Have You Honeyteered Today?

I have a client.

I don’t have a name, but I have a client.

What’s it a name anyway? They could be overrated and maybe I’m onto a revolutionary new marketing approach:

“Who did you book the trip through?”
“Oh you know... that nameless company.”
“Nameless company? What?”
“Yea, they have no name, but a fabulous product.”
“Who doesn’t have a name? Why don’t they have a name?”
“I don’t know, there’s just no name…”
“How can you not have a name?”

And so the conversation goes. Very Seinfeld-esque. No name, great product – hey, it could get people talking...

I have a slogan too, “Volunteer Vacations for Special Occasions.” Just no name.

I have a business plan and a concept, but no…. ok, you get the point.

Anyway, here’s my concept, I’ll tell you about the clients in a minute:

To be the premier online source of customized honeyteer and volunteer vacations allowing people to celebrate their special occasions by contributing to the improvement of people and communities in need around the world. Experiences blend volunteer service, cultural explorations, and traditional R&R to meet the customer’s preferences.

(That no-name travel place) is committed to responsible tourism and environmentally friendly operations. We seek like-minded vendors and organizations as business partners.

I’m open to feedback – I’ve been cornering everyone I can find to solicit it. I’ve done pretty well so far and my outplacement support has been a huge help. For some reason Tara and I are the only ones there under 40, maybe 45. The majority are senior execs with Ivy League educations let go from places like GE and IBM. What they heck they’re doing there and why the heck Tara and I are there with them is beyond me, but the beauty is they all seem to love talking to me about my plan… and better yet, they all like it. A lot.

No one’s heard of a ‘honeyteer’ though. It’s a real term. You can Google it and get a few hits – one is a featured article on TheKnot.com and another is an article from Travel Agent Central. There’s also a quote:

"For a newly married couple, participating in a cause greater than themselves may offer the perfect balance to their wedding," says Michael Organ, Executive Director of Charity Guide, a nonprofit organization that promotes volunteerism. "Some newlyweds find it especially meaningful to start their new lives together by giving back."

…. thanks Mike. That’s exactly what I was thinking.

The best news is I bought the domain. www.honeyteer.com That’s me. Now I just need to help fan the flames.
You can help too, just throw it out there in random conversation…
“I took the car to the shop and got the honeyteer checked today.”
“What did you say?”
“Oh, honeyteer, it’s this new idea….”

Or maybe…

“I bought some eggs, bacon, and honeyteer for breakfast.”
“I’m taking the dog on a honeyteer.”
“That workout was brutal, I need a beer and some honeyteer.”

These are just guidelines of course, you can ad lib as necessary.


I know what you’re thinking now, and no, Honeyteer is not a business name, neither is Travelynn (just for the record, that domain is already gone.) Honeyteer is too narrowly focused, I want to capture a bigger market. Travelynn is too vague. (Feel free to dispute me on this if you feel strongly.) I’ll post some new name options at the bottom. My last options didn’t go over too well, but I understand what you mean, Amigo Love does sounds like a raunchy Hispanic porn site.

As for my clients, they’re getting married in September and will be my first honeyteers ~ Michelle and Rick. (Michelle was on my AmeriCorps team and so was Amy P. Even Celia, the first official follower of this blog, is a friend from there, so if this whole venture is successful I’ll have a lot to thank AmeriCorps for.)

Michelle e-mailed me five days after I was laid off asking if I had any ideas for an environmentally friendly, volunteer service based honeymoon. I haven’t talked to Michele in a long time and our e-mail volleys are few and far between. Her message and request were completely out of the blue, or is that green? Either way - Kismet.

Michele and Rick like the idea of Cost Rica and Belize. “Tropically places”, as Michelle puts it. Since I’m traveling to Guatemala for my next Habitat build in July, I figure why not swing by Costa Rica and check it out? Belize too. Then I read that Panama is equally as eco-friendly, so I had better visit them also. Plus, Nicaragua and Honduras are right there, so it would just be plain foolish to not pop in and say ‘Hola.’ I wouldn’t want to come across as being unfriendly.

