Episode 60 - Jennine Cohen, Women Travel Leaders & UNCHARTED

Travel

Jan. 19

“What you are seeking is also seeking you. And if you are quiet for long enough it will find you.”

Christine has been lucky enough to be a part of a community of women in the travel industry. Christine had seen Jennine’s name so many times throughout the travel industry before they even met. Christine connected with Jennine because she could relate her own personal journey to Jennine’s story and that resonated deeply. Christine started following Jennine’s journey, where she was, what she was doing, and seeing women travel leaders come to be in this space is truly inspiring.

Christine is grateful for the idea of community, connection and interconnectedness that travel has created and seeing women travel leaders take charge is amazing. This connection is an example of the magic that Christine believes is being created right now.

Christine was delighted in speaking with someone who sees the value in creating a space for women to show up fully and support one another.

Today’s guest is Jennine Cohen. Jennine is a kiter, salsa dancer and magician.

She is a longtime trip planner, leader, and advisor in the adventure travel industry. Frequently called upon as a media source, she has been quoted in Travel & Leisure, AFAR, National Geographic, Conde Nast Traveler, Vogue, YahooTravel, Fortune, Forbes, Fox News, and others and was named a Forbes Changemaker.

This passion has fueled a lifetime of her own adventuring to the farthest corners of the earth and two decades of guiding, scouting, cultivating relationships, and planning once-in-a-lifetime journeys for discerning clients.

When it comes to coaching, Jennine takes a holistic approach. She weaves in energy and intuition medicine, encouraging clients to value “being” as much as “doing” and practice deep grounding.

When she’s not planning trips or coaching, you can find her meditating, rafting, doing yoga, swimming, stand-up paddle boarding, salsa or samba dancing, kite surfing, and running.

In this conversation, Jennine shares about her career in tourism, as well as her personal journey over the past two years. And during this pandemic, she gives us an uncensored description of this journey, and shares how travel opens her up to a deeper exploration of self and connection to spirituality.

Christine and Jennine also talk about the importance of bringing women in this industry together, especially now, and how this realization led Jennine to Co-Founding Women Travel Leaders.

Tune in to hear Christine and Jennine discuss:

Jennine’s journey in travel and why she is passionate about exploring the world
Why Jennine created Women Travel Leaders and the impact its making
How Jennine navigated the pandemic
Living your dream life through the power travel
Why travel has the power to transform and help us understand our place
How travel provides the opportunity for self exploration, reflection, and discovery
The importance of bringing women travel leaders together and how they are making a impact
How travel allows you to live fully, transform your life and explore spirituality

Resources & Links Mentioned in the Episode

Learn more about Jennine Cohen and Women Travel Leaders here.

Follow Jennine on Instagram @jenninecohen, Facebook, and LinkedIn

Women Travel Leaders Application Page: https://www.wtleaders.com/memberships-form

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About the Soul Of Travel Podcast

Soul of Travel honors the passion and dedication of the people making a positive impact in tourism. In each episode, you’ll hear the story of women who are industry professionals and seasoned travelers and community leaders who know travel is more than a vacation. It is an opportunity for personal awareness and it is a vehicle for change. We are thought leaders, action takers, and heart-centered change makers.

The guests work in all sectors of the tourism industry. You'll hear from adventure-based community organizations, social impact businesses, travel photographers and videographers, tourism boards and destination marketing organizations, and transformational travel experts. They all honor the idea that travel is more than a vacation and focus on sustainable travel, eco-travel, community-based tourism, and intentional travel.

These conversations are meant to educate, inspire and create community. They are directed to new travelers and seasoned travelers, as well as industry professionals and those who are curious about a career in travel.

If you want to learn about new destinations, types of travel, or how to be more intentional or live life on purpose, join Christine Winebrenner Irick for soulful conversations with her community of fellow travelers exploring the heart, the mind, and the globe. These conversations highlight what tourism really means for the world.

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Credits. Christine Winebrenner Irick (Host, creator, editor.) Jennine Cohen(Guest). Original music by Clark Adams. Editing and production by Rayna Booth.

Transcript

KEYWORDS

travel, people, life, mexico, women, moment, pandemic, book, community, industry, feel, living, months, business, years, world, happening, leaders, patagonia, journey

Christine Winebrenner Irick 00:08

Thank you for joining me for soulful conversations with my community of fellow travelers, exploring the heart, the mind and the globe. These conversations highlight what travel really means for the world. Soul Of Travel honors the passion and dedication of the people making a positive impact in tourism. Each week, I'll be speaking to women who are tourism professionals, world travelers and leaders in their communities will explore how travel has changed them and how that has rippled out and inspired them to change the world. These conversations are as much about travel as they are about passion, and living life with purpose, chasing dreams, building businesses, and having the desire to make the world a better place. This is a community of people who no travel is more than a vacation. It is an opportunity for personal awareness, and it is a vehicle for change. We are thought leaders, action takers, and heart centered changemakers I'm Christine Winebrenner Irick. And this is the Soul Of Travel.

