Holly Velardo and Kim Wethmar (right)
Q: Can you give us a bit of background on TIME and what it’s aims are?
A: For me, TIME was created to nurture and develop the next generation of leaders, specifically within the travel industry. The aim of mentorship is around accelerating personal and professional growth.
If you haven’t done mentoring before or if you haven’t been a mentee before, there’s a really great structure at TIME that gives people guidance.
What I really like about it is that it connects ambitious travel professionals with seasoned mentors who can offer insights, support and real world experiences that they may not get elsewhere.
It’s a place to have a conversation in confidence that’s meaningful to them. So it’s not just about career progression. It’s often about expanding their mindsets and challenging their own limitations and helping the mentees see possibilities that they may not have considered before.
Q: Why was it important for you to become a mentor within the program?
A: I’ve been so fortunate to receive advice and be part of great communities and networks as I was growing my career.
I moved to Australia 20 years ago and kind of started over, so being able to pay it forward and share some wisdom and enthusiasm is really what got me into TIME.
The travel industry is full of incredibly talented people, but sometimes they just need somebody to believe in them and help them unlock those doors that they didn’t even realise were there.
My passion is all about showing people that their potential is more than what they previously understood or explored.
I really get a kick out of somebody saying, “oh my gosh, I had that same conversation with my husband in a framework that you gave me and we’re on the same page”, or “my kids listen to me better”. That’s really cool.
Q: You are currently mentoring Holly Velardo from HollyDay Travel in South Australia. How are you enjoying that relationship?
A: I’m very grateful to have such a great mentee who’s just so open and receptive to feedback and learning. She takes on so much and she’s just so tenacious and willing to learn, it’s quite extraordinary.
Holly gets homework every week from me and she doesn’t like that much but that’s how I really know whether somebody’s committed to doing the work is when they come back next week and they’ve prepared and they’ve got examples, and Holly’s just nailed it.
She’s not my first and I know she won’t be my last, but Holly’s definitely been one of my favourites.
Q: Is it a two-way street, where you learn from your mentee?
A: I often find, and using Holly as an example, that I might be saying something to her that I really need to hear for myself as well. So while it’s about giving advice, it’s all about hearing it too. You can’t just tell people what you think they need to hear.
It’s often like a mirror. I’m telling them something and I can see that same message coming back to me. I think that’s one of the reasons why I carry on doing it, because if I didn’t have to prepare and be on my A-game for somebody else, then I’m probably not going to be hearing the message either?
Q: Why is a program like TIME so important for the travel industry?
A: It’s important because the industry is not necessarily as glamorous as it was 20 or 30 years ago and it’s tough doing the same thing day in, day out. If you’re a travel consultant you’re making a new booking, changing an existing booking – always at the last minute – and dealing with all those complexities. It is almost mind numbing.
I think showing career progression and career paths through travel as a community opens up doorways for people. I think that’s what TIME brings; it connects people and the industry in a way that perhaps doesn’t happen in other industries.
Kim with Kirsty Latham from TravelManagers
Q: So what do you get out of being a TIME mentor?
A: My motto is, “I do everything I can with everything I’m given” so for me it’s all about personal fulfilment and satisfaction and watching somebody grow or challenging their own limitations.
It may sound a bit corny but I guess my philosophy is to make better humans because better humans make better parents, better humans are better leaders and better humans are more considerate and kind.
What I’m always proud of is when my mentees stand up at their graduation and say, “I didn’t think I could do it. Here’s what I’ve learned, here’s what I’m taking with me and every time I’m in this situation, Kim’s going to be sitting here on my shoulder going, ‘is that the right answer, or do you think you could do something better?’”.
Q: With TIME’s help, the future for travel agents looks bright.
A: There’s so much choice online right now that I think for most of the uneducated buyers, they want to come to somebody who can tell them what’s great and give them some expertise.
For the travel agents and agencies who don’t move with the times, who don’t educate their staff and teach them the skills to ask great questions or to be present in the moment, that could cause the shortening of their career span and the shortening of the business in terms of longevity.
If you’re investing in your people and in development and education, it’ll absolutely pay off in the long run.
You can ask AI to do pretty much anything, but it’s not going to know about the cool little place around the corner across the road from the bus station that you’ve got to go and get a pizza from.