The trip isn’t all fun though. I’ll be researching organizations to partner with and spending most of my time visiting their facilities. I’d have a tough time recommending something I haven’t personally seen and approved of. Oh yeah, and I guess I’ll have to check out the local night life and fun stuff too, don’t want my clients to get bored.

As for how this whole idea came to be, the truth is my friend Mathieu approached me about starting a travel company a year ago. It never got off the ground, but the darling little seed has been germinating ever since. I’ve watered it, fed it, nurtured it. My friend Meredith even tended it last fall on a hike near Bear Mountain. As we communed with nature, she told me about honeyteers and pushed me to start my own biz. Suddenly I had roots. I might kill every houseplant I ever own, but mix Matt’s idea, with Meredith’s concept and Michelle’s needs and… Boom! I'm on Miracle Grow!!

The Interview

Is there anyone out there willing to do this for me??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a6VIq2P61o

It's science

Did any of you know that travel agents and writers are bundled into the same job family? Anyone? Please raise your hands…. Now why didn’t anyone share this with me sooner?

My whole adult life I’ve wandered the globe with my journal fused to one hand and my passport fused to the other and I’m only just learning there is a proven connection between my two passions??

I just took a career assessment through the outplacement support program. I answered hundreds and hundreds of questions that poked, prodded and analyzed my word loving, globetrekking brain. It then categorizes my answers into 30 different job families, such as scientist, employee relations, intangible sales, numerical administration, etc. Where do I rank highest? ‘Artistic Careers’ What are the jobs they tell me to pursue?
Visual arts. Acting. Writer/Editor. Travel Agent…

Hmmmm….. they might be on to something!!

Freefall

Ever wonder what got you to a certain point in life? Ever stop and think 'How did I end up, right here, right now, in this very situation?'

Usually I’m on an adrenalin high when the thought strikes me, like one of the last times... I was falling out of a plane at 15,000 feet over a mess of sulfur pools, in a country where the locals are named after a flightless bird. As I hit maximum velocity, spitting cloud out of my mouth with a giant 6’6” French-Canadian on my back, I thought, 'How did I end up here?'
Which, in truth, is kind of nowhere when you’re 1000 feet below a converted crop duster and 14,000 feet above a South Pacific Island. In that moment I realize I'm there/nowhere because six years earlier I moved to London, got a job in a brewery and met a girl from New Zealand whose first born is now my Godson. Then the chute opens and I think, 'Oh right, that all makes perfect sense.'

But today my feet are on terra firma and I’m not doing anything too extraordinary, just sitting in my little SoNo condo listening to the trains go by while the sounds of some cover band singing Living on a Prayer drifts up from the street below.

Today I know how I got here and today, for the first time, I might even know where I’m going. First, let me fill you in on the back story…

It's funny when someone initiates an action behind closed doors, and they think no one is watching, that they deem their action acceptable, but as soon as a spotlight is cast upon that very same action, allowing it to be seen by all, it is suddenly deemed unacceptable. It's not always about the what, here it's about the how.
I know you have no idea what I'm talking about.... so just ask.

Backstory has been removed at the request of my previous employer (whose name was never mentioned or taken in vain.) In truth, I complimented them. They treated me well and I stated that. I liked working there and would definitely recommend them to anyone as a potential future employer (except I can't tell you their name!) Great people and great culture - I will miss both.

And so it begins...

“You should create a blog” Amy says. Amy who threw a Groundhog’s Day Party at her home in Grand Rapids, Michigan four years ago. Amy who convinced me to fly in from Connecticut to attend the party. Amy, the tree hugging granola, who picked me up from the airport in the official purple and yellow NASCAR pace car. Amy who laughed when she told me her boyfriend (James Taylor, but not the James Taylor) works for NASCAR, and laughed harder when the people we passed on the freeway took photos of the celebrity car, and us inside.

That folks is my Amy P and the reason you’re reading this blog.

I haven’t heard Amy’s voice in about two years, but when I told her I was downsized, looking for work, starting a new company and planning to spend two months in Central America, she told me to start a blog- just to keep me occupied.
Sure... like I have the time. But the real problem is, when Amy speaks, I listen....