mean, we have 67 steps in how to process a book. And that for me, I need to ensure that every client gets the same experience, but with that personal flare as well. So that's the travel business that I have support team there. Inside travel agent achievers. I have an admin support person who helps me with the day-to-day because I can't do everything and I. Being in both places. So I need to have the support around me that can help me grow them and look after other people. I am a people's champion. I love supporting everybody else. I always take care of everybody else before I take care of myself, which is not a good trait as a business owner with, especially because I'm leaving for a trip to the States this weekend. I still have my own accommodation that I need to book in a couple of places. because everyone, do you want me, do you want me to help you? I, I've learned a little bit from you. Please. I definitely need the help there for sure. It's one of those things I always put myself last, but for the two different businesses, it's having that support staff. For me, I really believe you need to have someone, whether it is, and you don't need to go big, you don't need to have somebody sitting next to you. You can get somebody at a cheaper rate so that you can focus on the higher. Earning income but the different income streams for me. So yes, there is the travel business. I have the support staff there to assist me. I also have travel agent achievers, which is the online course and the mastermind. And then I also speak at different conferences and I help co-host different events. Yeah, I think it, there's, it's quite diversified right now. Sounds quite busy. busy. And with the family too. Yeah. But I am very intentional, so I know, and I've, I've done this for a number of years now where I have said I am not starting work until, like sitting at my desk until nine 30. I will then finish at two 30, so that's five hours that I am sitting at my desk that I am very intentional with because I want to go and drop my son to school. I love that time in the morning in the car with him, but I also love to be able to pick him up and he just finished. Year two and I was there with a girlfriend. Our Halloween costumes didn't arrive in time for Halloween, so we decided on the last day of school we were dressing up in these blow up unicorn outfits and dancing around the school oval whilst, you know, our eight year old children came out from school. So I love that I get the opportunity to do that and that I, I have. I have teenagers and I imagine if I tried to do that for them at their school, I would like be disowned pretty much. Yes, . It's cute now. It's cute now. Yeah. You know, one of the, one of the mistakes that I see business owners making is that they wait too long before they get that support. So how did you know when was the right time to add that team? It was a leap of faith for me. I am. I'm very intentional with what I do, but I knew that it would be a stretch to have support staff, but I knew that I could make it work. There's a lot of belief in myself, grit, and determination to say, I will make this work. But I also went to the flip side and said, what if it doesn't work? Like, how long can I sustain this? Looking at my cash flow, how long can I sustain this if it doesn't work? And by having that knowledge and going to the worst case scenario was I would need to let somebody go and bring it back to myself. Right. And then So you took, yeah. Take the leap of faith. Right. And, and it's, it was a little bit of cash flow analysis. It was a little bit of belief, and I honestly, honestly believe that when people wait too long to make these decisions, they make it harder for themselves to be successful, because when I've decided that I'm investing in something, I just will make it work. Yeah. I, I don't have a choice. Like that's just what's gonna happen and it honestly puts you into a different frame of mind for success. You already are. You're there and you are, you are responsible then for other people. So there is that mindset shift. Absolutely. And there is, for me, there's no going back. Of course, I'm gonna make it work. There's that self-belief and that is a real struggle for a lot of people. Oh, I don't think I can afford it, or that income that I'm paying them. I need to be owning myself. And for me, I look at it and say, what's the trade? Is it that you want more time, which is the one thing we can never get back, or is it that you, you want that money? You know, you can't have both. You can't have both. You need to be able to grow if you want to grow, and a lot of people don't want to grow in, especially in the travel industry, or they just need Hilton with certain things. But there is also those that say, yes, I'm ready to take that leap. I don't think that it needs to happen straight away. You need to understand how all the areas of business work and you need to do those functions and potentially just start with somebody a few hours a week. It doesn't have to be a full-time staff member sitting right next to you five days a week straight off the bat. It takes time. Yeah. And it's okay. It, it's okay to make those decisions to say I'm not ready just yet. But hearing you say as well, Stephanie, about