We talked about work, but we also conversed about life…weddings coming up, her big move to Richmond, Virginia, kids, kids love lives and travel retirement plans. (Get the RV, Pat!!!)
This is what I longed for and was missing these past few years. Being on the road together has absolutely no
substitute. It is how trust, camaraderie and understanding blossoms.
The same goes for our customers. Nothing lights me up more than developing relationships and friendships with customers that turn into true partnerships. The lack of business travel took a toll on
those relationships. Email and zoom calls cannot replace the breaking of bread and the creation of community around a table that can only be created by standing shoulder to shoulder to solve a problem, collaboratively.
I don’t think I will ever take business travel for granted
again since the
events of 2020. I
recently listened
to a speech by
Ernie Johnson, Jr
where he
described the
difference
between “I get to
Vs. I got to”
mindset. In the
past, business
trips were so
relentless and
unending I fell
into the “I got to
” boat. The
demands of being
a single mom
added to the
strife around
business travel.
And to be fair, it
felt manic.
My new approach
is “I get to” …go
visit these
amazing people
and really be in
the moment. I am
grateful for the
opportunity to
learn about them,
their business,
their hopes and
dreams, their
lives. It truly is a
gift. If we remain
curious, there are so many amazing humans in the world with so much to teach us. Traveling to their companies gives us context. We see their family pictures in their office, awards they have won, hobbies they are into. We see body language and nonverbal communication that is literally impossible to capture from a computer screen. We get to know them and they us.