Jennine Cohen is the Co-Founder of Women Travel Leaders and recently stepped into the role of Senior Sales Director at UNCHARTED. She is a longtime trip planner, leader and advisor in the adventure travel industry. She is frequently called upon as a media source and has been quoted in travel and leisure afar National Geographic Conde Nast Traveler, Vogue and others, and was named to Forbes Changemaker.

In our conversation she shares about her career in tourism, as well as her personal journey over the past two years. And during this pandemic, she gives us with an uncensored description of this journey, and shares how travel opens her up to a deeper exploration of self and connection to spirituality. We also talk about the importance of bringing women in this industry together, especially now, and how this realization led her to co founding women travel leaders.

Sharing in this conversation was a beautiful gift and a moment of connection, a delight speaking with someone who sees the value in creating a space for women to show up fully and support one another. Join me now for my soulful conversation with Janine Cohen.

Welcome to Soul of Travel podcast, I’m very happy today to be sitting down with Jennine Cohen. And talking a little bit about transformational travel and kind of living our dream lives today. That's some of the some of the topics that I want to address. And Jennine is the Co-Founder of Women Travel Leaders and just recently stepped into the role of Senior Sales Director at UNCHARTED. So I'm so happy to have you joining us today. And welcome to the podcast.

03:30

Thank you. Thanks for having me, Christine. I love your podcast. And I also love the name solo travel really rings true, I think for many of us in the travel industry. So yeah

Christine Winebrenner Irick 03:42

Thank you. I'll have to share maybe a little bit about that later. Since you brought it up. I think it'll probably flow right into the conversation. As we get started. I would love to just create the space for you to introduce yourself and tell our listeners a little bit more about who you are and kind of who you are in the space of travel right now.

04:02

Yeah, I love what you said about who I am in the space of travel right now. Because I feel like this is a unique moment in time for many of us where we've all done the pivot and recreate and the left turn and I have been in a left turn that I could have never even imagined how to has to be even just over a year ago. But I have been a luxury adventure travel expert for the last 20 years and in a variety of roles across many well respected companies in the luxury adventure travel sector. And now as you mentioned, I'm also the Co-Founder with my partner Catherine Gallagher in the UK of Women Travel Leaders.

I'm also a professionally trained Life Coach. And we've created a network of buying petition only the most powerful, influential group of female leaders or industry has ever seen. And we're across the globe and you It's just been a spectacular journey. So really helping women specifically in the travel industry who have really been through the wringer during COVID to really elevate themselves or businesses in their lives. And so we talked a lot about some esoteric things around creating boundaries and energy and balance. But we also talk about real time things, including legal and HR and finance, and all kinds of things, solving problems and challenges in real time to support one another and share best practices and resources.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 05:34

Yeah, thank you. And for those listening, I've been lucky enough to be a part of that community the last three months. And I can just personally attest that it's been so valuable. And it is such a incredible gathering of women in the industry. And it's been, I just, I think, really powerful to be a part of this group during this shared time. So I'm so appreciative of it, I wanted to share kind of how we connected or I don't know, I feel like the universe was weaving us together, before we even met because I'd seen your name so many times, but another soul of travel guest Janette say ha had interviewed you on her podcast. And I remember hearing your story, and I was just like mesmerized and enchanted and was like for so many pieces of it, that kind of where I was, in my own personal journey really deeply resonated. And so at that point, like I really started seeking out following, you know, where you were and what you were doing, and seeing women travel leaders come to be and I'm really just grateful for the connections that sort of travel has created and seeing that also through women, travel leaders, I think this idea of community and connection and interconnectedness has really surfaced during the pandemic. And just our connection is an example of that magic that I think is being created right now.

