My Lockdown Journey

 

Wow, this year has been nothing but stressful.

Part 01

In March Sri Lanka closed down, Maldives followed. I am from the tourism industry and a trade that came to a full stop due to COVID. I am a Maldives destination specialist when the destination closed I felt the walls closing in, the salary cuts starting my mind screamed the end was near. I am a man of stability, I have always learned different disciplines, helped so many in their businesses but always been the dude who did this one job. Stability went to the gutter I was left stranded alone on an island. What do I do, I started by fueling myself with the hope that trade will not die. I kept writing, inspiring myself and others we are global trade we cannot die.

Part 02

Mom always told me with the skillsets I own try doing some online courses, because I do not own degrees, I am not the certified Sri Lankan that is deemed by society. She has been advising this for over a decade, me not being certified never bothered me even though that is the singular thing that even keeps me from migrating. I was continuously learning never did it bother me to be certified. Randomly I saw this advert on Project management curiosity got the best of me before I knew it I was addicted. The next few months 12 courses I had completed https://www.linkedin.com/in/liswith-obinamuni/.

Part 03

My mind was still uneasy, I never been this unstable in over a decade (oh yeah I lived a very colorful life). I was frustrated and angry. I had a call with a friend of mine name Charith Heenpalla (Sri Lanka’s Best Food Photographer) was telling I want to try a new project, do it with someone. I was whining that I feel aimless and bored. A few days later he came with this idea findafreelancer.lk and we started working on the platform. After many sleepless nights, a few months in we presented to Sri Lanka www.findafreelancer.lk. The platform allows you to showcase your talent to business owners for free. The platform is free for the freelancer and the business that is searching for new talent.

Part 04 & Part 05 Overlap

First was the start of a journey of something inspiring, me and Duval Weerakoone (aka Malla, The Managing Director of The Nescius and Kubeira Holdings Pvt Ltd.) met with Ruwani and Geeshan Bandara (Wedding War Photographer) (aka the showrunners) two remarkably focused and driven people. This was the start of Patta History https://www.youtube.com/c/pattahistory/ journey, I have never met creatives, and individuals like I say ape Lamai who are so incredibly talented. Hearing every music beat, watching every storyboard come to life, see the passion that went into hardcore research, the art that gave this life OH MY GOD to date it is unbelievable. So much love went into this project and so much love is being received thanks to the incredible team I get to work with, being the taskmaster they so fondly hate (love you guys). This project to me is pure magic.

During this same time, Mr. Shohan Kulasuriya (aka Shohan Uncle) a serial entrepreneur (Founder of Mankiwwa) was starting something that is going to revolutionary for Sri Lanka being Sri Lanka’s First Lady Driven chauffeur service exclusively for ladies and kids. He asked if I wanted to join the founding team of Pink Drives. I was very excited, so much work went in before all you saw that launch held at Galadari. I met inspiring people during this journey, making commercials something I had never seen firsthand, helped in organizing the event in the small way I knew how to, onboarding incredibly strong ladies for the endeavor. This is being an experience of me entering the whole entrepreneur lifestyle wholeheartedly. 

Pink Drives http://www.pinkdrives.com has so much love and hope for me in my heart. There shall be challenges but along a great team, it is never impossible.

Now coming back what happened to the travel industry? Have you given up Liswith?

No, every day I have worked since March lockdown to date. I still am the destination specialist for the Maldives. I still am selling, promoting, and loving every bit of the destination I promote. It was never a job for me, I enjoy what I do. I have been blessed that all the skills I have learned and applied in all of the above projects I learned from this trade. I have got to work with some of the hardest working and passionate people I know.

This journey I am writing of did not take years, this all happened end of March 2020 to 01 Nov 2020.

I am untalented like people say, but if I could you can. Work is not a chore but an inspiration to grow yourself. Remember that every task that seems impossible that you are given, once you learn it no one can ever steal it from you. It grows you, it grows your mind, it grows your brand.

Anytime you message me I will always be there to help anyone in any way I possibly can.

2020 is rough, I think it will get rougher. Distract your mind with amazing things and you won’t feel how bad of a show it was.

Much love!

LISWITH

UNtalented

My entire life I have consistently heard that I was untalented this never took me down but inspired me to be more than what the system required of me.

