If you have ever attended one of my webinars on Communiversity or membership, you know that I have had a “technical awakening” in the last year. My skills, up until then, were pretty limited to Outlook and the occasional word document.

I think back to the 80′s when I worked in operations for Maritz Travel Co. We were still using telex machines and word processing centers with dozens of staff typing up our hand written notes. I was resistant to use my own word processor (do you remember??) because I did not want to put those dozens of typists out of work (that was my story and I am sticking to it!)

Once I left Maritz and became a Regional Sales Rep working out of my house, I was still using a typewriter for reports and correspondence – I would type them and then fax them wherever they needed to go. By the mid-90′s, I was looking for a new career opportunity. When I did not get a job because of my lack of computer skills, the light bulb finally went off! I could no longer afford to run from the future! In my next position, I signed up for every computer course I could. I swore to myself that I would never lose out on an opportunity because I did not know how to use a computer.

Jump forward to 2011; with a little help from my friends at The Travel Institute, I have really come to embrace all the new gadgets, widgets and gizmo’s! I no longer type invoices in word and track on an excel spreadsheet; I now use Freshbooks for all my invoices and accounting – LOVE IT! We track all inquiries from out website in Zen Desk. I no longer have to check my 800# voice mail 2-3 times a day – if a call comes in, the message comes to my computer. Learning to use these and so many other programs has empowered me to the point that I no longer run to IT for assistance… for the most part I figure it out on my own.

So, I guess the point of this particular rant, is to open yourself up to learning new things – go out of your way to look for new opportunities to learn. Join The Travel Institute’s Communiversity where you can access hundreds of fabulous courses… I promise you will get wonderful satisfaction if you invest in yourself!