07:02

Yeah, I love what you said about magic, because, for me, magic, and mysticism are things that are really closely connected. And it's all about not needing to understand what's at play that's bringing us all together in this kind of new world order of life and travel, right. And I think that when I just kind of drop into that and let it happen, as opposed to thinking that I'm in control of the situation, or I'm the magic maker, or I'm you know, I'm kind of more in my ego, and I just simply take my seat at the interwoven fabric of everything that's happening all around us. That's when things really start to fall into place in a way that makes sense from a logical perspective, and doesn't make sense from a logical perspective of how geologists got to be together and planning and having a good time and supporting one another.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 07:55

Yeah, it's kind of interesting for probably about three months, I have like a, a weekly planner that I have on my desk, but just as like the things on making sure that I'm managing that week, and the first thing I did for like three months every week is write trust and magic on there. And so definitely, like feeling that same idea, right? Like, somehow being able to lean into that and trust that it's like both not making sense and making sense. And that that's okay. Like, I feel like I was very much in that same space for for a long time and still am, but maybe don't need the constant reminder, it's a little more ingrained in how I just want to be. Well, I wanted to start talking a little bit about how travel found you what was your journey into travel? I know you mentioned you worked in luxury travel for quite some time. How did that happen? Is that where you started in your career or did this just kind of morphed over time.

08:57

It is how I started in my career. So I was at UCLA a very long time in the 90s. And I was part of the Outdoor Leadership Program. They're rich brings people into the outdoors to do things like kayaking, rappelling hiking in the back country. And after that experience that I was leaving trips all over the West. And then I moved to New York, because at that time in sort of the heyday of travel, publishing, and travel, glossy travel magazines, so I went to work for a travel magazine that did private jet travel, and then I decided that it didn't make sense for me to be working with a magazine that I just there was a kind of a disconnect on the value spot without going into it.

I very quickly made a decision to shut down my life in New York because it's my early 20s And I had applied for Outward Bound in Costa Rica, and they contacted me through my application process to be a student instead, Oh, I see that you have experience in sales and marketing, they actually need a sales and marketing director for Outward Bound as well as someone who can be an instructor. Do you like the job? So I ended up going to take a year contract and some Seca. And then when I finished the contract, again, at that moment in time, there were sort of a few places in the US that had consolidation of adventure travel companies, I knew I wanted to work in that industry. And it was Hemsworth. At that time, Seattle, San Francisco, older.

So I thought, okay, which is the least cold of these places, because I don't like cold. So I went to San Francisco, didn't have a job and ended up working for backroads. And then later geographic expeditions where I was for a decade, literally, to the day. And then I while I was a Geographic expedition, and I was also doing this consulting project as the interim CEO for some haciendas, in the Yucatan, in Mexico. And when the pandemic started, I was living in Mexico, I had been living in Mexico, I could have been anywhere because I was just working around the clock between the work I had at GAO x and a consulting project, and renting out my house to friends in California. And then the pandemic started all of the work docs and the messages, I don't know if you remember, or I don't know if you know about these messages, but anyone who had registered for in the US Embassy saying that they were living abroad, we weren't getting daily messages saying repatriate immediately or be prepared to stay abroad indefinitely.

That's what the message is said for months on end. And I, I didn't know anyone really at Catan. And I had all these post it notes on the earth, like I'm saved on Friday, and this is a good, this is a great situation just to kind of try to rewire my brain because I was I just have nothing to go back to and California wasn't, you know, might like there wasn't any work to go back to my brother had just passed away, he was living in California, I was recently divorced. I didn't have a home in California.

So there really literally was nothing to go back to. So I just I see. And then just life circumstances, destiny, whatever you want to call it. I created a life in Mexico, and then ended up by a lot of, again, synchronicity and magic meeting my partner, my now partner, Catherine Gallagher, who is coming here to Mexico for two months from the UK. And we started, we started I inserted women travelers just super informally a number of years ago, and I said, you know, I think it's time that we all deserve more support in a more official kind of way. And she appeared and stepped up. And we've been running with internal leaders ever since the early days of the pandemic.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 12:57

Wow, thank you. I can only imagine, I can't even actually imagine that moment sitting in Mexico. I mean, all of us were sitting there kind of holding these careers in our hands going, like, what are we going to do, but then also to have the lair of, you know, the government saying you have to come back or be prepared to stay indefinitely, like what does indefinitely mean? Like, you know, we all have this initial notion that maybe it's two weeks or two months, and indefinitely, it certainly didn't feel like two years in that moment. And to make that decision, I just think it's so amazing to I guess, have that much reflection, I think most of us jump back into our safety in a situation like this.

So it would have been a lot easier to go home even even though like you said, you didn't feel like you had anything you were returning to it was just a space that you know, and it's maybe easier to get through something like this in a place that you're comfortable with not layering on top of that, you know, being in a foreign country, not having a safety net, not having a community. So I just think it's amazing that that was, I guess, the guidance and the choice that you made, I can just say as the outsider looking in, I just kept thinking, oh my gosh, I wish I would have been trapped in Mexico during all of this seeing, you know, I for our listeners, you took the hobby of or found your passion for kiteboarding. And just for me, I have such a love of Mexico that I thought oh my gosh, I can't like that sounds ideal.