I have had the privilege of working with great businessmen, entrepreneurs, and borderline geniuses but most lacked the focus to see a plan through.

Call me an idiot but I will try and game plan till I run things to the ground or succeed. I shall not give up.

As a child, my father used to say you don't pick winners on how they live life but on the day that they die. 

You can live with all the glamour you can fathom and die with nothing in hand, or be the person who made nothing of life when they were alive but celebrated after their death.

"You never lose until you give up."

I have had the blessing of streamlining so many talented people, making them shine and building up a habit within them.

I never saw the point of gaining all the knowledge the internet and the world have to offer if we do not use it for the better.

Till to date everything I have learned, I have used it to the point of abuse (my brother says this) until I exploit every end of it. 

With every job that I have matured with I have built my own network, and every time it has being from scratch. This has helped me build my own little personal brand along the years of working.

Storytime:

Once a friend of mine was stuck with a program, where I was assisting the project. I had no prior experience of this software nor any prior knowledge of this industry. I watched him say no to me way too many times than I could handle. I asked him to get up, I sat down, I googled it, I did it. Current day of life, it may not always be of the knowledge you possess but the ability to find the answers you seek.

All I understood in life is there are no breaks, every day is a workday, every day is a learning day, and every day finding shortcuts kind of day.

I might give up one day or horribly fail (no clue what the future holds) but till that point, tiI will always continue to help, assist, and inspire you.

That is the superpower of the untalented.

Cheers!

LISWITH

Teach to Teach; the art of sharing knowledge

I shall give you a tip on engaging more with your team and your business partners.

What do you know me for? The Maldives? Helping you in marketing? Business ideas? or Writing?

Over the years, I understood that experience in trade means little to me moving forward with time.

I started writing business articles first it was a hobby to keep my ideas fresh and my mind busy.
Later with time I was a trainer, I learned to share my skills, my knowledge, and my discipline with my team members. I made a syllabus and helped them grasp the best I could with knowledge from product to offers to sales.
I replicated the same principle to my business partners, even if you did not sell the product I would equip you with the tools to sell it. Train the team with information with confidence to market the product.
I proceeded to write a Novice Selling Guide for the Maldives and sharing with my business partners. I turned this into a habit sharing information; always tried to empower them, maybe it is business, the skills of sales and marketing, or the products I sell.

If you know me, I have a blog for the business that entails the destination I sell, a fresh set of eyes on ideas for selling, entering new or emerging markets, being an entrepreneur, HR, and management styles.
My LinkedIn is always filled with information that you can improve your skills, and gain knowledge.

Knowledge sharing became my thing. Every interesting article I read was shared. Every business idea or marketing thought process was blogged. Even certificate I did, I helped others do the same and gain the same level of expertise.

I am never selfish in sharing my knowledge with anyone, my business partners, or my friends.
Over the years my business partners saw more value in what I do because I do it passionately and I always provide them with help and assistance not only in the products I sell but in any problem, in general, they face in business.

I learn the power of teaching someone, empowering them to strive for more.

Your want it to sounds like more of a business point of view: the more you equip your partners in what you do, what you sell they more confident they become in you and your products. When they make money, is when you make money.

I shall always be open to ideas, you can always discuss any product anything with me as always I will be open ears.

Never be selfish in business or life, learn to teach, if anyone is searching for talent to join their team help them, anyone is seeking a job lend a hand help if a business you think more awareness with the public and you know can do it if you learn a skillset and you think someone else too can benefit encourage them.

Always remember that not all returns on investments are about money.

Let's learn the art to teach.

Cheers!

LISWITH

Lessons learnt being a trainer

I am going to write short stories of experiences I have learned from my life personally and professionally :

I was a trainer for the entire team who handled or sold the product. Being a trainer at the start was an incredible challenge, but we slowly developed a methodology so that it could be re-implemented by any new trainer.

I used to train new recruits in batches and once in a way my superior would check up on the status of their training as an informal update.
One time there was a batch of recruits who were slow, so I was pacing out the training process to fit their needs.

Randomly as always, my superior checked up on the status of the training and I mentioned we were behind schedule.

Now pay attention to the next part of the story very carefully.

My superior asked me "Liswith have you ever gone to school?". 

