My wish for 2022

It’s that time of year when you look back on the last trip around the sun and forward to new beginnings; perhaps this year with a little more trepidation after the benefit of hindsight. Let’s face it, 2021 was not what we signed up for.

As we stare down the end of this horrible year for travel, you can’t swing a cat in cyberspace without hitting an article, podcast or similar on setting your vision for 2022 and starting the new year off on the right foot.

?My vision, my wish for 2022 like many of yours, will be for travel to return.

Just a few weeks ago that new year looked to be filled with that promise. It was not to be. The green shoots of the second half of the year were all but snuffed out with the rather frenzied kneejerk reaction to Omicron.

Global travel bans, cancelled flights, stranded passengers – we were back to March 2020 responding hysterically to a variant whose real impact on the ground appears to be more hype than devastation.

Those horror headlines marking the beginning of December have made way for more hopeful ones. Some are even suggesting that Omicron might be the key to restoring life to how we want it to be, the world to where we want it – one without blame and intolerance, punishing others for their transparency.

For travel to happen, certainty is needed. The damage is done as the events of the past month stirred up a pot of uncertainty. The good news, however, is that it hasn’t boiled over and that travellers also have short memories. Travel will return. We’ve seen this first-hand as the pent-up demand has the effect of opening the taps when travel bans are removed.

Admittedly, there wasn’t much we could control in 2021. Setting visions for 2022 notwithstanding, there is one thing we can control going into 2022 as a travel and tourism community.

Those of you who know me well will know that I am a huge believer of collaboration. If the past month has taught us anything, it is that fear breeds hate; that division takes us backwards; and that committed people coming together can change the world.

When you’re stuck in the weeds of inflammatory headlines, lurching from crisis to crisis it’s hard to have a mindset of abundance, gratitude and collaboration. But as the world gets smaller, we need to learn to work together better.

We need to step up, lean in and lead without self-interest. We need to elevate and celebrate those people who are doing incredible work behind the scenes; those people fuelling positive change.

So what do we learn from this decidedly harrowing year – make that two decidedly harrowing years…?

Lifting our heads up out of the weeds, we’ve learnt some valuable lessons. We’ve failed in our response to crisis – no preparation, no aligned global response, abject greed, etc.

The cracks have been exposed and they were gaping chasms. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though. You can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. However, it would be incredibly wasteful unless we learn and grow from this. We have to fail forward and do better the next time around. ??

For those of us in the world of travel and tourism, expect the boom to return quicker than you think. Travel will be in a better place and provide a better experience. Get ready for that boom now. Pull yourself out of your place of misery and get to work with your colleagues in tourism; collaborate and prepare for that traveller and her desire to travel with purpose.

?Lastly, and most importantly as we near the end of this challenging year, take some time for you. Set the grief, anger and disappointment aside and channel the spirit of passion and gratitude that is so characteristic of those who have chosen this industry to be their home.

Let us return ready for a 2022 filled with hope.?