Like I actually want to be stuck there. And and be like forced to be on the water and the ocean every day. But then also thinking about and I would love to maybe maybe we'll go here next talking about the transformative power of travel, knowing like all of the things that that type of experience is going to allow from transformational perspective like that quiet that reflection that would be forced by being alone with yourself in a country where you're navigating things for the first time maybe or you know, all these different experiences that happened maybe over a week long trip, or if you're lucky, a two week long trip, all of a sudden, you are kind of living this transformational travel experience as your life.

So I don't know, I would love to talk to you a little bit about, like, I really believe power has this travel to transform ourselves, I think it transforms how we see the world and then how we see our place within the world. So what did that period of time allow for you to see in terms of, you know, your self exploration and and what came out of that period for you?

15:51

Wow, thank you for asking that. It's a leading question a lot. I would say I need more by a longshot in my adult life this last few years and at any other point in my life. And with regards to the transformation. I mean, it was really a beautiful opportunity. It still is, at that time, really to just truly become no one. So before I was living in Mexico, I had a shortish stint living I can't even say living like this just a few months in Patagonia. Right after I got divorced. I moved to a cabin in the woods in Patagonia, and a dear friend and brother of mine now well, Alonso of a sunset, Patagonia, he took me in when I got when I was fresh out of my divorce. And he put me he had this little, you're on a eco dome on his property. And this is someone like I am, I guess I was I, in my ego or something. I was like, Yeah, I'm selling on luxury adventure sets. It's like a top salesperson and flying on, you know, all around the world, like many of us, and private jets and helicopters, and, you know, five star lodges.

And then I turned up in Patagonia. And I remember he said to me, you really need to be no one for a while, too many people know you need to be done. And I kind of did that a little bit in Patagonia. But it wasn't until I came to Mexico during the pandemic, where it was like, Really, no one knows me. And I just kind of popped up here and all the other Americans left. So I was like, I didn't need to think of other Americans for at least six months where I was, if not longer, and spent a tremendous amount of time alone, just meditating, I started to study energy, medicine and intuition. And I was in this place called cheap show Moon, which is this crater that is they say, it's where the meteor hit that made the dinosaurs go extinct. So I would just do these super long swims. And the only thing I would see were the sales going on the bottom of the ocean floor. And that went on for months. And I had kind of the seed of idea of an idea.

Okay, you know, one day just kind of dawned on me when I'm paddling like, women, Java leaders, like this is my this is my place. Now in the industry. If I'm really I'm so lucky. I'm spear fishing. I mean, I literally pristine, hunting land own theory, I really kind of went low during the pandemic. And I just felt like, I don't know if I'm making meaning out of all of this. But it felt like there was a reason I was kind of divinely protected in some way in Mexico. And I have just made friends in our industry who really are my family to me, and I felt like, Okay, I feel a responsibility to help people who really can use support right now. And I'm fine. And I'm here in Mexico.

So let me just show up that another way. I've happened to be trained as professionally as a professional life coach, so I can show up in that way. But really, I think that just a slow and down not over a three day yoga workshop. But really, you know, when you go on vacation for a week, it takes you a week, right? Just to kind of even get you to unwind and then you still like on the email and you can't just check out or did you feel guilty or whatever. It was like all of a sudden, I had like days for the weeks or even months in my sentence, which is so low because I was scratching my own food and you know, going to the corner market and spending a fraction of what I did at home. And I started to really once I started to tap into the grounding aspect, which I started to study deeply.

Something funny happened, which is I started to really connect with this divine source wisdom that gave me all kinds of insights into things that I couldn't even really begin to describe. And people just the right people started to kind of begin to show up and the first show up We're traitors. So that's how I got into it. I never thought I would become a trader. So I was on this house on the beach, the beaches were totally shut down at that time in Mexico. And the this group of Mexican painters just sort of landed right in front of my house, because all the paintings things were close. You know, I was just so desperate to talk to anyone at that point that I walked up to them and kind of did my bourbon sessions

20:24

doing, they said, Oh, well, this is coming. This is kiteboarding. And you should take a lesson. And before I knew it, the teacher was coming to my house every day and my house had kind of become the unofficial type school because they will close. So I had all these Mexican parents going in and out and, and then I went on to study with shamans and energy. And I went, I basically went back to California a year later. And suddenly, none of the material items I had accumulated through the course of the years, the beautiful dresses, the pottery, this is not just none of it had any meaning anymore.