I replied rather annoyed, "Yes". 

My superior asked me "Do teachers slow the syllabus midterm or go as per schedule till the end of the semester even if there were weak students?". 

I replied, "No, teachers assist the weaker students but they stick to the syllabus and schedule". 

My superior asked, "Then what should weak students be doing?". 

I replied, "Stay after school get help, or do more revision". 

My superior replied, "Exactly, they have to stay and ask for help or when they get home to revise their lessons".

The importance of this story is that deadlines and timelines are not supposed to be shifted or missed.
While the duties of the company are to train you and assist you, it is yours to put the time to improve your skills for your job as well.

I hope reading this sparked your mind.

LISWITH

The Maldives - The Sun Will Shine Again

I am writing this not a travel agent but as a fellow traveler.

When travel is ready from the world the sun shall definitely shine again to the Maldives.

I have been selling the Maldives for over 8 years now. Visited many resorts the beautiful nation has to offer.

Yes, the ocean is turquoise and crystal clear. The beaches are filled with white sands. The sky has never been starrier.

This is not only why Maldives would be the ideal place to travel POST COVID.

Maldives is the ONLY holiday destination I have been to. Why do I say ONLY? What is a holiday for you?

A time table, a hop on hop off bus, someone telling you when the bus shall stop for bathroom breaks, or leave you when late for your tour? Do these signify as a holiday to you?

Oh my god, I hate stress on my holidays. I hate to be told a time table on my holiday. The Maldives is the holiday destination because it has no time table, no one calling your room and saying when you can do what.

You make your own time table; You want to sleep in till late? Want to wander the beach in the middle of the night with your partner? Want to go for a swim at 6am? Want to drink champagne all day by the pool? Want to go snorkeling? Want to read a book by the beach?

Did any of these seem stressful to you? and remember none of these came with a time table.

Maldives shall always be the ONLY destination in the world to have ALL imaginable hotel chains "Under One Roof"

Social distancing post-COVID; the Maldives is One Island One Resort. Water Villas or Beach Villas are built further away from each other for utmost privacy (social distancing).

Resort islands are not highly populated like Resorts built in cities. No strangers or visitors randomly come by your Resort unlike in city hotels/resorts globally.

I fell in love with the Maldives years back, to me, it is my holiday destination and my second home.

This is a warning; remember once you travel to the Maldives, no destination will ever be able to replace that holiday.

It is irreplaceable, unforgettable, memories that never shall wash away.

The Maldives - The Sun Will Shine Again

Yours Truly

LISWITH

Tourism Industry, we need to unite and it is now.

Destinations are opening up and the people can see a ray of light.

Countries are opening up with UNTWO and WHO standards in place. Destinations are providing assistance for holidaymakers and the tourism trade by tax reductions, visa fee reduction, destination promotions, and loans to stay positive amidst everything.

Resort and Hotels have slashed prices, they are currently trying to push domestic travel within their borders too. They have started webinars, virtual tours of their properties, slashed prices to attract holidaymakers, and many more incentives to encourage travel. This all comes with hygiene standards and safety precautions taken as per UNWTO and WHO standards.

This thought came to me in the middle of the night; What happens with airlines?

Our industry is not a solo game but a dependent collaboration, we are all one large unit operating separately.

The airlines, cruises, trains, resorts, tour operators, dependent trades, and governments.

Earlier holidaymakers booked destinations that fit their budget. This means hotels and ground handling that fit their holiday budget.

The world opened up more and this trend changed later to; let’s travel to countries that fit my air ticket budget.

Air ticket prices became a major contributing factor for tour operators and holidaymakers to decide on what destination we sell or visit.

Let’s talk about airlines and the difficulties they might face, solutions, and current observations:

• Expats that traveled back home noticed that prices of airline ticket prices had doubled.
• One way tickets I assume for the coming months shall remain hiked, as airlines too under a very difficult situation.
• With the opening of borders, will the UNWTO, WHO, and governments enforce one seat kept free regulation? If this is implemented this might result in a price hike as airlines still have a large operating cost to bare from staff, government taxation, fuels, maintenance, and airport charges.
• If only health and hygiene standards have to be met, will airlines hike the prices until things return to normal? Which in turn would be a difficulty for destinations who opened up, where holidaymakers cannot afford the air tickets.
• The competition within the airlines too will always have to remain as they have to protect their products and QA standards.
• Will IATA regulated fares be the solution like the old days?
• Will regulation a maximum and minimum fare from what region to region (Eg: Europe to South Asia) flight operates be the solution?

