This one is written with a bit of a lump in the throat, but it is written from the heart nevertheless. As some of you may know, I lost my father a few years back and it was horrendous – the worst time of my life. Though I am not one to be negative, that was one of those times in life that either makes or breaks you.
Luckily, I am very proud to say that my father gave me the strong foundations upon which I have built Archway Travel into what it is today. The only thing that upsets me is that he isn’t here to see what we’ve achieved.
Which leads me to this month’s column topic. This is one for the elders with younger generations waiting in the wings, the knowledgeable ones whose decades of experience may encourage an attitude of ‘we’ve always done it this way’.
Though that mantra may be true, I have seen it from the other side as a young person trying to get on and make a name for himself. If you have younger people wanting to get involved in the business, then let them.
Let them get stuck in, let them learn your ways and wares but, most importantly, listen to them and take on board their ideas. You may be surprised how many young people want to take over the reins, but can’t because their parents won’t let those reins go.
This industry needs that young blood, which brings with it fresh ideas and new perspectives, because — and I hate to say this — some of the industry’s approaches are outdated and out of touch with modern ways of working.
Social media, digital compliance, online booking forms and key performance indicators are all here to stay. These should be embraced and will allow businesses to grow and flourish, but we need the more experienced among us to allow that to happen.
A lot of younger people are too scared to ask for the reins, yet they have great ideas about how to grow their family’s business.
Being met with a response of ‘why would we do that when it’s worked just fine this way for years?’ isn’t going to drive any change within an individual company, or the industry as a whole.
I would give anything to have my dad back with me to celebrate what we’ve built, and I’m sure every one of the older generations would agree it would be much better to witness our younger family members’ achievements in person than to wait for the day that ‘they are looking down on you with pride’ is all they get to hear.