So I just give it all away, I let go of my house and came back to Mexico as a resident of Mexico. So now a Mexican resident speaking imagine that's a whole nother thing that just completely arose in this magical way. Not to get into the story of it, but I got my Mexican residency within 24 hours of it even being an idea in my mind, which, for anyone who spent any amount of time in Mexico, you may know that things do not happen within 24 hours, like not even like paying your phone or the helmet. So to get given the gift of residency with just like, oh, okay, I guess Yes, I am, where I'm meant to be from a souls perspective, you know, and your words, and it does feel really like I was down in Cabo the other day. I don't know if you've ever heard of the band, the whitest boy alive. I think he's in the band. They're really cool.

Anyway, they've got this song called, I'm going to turn your life upside down, which was actually recorded in like, a long time ago, like these 10 years, it completely reminded me of the pandemic they played, it was a full house party, and your jam now is kind of California Baja vibe. And they said, this line that really stuck with me, which was to take the rabbit hole down to the light. And I really felt like that during this time period. And I love the way you said it too.

Because it's like, yeah, I worked in adventure travel. But now my life is an adventure. And it really is within here in Spa, where it's like every day, some symbol and I have some boat, we had a kind of joke. We were driving in the car, and we're driving and it's bouncing and dirt roads and fog, like a complete metaphor for life. It's like one moment. You know what, this is amazing. This is the pieces are incredible. And the next minute you like have a flat tire and you don't you know, and then the next second you're swimming and then and then the moment after that, you know something your internet goes out. And it's just it's a bumpy road and what I think a lot of people say, who live here in Baja kind of turns off their desire to be an adventure traveler because your life is just that every day

Christine Winebrenner Irick 23:19

Hey, it's Christine, interrupting this episode for a moment to make sure you know you still have time to Join our 2022 Lotus Book Sojourn This is a unique journey exploring the heart, the mind and the globe through the pages of nine specially selected books written by inspiring female authors. Your year long journey will include 18 guided virtual discussions with a community of light hearted women, as well as weekly journaling prompts and reflection, and an assigned travel companion for each book in the journey. Last year, women said this was one of the most surprising and impactful experiences they had. Join us for rich discussion, meaningful connection and opportunity for exploration from the comfort of your home, or wherever you might be in 2022.

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Wow, thank you. I really appreciate you sharing so much of your journey. I think that I mean part of when I first heard and obviously I hadn't heard so much of of your story so I value that but like, I think my soul was like yes, this please. Like so much of my like deepest wishes to kind of have that experience and like you said that time alone that we don't usually get ourselves and then And I, myself have been taking a lot of time to learn more about energy medicine and grounding and like traditional plant medicine and really like, I think just leaning into that, that, I guess more like traditional way of being this. This is like when I travel, that's where I'm always drawn is towards like medicine men and women and shamans and healers, and artisans.

And there's something about that way of life that I just want deeply. And so I think in your story, I was envious, that you were kind of having this time and space, and obviously not knowing what it's fully like to be in that moment, but just having this desire for a part of that experience. And then I also a side note, kind of laughing about this idea of getting your, your residency in 24 hours in Mexico, I have planned several events there. So I don't I definitely know like that, like, nothing happens like that. So that was a gift from the universe for sure. I, I volunteered for the Mexico tourism board for a while. And I remember I was working in New York, and my first day showing up, I showed up like, you know, 7:55, figuring like, we're on Fifth Avenue, we're going to be starting our day, and I sat in the hallway for like an hour and a half, I finally gave up and I went and walked around for a while and came back and then was sitting there and everybody started showing up, you know, like around 10:30 or 11. I was like, Oh, I forgot, like, Phil, the Mexico tourism board.

But yeah, I and have been lucky to spend time in Baja. And I can relate to that metaphor for life like, and it's such a beautiful place that it has, you're going to have so many experiences within like a short distance of time, which I also think maybe there's something to that, like you can be in in so many different types of elements very quickly. And so you can kind of go through so many experiences in a short amount of time. So yeah, I just I love all of that. And I really appreciate you sharing that because I think it is such an example of what like I said, it's kind of like taking this shorter travel experience and drawing it out over time. But for our listeners, I think this is even take moments from this and apply that to the travel that you have available to you.

And then over this last year also thinking a lot about like, how do we bring these awarenesses from travel into our daily lives when we can't travel? Because sometimes we can't because of our career or our family or our budget or a pandemic? And so I think it's just really valuable to think about maybe, what are those moments that you tapped into that are really valuable in our daily lives? And I think you bring some of that to women travel leaders through your guidance. But what would you say for listeners who maybe want to access some of that what what do you think has been most helpful for you in like awareness and reflection and discovery?