Can we suggest more solutions to the TOURISM INDUSTRY?

Kindly note we cannot devise a game plan without everyone coming to the table.

No use if resorts and hotels give discounts if governments charge high visa fees.

Pointless if resorts slash room rates if airlines hike their prices?

No use if airlines, resorts, tour operators, and travel agents open up, without governments assisting them. This so that they can keep their existing staff with financial support and ensure standards and protocols can be efficiently carried out.

Can we unite and come to a solution? The tourism industry is large, it is not only dependent on airlines, resorts, and tour operators. Other contributors, like public spaces (museums and malls), engineers, accountants, restaurants, and even the clothing industry would have a major impact if the tourism trade shall remain to be in turmoil.

Let us unite! Anytime during the day, I shall be open for bouncing of ideas and how we can push to implement them.

We need to unite and it is now.

Cheers!

LISWITH

WFH meeting problems, and their solutions.

I have been talking to others in different trades, how things are going with work and life?
Some have told that meetings held have become stressful, dramatic, and at times annoying.

Let us try some ideas on how we can improve them?

When Team leaders are presenting during the meeting as Managing Director or CEO  do not let others unnecessarily intervene.
Each person will get their turn to talk. Team leaders do not talk down or intervene in another Team Leader's presented ideas.
If presenting an opposing idea for another Team Leader's department ensure to back it up with proof.

Each meeting will have points to be discussed or presented, stick to them strictly. If further points need to be discussed, schedule it for the next meeting. This is to give time for all team members to come prepared.
Do not drag the meetings as an unnecessary debate or discussion.

Lastly to every problem you bring to the table, come along with two or three solutions. Are these solutions supposed to be perfect? No, they just have to be solutions where the team can assist you, or help you with a different approach. The problems and stated solutions can be brainstormed as a team, not told why it cannot be done.

I hope this helped you or sparked your mind.

Cheers!

LISWITH

Hotel General Managers - Automation is not POST COVID it is NOW

I hope automation becomes a big part of the future for the hospitality industry.

Here are some ideas :

Large scale disinfectants of vegetables when transported to hotel/resort facilities.
Once the stock does arrive a conveyor takes the stock, counts the goods via an IoT solution, and passes it through a disinfecting chamber so that it can safely be collected by your team members.

Contactless menus for hotels/resorts where they can pay via Touch Pay / Card or scan hotel key where it shall be added to the guest's final bill.

CCTV cameras that detect if your team is wearing masks. A thermal sensor too can be integrated so that you see if your team members are spiking a fever.

These are some solutions other the WHO standards that all hotels/resorts are supposed to maintain.

If you think these are ideas you would like to implement at your property and it spiked your interest, let us talk.

Cheers!

LISWITH 

Did we truly embrace the NEW NORMAL Sri Lanka?

It is day two since life returned back to normal in Colombo.

We are already rushing to the supermarkets and standing in line excited.
Everyone was speaking how life shall change and that we all shall be shopping on online stores and moving forward to a more social distancing lifestyle.

Soon as this lockdown was lifted we started gathering back at our homes, even to say hi and hello.

We had so many webinars on how WFH “Work from Home” shall be the NEW NORMAL.

Most are back at work again because we were bored at home, or our superiors were bored at home.

Yes if your work was affected in the past 50 days and if you were not productive during this period, and physically being at your workplace is how you earn and are productive, please go to work.

I am not saying life should not go back to normal but should go back to the “new normal”.
We had so many webinars, Zoom meetings, Skype meetings, and endless Facebook posts on the NEW NORMAL. How fast did it take for us to slip back into the old ways?

If you were productive being home; if you worked every day, met your deadlines, ensured that you assisted your team on their work, and at meeting their objectives, please continue to do so at home. 

If you bought groceries online or from the truck that came to your home please continue to do so.

