Using Tourism as a Tool

One of the most gratifying moments for me as a leader is the moment when someone I am mentoring takes my mentorship values, grows them and reflects them back at me.??

New York Times best-selling author, Donald Miller, once said that effective leadership is getting up every morning, meeting with your team and simply pointing in the direction your business is aiming at. Consistently massaging your organisation's values and purpose into the hearts and minds of each of your team members is, I would argue, the most important thing a leader should be doing - whatever the nature of the organisation or group you are leading.??

Recently, I was gifted with a special moment when, it became clear that my goal of imparting the Timeless Africa Safaris vision and values into my team had not only been realised, but nurtured. A travel manager who had been with us for eight years was planning to move across the country and she prepared a short farewell speech to share at her final team meeting.?

The speech was a full-circle moment. She had so embraced the vision and values of our company that, as she spoke, I understood that our mission had been absorbed by osmosis. It had become part of her worldview. What an extraordinary revelation!??

Now, you are probably wondering what, exactly, our vision and values are. For me, it all comes down to purpose. Timeless Africa Safaris exists to ensure the survival and sustainability of Africa. We use tourism as our tool.??

By extension, then, our travel managers are Africa Ambassadors of the highest order. They have pledged themselves to Africa's myriad of magnificent wildlife; hundreds of thousands of hectares of rugged, untamed landscapes; every creeping, glittering insect; every graceful safari lodge and its vibrant, surrounding community; and every wide-eyed guest.

Our travel managers are in the fight of their lives to ensure the continuation of the world's most beautiful continent and all of its spectacular treasures, in all their shapes and forms, using the best weapon we have at our disposal: travel.??

Now that is something worth getting out of bed for.?

But it doesn't stop there. We are also on a mission to transform each and every guest into a bonafide Africa Ambassador, too. Being an Africa Ambassador is simple. It's as easy as sharing your love for Africa with others and encouraging people to experience its beauty first-hand.??

Every person that travels to Africa is directly, or indirectly, contributing to conservation and anti-poaching efforts, supporting local economies and ensuring that Africa's unique cultures and ways of life are celebrated and protected. When our travel managers sell a holiday to Africa, they are selling something truly altruistic that will do endless good for her animals, people and land, for as long as companies, like ours, continue to favour conservation-centric partners.?

I invite you to become an Africa Ambassador. It doesn't matter who you are, where you’re from or what you do for a living. You don't even have to live in Africa! All you need to do is encourage one person to visit Africa. Then visit Africa yourself.??

If you would like help planning a life-changing visit to the most majestic continent in the world, please feel free to reach out to me or one of my Africa Ambassadors at Timeless Africa Safaris.??

We would love to help you fall in love with Africa!?

Timeless Travel Managers Manifesto:

At Timeless Africa Safaris we hire Africa Ambassadors, not travel agents. Timeless Africa Safaris exists to ensure the survival and sustainability of our beloved Africa, her wildlife, habitats and communities.

We use tourism as our tool.