28:14

Well, I also had a podcast a couple of years ago called The Everyday Magic Project, which was about harnessing the aliveness that we feel and travel to have in our everyday lives. So yeah, I remember, when I first saw your podcast, I'm like, Oh, my gosh, that's awesome. She's doing doing similar work. And I interviewed a number of people. And I feel like that time for me with this is a wind, of course of maybe two years. That now is, I don't know, a handful of years ago, was kind of like practice and reflection. I actually just went back and listened to a couple of the episodes yesterday for the first time in years. And I thought, well, I've interviewed all these incredible people, BIG WAVE SURFER, sailors, artists, musicians, writers. And I am living this way fully. And I remember I said something in one of the podcast episodes at that time.

This is a handful of years ago saying, wow, nobody really does what they want to do in life. And but you're doing it business to Luca who owns camping ecology and in Kenya amazing conservation project. And I said, even I don't do what I want. I take like a small little step, but I'll never go full. And I always kind of pull myself back. Right. So you know, we're the ones who are holding ourselves back in every situation. But to answer your question more fully, I think that there are three things that really make a life magical. One is community. So and that's really what we've been trying to do with women tribal leaders, is just connect kind of connect all the dots.

The second thing is getting clear on what it is that you do want and moving toward it. It's almost like you compare it with types of inward you make these little progressions. You get a little out of your comfort zone a little out of a little and then finally You're like, whoa, you just have this one kind of breakthrough day where you're ready, it has to be on your time. And it doesn't really matter when your time where that is for you, but you're just kind of ready to make that jump. And then the third thing is just really easy in Mexico, so good for those, it's just to be present and let go. And kind of just being the flow of things. I think that someone myself who came from the travel industry and was in sales, and it's really heavy in logistics, as you know, I mean, the stakes are high, and people are paying a lot of money and plan A, B, and C, D, E, and all of these things. But then when I just kind of, obviously keep an integrity and but in my own life, just let go of the reins a little bit. And also just be willing to not know where it's all going.

So to just kind of focus my energy, keep coming back to what's in my highest excitement, because it in my highest excitement, awesome, I'm going to do a great job, the best work is going to be done, it's going to be creative, it's going to flow, it's not in my highest excitement, it's going to feel stuck, I'm going to feel de energized, I'm not going to be motivated. It's just not it's not there. So, you know, I think all of the things in our lives may kind of make sense when we look back in hindsight versus when we look forward. Sometimes you don't know exactly where it's all going. And that's the best part. So just changing flipping the perspective, to having a lot of concern to having curiosity of what could be, how awesome is that? I also feel like I'm saying this, and I feel like I sometimes give us a question of like, Oh, she's just like, so happy, smiley and shiny all the time.

And like, I want to say right now I was in bed all day yesterday, not feeling great, because, you know, there's like this other side to living. We all have emotions, right. And so I think the willingness to maybe if there was a fork in, I would say that the willingness to go there and to be living a life in color have the full spectrum of full spectrum of emotions. So not just the positive, everything's great all the time that like, wow, I just learned some things about myself that information of what I want, where I kind of missed the mark in my life. But that's okay, I'm going to readjust that I'm going to feel it fully now and read. And rest, as part because resting is really an important part of the transformation process so that it can be you ready to move forward again, as opposed to this kind of low level energy that can go on for weeks or months or even years, when we're not willing to get uncomfortable and go to the dark side.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 32:41

I think that's so valuable looking at from a personal growth perspective, but also as a leadership perspective, to be able to show up fully, and for people to be able to see that we don't always know exactly what we're doing. And it's not fair to expect that we should. And I think like our corporate culture, or stereotypes of leaders, or even in this day and age of, you know, Instagram, like we always show only the best foot forward, we always show our successes. It's always expected of us to be this polished thing. And it doesn't. It doesn't take into account reality.

And I also think, personally, but I also I feel like I'm seeing this across the board, especially for women is we've been really attracted to people who have been showing up more vulnerably. I mean, I think that's why writers and personas like Glennon Doyle, or even like Brene Brown like we are seeing them show these parts of themselves that we all thought we needed to bury because nobody wants to see that right. Nobody wants to see our dirt and our mess and our chaos. Like we're so conditioned to think only perfection. And I know I grew up like I always say I'm a recovering perfectionist, but I was great a student, like always wanted to do things right like, was the perfect amount of quiet and the perfect amount of organized and all of those things. And I just think it has, it feels like this time that's like stirring and everybody maybe being a little bit messy and chaotic, has allowed us to get a little bit more comfortable with seeing whole parts of ourselves. But I also think what you were saying is that this is going to allow for us to be greater as humans and like move forward. Like when we can be ourselves everywhere.