the, sometimes we leave it a little bit too, To get somebody, I agree with you there, because if you also leave it too late, then you don't necessarily put the time and the effort into training someone so that their STE success in your business is to its full potential. And if you wait too long, then you can also be setting yourself up for failure or that that person's not working out, they're just not taking things up quickly. Well, hello. They haven't had the same training and level of support that you may have needed in those first six months as well. A hundred percent. And I think that the answer to that question, do I want the money or do I want the time? And what's going, what's my priority? I think that's gonna change as you grow, right? And at one point in time, it's gonna be about the time I need back so that I can make more of the money. And then at another point in time it's gonna be, well, here we are, you know, I've got one person, do I need to add another? Well, right now the cash flow is the priority, and so I'm gonna, you know, Maybe change things a little bit, hear, you know, how I'm getting support. So it's, I think that, I think it's okay that these things evolve. Evolve, but just make sure you're always asking the question, right? Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Asking the question and outside of yourself, even speak to people around you, and that's where having somebody in your. Corner or a team of people set up your own board of advisors if you need to. , yeah. You know, a group of friends or people around you that you really look up to in business. Ask questions. If you don't ask questions you don't know. So arming yourself with knowledge is way more powerful than going by assumption. I agree. Okay. We're coming up on time and I have one question that I ask all of my guests, and I'd love to hear your perspective on it. What's the difference between what we hear out there in the business world and the online business world and what's real about running a business, online business? So I see a lot of what and why online, not a whole lot of how to. And when you work with somebody or you are getting to know someone and you want to see how you can learn from them, that how-to is really important. So the online world and the offline world is, is still trying to catch up to each other, I think. Mm-hmm. And for a consumer or for somebody who's starting out in business, have a look around and, and really. Understand what somebody's about and who they are as a person like Stephanie. The fact that you shared where you live and you have teenage sons, like that's real. And for me as a consumer or somebody who's looking for a business strategist, I wanna be able to relate to you. I wanna be able to understand what's going on in your world, and I wanna see what's real. So the online world and the offline world. I think for anybody who is wanting. Support, get to know, get to know the person before you dive in. You don't want just the what and the why. You actually want the how to as well. And that's just such a theme of our conversation today too, is that there are people behind all these businesses and knowing them and knowing that sort of angle and perspective is actually really, really important, whether you're the consumer or whether it's someone you're getting help from. Those. That can make a world of difference. I have two teenagers, a daughter and a son. My daughter would be very upset if she knew that I had referred to her as a son, , and, and like, I know, and that puts me in a certain position. I'm, you know, nearly 50. And so that puts me in as different position and I can, you know, relate in different ways. And so those, and maybe for someone else, that's not what they're looking for, right? They want someone who's early thirties who can, you know, Relate to them more in that sort of frame of their lives. So I think all of those things matter. And I think that's a really important point. I wanna thank you for taking the time to chat with us today. Can you tell our listeners where they can find you? Stephanie, thank you so much for having me. Any of your listeners can find me on all the social media platforms at Travel Agent Achievers, or just go to the website, travel agent achievers.com. Awesome. We'll put all of the links in the show notes so that you can look up Roslyn and her businesses, connect with her and maybe this is something that you're interested in. And go and have a chat and check out what she is building. So we're gonna wrap it up. I am so happy that we had the opportunity to chat with Roslyn today to hear more about how her business came to be, her experiences along the way. And what the future of the business entails. And thank you for tuning into this episode of The Real People Real Business Show, where we can get the real entrepreneurial stories and journeys that you can relate to the show notes, resources, and links from this episode are available on my website and social media platforms. If you've enjoyed today's content, I would love for you to give us a review on whatever platform you're on to help us share these genuine stories with an even bigger audience. Until next time, keep building, keep dreaming and keep being real.