Now hiring!

I make this post both with a big grin on my face and at the same time with just a bit of fear. I have a big grin on my face because I never thought I’d be hiring this quickly. I have a bit of fear for entirely irrational reasons — business is great on all fronts, though the thought of having someone else relying on me still scares me just a bit. But I’ve gotten over that fear, as I realize this will be a complete win-win.

I’ve gotten to the point where I have a lot more “work” (I can’t really call it that, since I love what I do) than I can handle. Up until now I’ve managed partly by “working” 18 hours a day, and partly by limiting the number of new clients I take on. Neither is ideal.

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Therefore I’m hiring. For now I’m looking for someone that is passionate about miles and luxury travel (ideally both, though if only one that’s fine too), that would be interested in helping with my award travel consulting business as well as my new job as a luxury travel advisor.

So what am I looking for?

• Someone that’s passionate about travel and/or miles.I’m the luckiest person in the world to be able to do what I love everyday. My only complaint is that I have too much of it. I’m looking for someone with a similar passion for travel and/or miles that’s interested in learning (or teaching me, as the case may be) everything there is to know about travel. I honestly think this is one of the most diverse travel opportunities out there — you’d be exposed to working with frequent flyer programs, hotels, revenue tickets, tours, and of course travel media (since I’m looking for someone that can eventually also help manage the blog). Initial tasks would include helping research and book frequent flyer tickets, making hotel bookings, learning Sabre (which, based on how user friendly it is, I suspect was designed by the devil himself), and potentially learning invoicing software (which I believe was designed by the devil’s brother, whoever set up the Delta SkyMiles award calendar).
• Someone that has a reliable schedule. I’m very flexible in regards to how many hours the person would work, and I don’t care what those hours are. All I care about is that they set hours in advance so that I know I can rely on them during those times and plan accordingly. I’m looking for someone that can work a minimum of 25 hours per week, possibly more.
• Someone that’s in it for the long term. This for me is the most important point. The travel industry is amazing and there are so many opportunities in it. I’m not saying you have to work with me forever, but I do need someone that’s in it for the long run. I’ll put a lot of time (and money) into training the person so they have a good understanding of what they’re doing, so I’m not looking for someone just trying to make a few extra bucks, someone that’s temporarily unemployed and wants to work till they find something else, etc. I’d like someone that actually wants to work in travel not due to a lack of other options, but because that’s their passion. That being said, if you’re a student that’s still in school, that’s totally fine, as long as you’re passionate about travel, open to pursuing it after graduation, and able to put in that minimum number of hours.

Other useful skills include:

• Understanding basic geography, like knowing the difference between Guangzhou and Gothenburg (aka being more knowledgeable than a US Airways Dividend Miles agent)
• Understanding the basics of alliances, like that Air France is in SkyTeam (aka being more knowledgeable than a Delta SkyMiles agent)
• Being willing to crop the size of my Diet Coke with lime and hot nut pictures for the blog
• Being able to remain calm while being yelled at by clients because you weren’t able to get them six first class award seats nonstop from Los Angeles to Sydney from December 20 to January 1 with no date flexibility

Pay will be hourly to begin, though I can promise my intent is to make this a mutually beneficial relationship that you can make a career out of, though I’m still working on figuring out ways to create a performance bonus. Long term I’m all for a system based on commission, though.

For the one crazy person in the world that has read the above and said “oh my gosh, that job’s for me,” send me an email at [email protected] and tell me about yourself. I’m more interested in what you’re passionate about, what your strengths are, and what your availability is, than what “formal” jobs you’ve had.

Anyway, send me an email, let me get to know you, and let me know if you have any questions. Please note that right now I’m only hiring one person that meets the above criteria. If you’re looking for a side job either booking award tickets or on the luxury travel side of things I will likely be hiring for that soon as well and I’ll make a separate post about that, though right now I’m just looking for someone that wants to do it all and is able to commit the time it takes.