I feel like that's like this next step for us to move forward. Like to not have to spend all this time and energy carrying around all of these masks, like we can just be and then move forward. And I don't really even know like there's not a question or anything but it's just a reflection as you were speaking but I'm sure there's some thing in there that resonates for you and for for this community

35:03

that you're creating as well. What say you can think of all of our, like our physical, spiritual and emotional kind of things need to attend in our lives in baskets, right? And we're just to put it in adventure travel terms, we're, we're putting them all? Well, let's just put all the things in backpacks, right? You can only really carry one backpack up to the top of the mountain, any given moment. And so which of these backpacks are you going to grab, grab them all. And I would argue the first one, you want to grab a devotional backpack. Because if things are not kind of in check, if you're not grounded, if you don't have a toolkit, like we've all been through the wringer right, the last few years up, down, I mean, it is exhausting for even the brightest shining us person.

If you don't have the tools to be emotionally grounded, we don't have business problems, we have life problems that make their way into our business. And so that is why I decided to focus on women because women are more willing. We all have emotions, men and women have emotions, all human beings have emotions, when I started, and not to name names on paper, but I started coaching men and women in the travel industry, and what I found was that the men were not willing to talk about the emotional side, they only wanted to keep it to business, when there really was no business. I mean, the first six months, it was just really well, what about the PPP loans? And what about this and that, and every time on the call, I mean, less these guys, like they would just have more and more and more a mess. And their businesses were falling apart, they couldn't think their way out of it. And they didn't have control of the situation.

And they weren't really willing to share what was in their hearts. And so there was no real head and heart alignment. The women on the other hand, I can't take riding right, like none of us were really quiet during that time. But they were, they learn other kind of together because they had each other and they were willing to voice what was happening from an energetic standpoint, emotional, and then be ready to show up and kind of, you know, roll up their sleeves again and say, Okay, I'm gonna have to figure this out in my business because of, you know, adopting employees before we get paid, maybe I need to go into hibernation. Now, I need to rehire people back whatever it was. And so yeah, all of that. As far as the corporate stuff does. I don't even know anymore. I mean, I don't really think I'm unemployable at this point by some major corporate share, nor do I really care to be, um, I just really want to work with people who are fully aligned at every level, because that feels good. And I just want to feel good.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 38:02

Yeah. I mean, I really value and love the conversations that we have been able to have in women travel leaders. And again, like, I don't know if it's this time in space, but I really love that we can show up and talk about the fact that we had to lay in bed yesterday, or we can talk about that, you know, I'm trying to navigate how to price this new itinerary like that. All of those things. Are there topics like and like you said, I think it's, it's valuable. Because it's true, we can't isolate these items. And especially I think, in travel and this space of travel, where so many people either have their own businesses, or they're running social impact businesses, like our souls, and our persona is deeply entrenched in our businesses. It's not, it actually can't be separated. And if you're trying to separate it, you're not doing it. And so I think, like, I think we have to be able to speak about all these things in one space.

39:05

Totally, I mean, look like it's, our industry is still a cottage industry, or whatever that means, right? So it's like, it's a life style business. So that means it's your freakin life. It's your life, you know, you it's your passion. It's your, you know, like, we all show up. There's this beautiful part about life work integration, right? We get to be authentic. Stoker's our full selves, the shadow side, some people know don't know kind of ever shut off. And so when and also that, there, many of us our identities are totally I'm sure you can relate to this too. We're just wrapped up and I'm travel girl, right?

And now okay, no one can travel anymore. So who the heck am I? And there was that sort of period of time where people were, like, struggling with their own sense of identity and grieving and loss of self and all of these things. And then all of a sudden they were hopping on a call with 50 other women Like, Oh, everyone's going through this, you know, I'm, you know, and travel is gonna come back and there are some light fonts and, you know, maybe I can find inspiration from something else that's not related to the travel industry, or there's this thing I always wanted to learn. Or maybe I should, you know, there's, there's this other way this other woman's making money right now that has nothing to do with the travel industry or this person turned off, you know, went through their entire, you know, billing statement of their credit card and went through even the smallest line items, which is sort of, like taking everything out. And maybe I should do that, too.

