I recently came across a phrase I immediately related to: "Acting is embarrassing."

Not that I act (though I obviously possess the moxie required to do so), but because this short statement explains why it can be so painful to put your face on the metaphorical box of your brand.

We just wrapped up Travel Business Unpacked LIVE, a two-day virtual event where we invited advisors outside of GTN to get a taste of what we offer our members year-round through Travel Business University. There was so much great content, and so many great conversations that I could write about any number of things, but one theme stood out to me mainly because of how much I personally relate, even though I'm not a travel entrepreneur myself. That theme was discomfort with putting yourself out there.

People become travel advisors because of passion. They love seeing the world and sharing it with others, they have an entrepreneurial drive, and they usually bring some specific mojo to it, everything from marketing brilliance to being a systems-and-spreadsheets wizard. But one thing that came up repeatedly during our event, and that comes up consistently within our network, is that most advisors didn't get into this because they love putting themselves out there. On the surface, social media and networking sound like the fun and breezy side of running a business, but that’s only true if these things come naturally to you. A couple of our successful GTN advisor panelists spoke to this directly, sharing how being the brand has been one of the biggest hurdles to overcome.

If you can relate, I unfortunately must tell you there's no magic solution, no switch to flip, no course to take, no mental fitness exercise that will make this suddenly easier. The answer is both simple and inconvenient: learn to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

One of my favorite things shared on this topic came from Meghann Bjarnesen, our new Lead Mentor and Program Manager. Although Meghann recently joined our team, she has been part of the GTN community as an advisor and mentor for some time and understands these challenges on a different level. While talking about client attraction and networking, she confessed that she's one of those people who is uncomfortable putting herself out there but forces herself to face it through exposure therapy. She has a self-prescribed quota for sending cold emails, and made it clear that she will email anyone, because what's the worst that could happen? She called this process "exercising her audacity muscle," which you know I wrote down immediately.

Think about it: between emails, texts, LinkedIn messages, and phone calls, how many random reach-outs do we get every single day? The worst any of us will do is ignore and delete, and yet from the sender's side, the downside feels so much more dire. But instead of fixating on the potential negatives, think about what positives could happen.

I'm not generally one of those people who is comfortable putting herself out there, but I do have a personal success story. When I worked in the craft beer industry, I helped my aunt open a brewery centered around celebrating incredible women. Before we'd even officially opened, we attended that year's Craft Brewers Conference, where the keynote speaker was Alison Levine. She is one of fewer than 100 people worldwide to have completed the Adventurer's Grand Slam, meaning she's ascended the highest peak on every continent and skied to both the North and South Poles. After her talk, my aunt, whose "what's the worst that could happen" instinct is considerably stronger than mine, walked us over to introduce ourselves and ask if we could name a beer after her, because the worst that could have happened was a polite brush-off, and then we all would have moved on with our lives.

Fast forward a few months: Alison flew to Charlotte to attend the release party for the chocolate stout we brewed in her honor, and we've stayed in touch ever since.

I'm not saying every cold reach-out will be fruitful, or that putting your face front and center on social media will immediately boost engagement, but remember that marketing, much like acting, is embarrassing, and the only way to get over it is to get through it.