Thanks to all the business owners, drivers, delivery truck owners who brought us food and essentials, you guys are heroes! Our gratitude and appreciation cannot be expressed in words.
I urge you to continue those deliveries, firstly this would help the general public to create a habit and secondly would stop everyone from complaining that we had to go to the store because we are not getting any essentials to our homes.

Let’s try the simple things that we can do so that all we hear on news COVID-19 does change to something slightly normal.

Writing to you from home!

LISWITH

Airports - Post-COVID let's make it safer shall we?

Post-COVID, all airports shall have thermal scanners, PCR tests, and maintenance of social distancing but let's see what more can we brainstorm to make airports safer.

Air ticket & Passport scanning for entry into the airport for passengers.
Passengers encouraged on receiving e-boarding passes even if checked in is at the airport. You shall be receiving an email with baggage tag, and seat number reference and aisle.
No longer immigration forms to be filled and PHYSICALLY given, scanning of passports, boarding pass, and visa for the retrieval of the relevant information. After info gathered an e-signature of the thumbprint of the passenger can be taken.
All transactions at the airport maintained in a strict contactless manner via card or touch-pay, cash can be used only for money exchanges.
Contactless menus, where the required meal can be booked via the airline app before boarding after the check-in process is done.

These are my input for making airports and air travel safer for passengers. I think point three should be seriously thought of so much contact for people coming together to fill that embarkation and disembarkation forms, they share pens, and this is a process that can be electronically replaced than an immigration offer collecting pieces of paper.

I hope reading this sparked your mind.

Stay safe, Stay healthy please do Stay home.

LISWITH

SL Tourism readies for post-COVID-19 revival- NOT POST, I SAY NOW!

To whom it may concern,

Sorry, this statement is very generic: http://www.ft.lk/top-story/SL-Tourism-readies-for-post-COVID-19-revival/26-698998?

These are global ideas we can use and attribute to the WHOLE country

Accor launches COVID-19 cleaning certification, which can be done with GMOA and training for the entire HOTEL trade. https://travelweekly.co.uk/articles/368154/accor-launches-covid-19-cleaning-certification

Here is a course that can be taken by anyone to ensure the cleaning industry professionals are correctly trained: https://www.issa.com/education/cleaning-for-infection-prevention/coronavirus-prevention-and-control-for-the-cleaning-industry

We always talk about Ayurveda like we are actually concentrating on it, but are we really? are we marketing this properly? are we encouraging the next generation for it?

We should take initiative, for those who graduate as Ayurveda Doctors. These doctors should be recruited to the hospitality trade to shape and develop this new trend in the world. We have a massive university along with over 1000s of years of culture, history, and medicine. This can be easily monetized.

Teach the Doctors, storytelling skills so that they may better explain the history behind the medicine.

Meditation and Yoga, start certification for locals, and teach them the hospitality industry how to utilize the hospitality industry. We can intertwine these products two services and turn it into a powerful product.

Now that we have a break, all our historical sites transformed with the power of IT and Digital Entrepreneurship to help more engaging storytelling experience. Make it more than here is a rock and temple to see, train all our local guides to use these technologies, this is not to make them REDUNDANT but to better equip them.

Use VR to recreate the Kingdoms we have had. So when a client walks to a site he has the old age and the current stage while our national guide explains. Make the world FALL IN LOVE with US all over again.

Kindly do not go back to the OLD ways of here's a rock, this is Kandy, we have golden beaches. We can all work together not only in the tourism trade but ask for the help and guidance of other industries.

Do not promote your agency or hotel, promote the destination. We are not about being a cheap destination, we are not a better travel agency because we sell USD 5 less than the other, we are not ONE hotel destination.

Reminder to you of what we are, who we should be, we are a destination filled with culture, history, and diverse weather conditions. We are a better travel agency because we innovate, we bring experiences in a new way to our B2B partners as well as clients. We are a destination that has a ROUND trip and we shall now promote the unsold, untouched places in the PEARL OF THE INDIAN OCEAN.

Sri Lankan chefs win so many culinary awards, start promoting them. Push them to get Michelin star accreditation more and more. Base massive events around them, rename your hotel restaurants under their names in their honor.

The whole world is promoting us, its foreign bloggers that get to do our content and market it back to our industry. Inspire our bloggers, photographers, and travel journalists to promote more about Sri Lanka, the trade, and ministry back them up.