So, if there was a lot that was there that was shared, that still needs to be shared, or, you know, my I had to rebook these people four times. And now my, I've had to I, there's all this labor costs, and any addition to that the cost went up by 8%. So what now? Do I pass that on? Do I. So there, there are a lot of esoteric fomentation that are happening, but they're also real time, conversations that are happening as well.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 40:59

Yeah. And I love again, I keep saying I love it's just because I'm, I'm so happy that these deep conversations are happening. So when I say that I don't necessarily love that it's happening. But I love that people are feeling so much within their business and navigating all of this growth. And, you know, the difficult times are allowing us to also simultaneously see possibilities and different futures. And I mean, much like your journey and your trajectory over the last two years. Like if we look at where we were, and where we thought we'd be and where we are, like, it's not even on the same map anymore, I think for most of us. And I also think because of that, we have been open to really pushing ourselves to step into places we would have never been I mean, I know for myself, that sort of travel in, in and of itself was one like it was a direct connection to this trust and magic.

Like this was literally guidance from the universe. For me that said, you are going to start a podcast, it will be called this, here's your first 10 guests. And I was like in the shower, because he's in the sort of the universe likes to speak to me. And I was like, You got to be crazy. Like, none of these things are true. And then like, within, I don't know, within an hour, I sat down and I wrote this email that was something like, like the travel industry might die. I'm terrified. I feel like you are the essence of why travel needs to live. And I want to tell your story. And I'm going to do it in some way. And I have no idea how and would you like to participate with like, something just as crazy as that. And I texted a girlfriend and I was like, I think I'm launching a podcast. And then like, at the end of the day, I text her and I said, I have 10 guests for this thing that I'm doing. And I was just blown away by like, I would have never done this in another time. Right? I would have been too busy. I wouldn't have listened to that inner voice I would have would have said no, not now. No, that's not my thing. No, you know, I'm not doing this.

And so I just think this space and time has allowed many people like you said to listen and to be quiet and to maybe hear things that they wouldn't have heard or to trust in a way they wouldn't have trusted just because again, almost much like travel like we're out of our normal routine. We're seeking different possibilities. Were maybe open to new possibilities. And so yeah, I just I really value that process. And then again, to come back to women, tribal leaders, like I value the space to have that kind of moment in to be able to say, like, Hey, I have this crazy idea. And you know, what do you think about it and and to know that in a community, you're not going to feel judged. And again, I don't I just don't there wasn't a space for this before. Like I would have wished for it. I have been someone who has like believed in this power of women and community and connection, like deeply, I think since I was a child. But I've waited until now to see this come to fruition. So I think it's such a sacred moment.

44:27

Yeah, I That's awesome. Thank you for saying that. And to your point to about hearing that voice in the shower. I love that you find that experience. I mean, I don't know about you person, but for me, like I don't think if I had my inner voice I could not even hear an inner voice let alone say Oh, I don't have time to listen to you right now. So I think just the quiet you know, having the quiet for that extended period of time was like oh, I have an inner voice. Oh, intuition is meal. Oh, it's not far out of each Actually, in fact, it's right here inside of me all the time. And all of these other voices pretty much mama.

But I mean, whatever, that's all you can fit up, like really out there stuff. But all it is, is just again, whether you believe in organized religion, or just in the power mother, the great mother nature, when we are in balance, and we are grounded, and we're able to be in our energetic bodies in a way that is fully aligned, we tap into a kind of powerful wisdom that is unlike anything I've ever known. And it is exciting stuff. And I think that it is a wake up call that I have talked about four years ago, this new cup is happening, and everyone in the transformational travel council was saying it and I feel like it has now arrived. And if you look at people even like I'm kind of old now, but people who are younger than me, like they're so switched on and they're like, they're like in the new world. They're doing it and like, that's awesome.

Christine Winebrenner Irick 45:58

Yeah, it's that just kind of reminded me of a funny story about my my daughter's this morning, or they were talking about different holiday traditions. And just this awareness that, like you're saying that maybe youth and young adults have, and they said, You know what I think we should do every years, we should pick a different belief and we should celebrate it like I wanted to Hanukkah one year, and I want to celebrate Ramadan one year, and I want to celebrate, you know, this one year, and I was like, well, one like, you already you like, you know what all these things are right? And you want to celebrate these things, and you want to experience them.

So you understand other cultures. And I'm like, on Earth like, this is incredible. Can you imagine if there's other little beings that become young adults, who have this connection to our world in that way? And what does that look like? So I mean, I, I agree, I do think that there's an I just hope, because I want to hope this but that people are more aware and that people are kind of showing up into this space earlier in their lives. And not It's not landing for them in their 40s and looking like a midlife crisis or whatever. But that it's this thing that becomes a part of their whole life journey, and that they get to experience it more fully longer.