Inclosing teach the hospitality industry to sell Sri Lanka, not just their property or company.
Lastly, entire trade stop waiting for POST-COVID to start your marketing it is now, RIGHT NOW. Implementations of NEW ways of promoting our country is NOT POST - COVID it is now.

IT, Digital agencies, Doctors, Yogis, Cleaning Industry, Hoteliers, Travel Agents, and National Guides let talk, no one is going to come for a rescue mission for us. Let's make this happen now, not POST.

Cheers!

LIS

Hoteliers entering new markets - How to?

During management meetings, a question that may arise is this?
How can we enter this New Market?

Usually the reason maybe we saw an increase in certain market bookings directly to the resort. The next logical step is we try to enter it.
The old school manner of approaching this is attending a travel fair in that specific country or write blindly to agents you can find online.

I shall break down simpler steps if you are looking forward to as a salesperson to enter that market.

• Check the number of arrivals from this specific market.
• Check if all travelers are originating from the specific country they hold the passport. Eg: if you see more Jordan passport holders are they traveling from Jordan or are they Jordanians living in Australia.
• Check the most commonly used flight by all these passengers, are they mainly from this specific airline's Eg: Turkish airlines.
• Lastly research on who the Agent is in Jordan who holds the GSA for Turkish airlines.
• Now we can approach this agent first.

Now you know which airline they take, you know this specific agent is the GSA. The easiest way to promote is using the agent that promotes that airline so now we have common denominators.
Hence it shall we a win-win for both parties, this could be the first step in entering such a market by gaining knowledge via a specific agent.

It is not only about the tour operator selling outbound, but its also the passengers book flight and hotels hence putting you at a position of advantage.

I hope this made sense, and most importantly it was helpful.

Cheers!
Stay safe during these enduring times.

LISWITH

Tourism Industry, Predictions, Trends, Habits, and Difficulties.

The Far East is predicted to Travel End April or Early May.

When travel bans are lifted the Russian markets shall travel.

Middle East markets, shall travel after the end of May when Ramadan is over.

European markets that have scheduled holidays in August as of now shall travel.

The rest of the European markets & Australia shall travel end 2020 or 2021.

These too shall be always subject to change with HEALTH being a priority for travel.

The economic fall has not only taken a downfall in our industry but on the industries, our guests are in.

Aftermath question is will guests truly travel?

What are we as an industry to re-instill travel for guests?

Will major airlines like Emirates and them operate soon?

Incentive travel and business travel will companies halt till 2021?

What are the marketing strategies we are implementing?

What are the messages we are sending our partners and guests?

We are all in a hurry to collect debtors but do understand the same downfall we are in partners is in too.

How shall the airline and destination prices remain?

Stay Safe, Stay Healthy!
LISWITH

COVID Blues

Hi there!

We all are on WORK FROM HOME mode.  Work from home mode is tougher than it seems. All of us it is easier to work on the go, work from the airport and during business meetings the ride back even in a cab.

Are you facing weird difficulties?

Firstly companies to keep their leaders encouraged during this troubled time is getting hard. They have been discouraged, disoriented or panic mode does not set the tone to the rest of the members to push through personally or professionally. Leaders keeping the game face on, innovating and the saying dress up a smile is now required more than ever.

Secondly, even though we are so confident at working from the road, working from home is a totally different ball game. During the current times, all kids are home, teenagers have nowhere to be, the crying little ones shall cry. The thing we did not account for is during the day, children were at school, teenagers had their own social life in the evenings, during the day the infant baby routines we did not see unless it was a holiday or weekend. All our households have their own rhythm when we are at work, may it be our kids, parents or grandparents. Now we are all are together, the teens are gaming, the kids and grandparents are occupying the TV early and out loud. As much as we have the confidence of work, there shall be an adjusting period where all of us sadly will need to find each other’s rhythm and co-exist. That is more difficult than it seems, maybe we admit or not most of us are going through this.

Lastly, keep the mood upswing never let it drop, may it be the music, eBooks or movies whatever you use de-stress swing back and forth from productive to de-stress before you break.

Health not only been protective from COVID is important, but mental health is also been tested these days. Please do take care of yourself.

Be Safe, Be Healthy, Be Fun and Be Productive.

Cheers!

LISWITH