A few weeks ago, I took the Chicago Architecture
Center's river cruise just expecting to admire the buildings. Instead, I spent
ninety minutes thinking about our industry, because that skyline exists largely
because the city once burned.
In October 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed more
than three square miles and left roughly 100,000 people homeless. Chicago
didn't just replace what burned. It rebuilt with new rules: stricter fire
codes, then steel frames that let buildings climb higher than ever. The Home
Insurance Building, often called the first skyscraper, rose in the rebuilt Loop
in 1885. In 1909, Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago reimagined the entire city.
The fire didn't make Chicago. It forced a decision:
rebuild the way it was, or build for what's next.
Travel has faced that decision repeatedly. When
airlines eliminated base commissions, the advisors who thrived added fees and
specialized. After 9/11 and SARS, clients wanted someone who understood risk.
After 2008, value and loyalty mattered most. COVID was our Great Fire, and it
reminded travelers why a trusted advisor matters when plans fall apart.
Meanwhile, we've heard endless warnings about the fire
that would finally burn us down: the internet, then the OTAs, now AI. Each
time, we built for what's next.
Your Fire Codes: The Rules You Run On
Chicago's fire codes weren't written for one fire;
they were written for any fire. Your business rules should work the same way,
because the next disruption won't look like the last.
- Do
you apply a written fee policy consistently?
- Is
travel protection discussed on every booking?
- Can
you reach clients who are mid-trip when a disruption hits, and can they
reach you?
Your Steel Frame: The Structure That Lets You Grow
Steel let Chicago build higher without collapsing.
Your frame is the set of systems that lets you take on more without breaking.
- Is
client data (passports, payment details, personal information) stored
securely, rather than sitting in email threads and screenshots?
- Do
your after-hours policies protect you, your employees and your clients?
- Does
your client information live in a CRM, or is it scattered across your
inbox?
Your Burnham Plan: Where You're Deliberately Heading
Burnham didn't plan the next block; he planned the
whole city. Too many of us plan only the next booking and neglect the systems
that build long-term success.
- Can
you describe your ideal client in one sentence? Are you ready to fire the
clients who don't fit and who start brushfires of their own?
- Do
you know which product lines drive your revenue, and is that the right mix
for the effort each one demands?
- What
should your business look like in three years, and what are you doing this
quarter to get there?
The Pattern Underneath the Pattern
Every time travel has been knocked down, the advisors
who came back stronger didn't simply rebuild what they'd lost. They asked what
the moment was telling them to build instead. That's the lens I keep coming
back to at MAST. We're here not just to help members recover from the last
disruption, but to help them build something that can take the next one and
come out taller.
The next fire is already smoldering somewhere. You
can't choose when it starts, only what it finds when it arrives. So don't wait
for the smoke. This week, answer one question from each section above, then act
on it. Write the policy. Move the data. Draft the client profile. That's three
small builds, done before anything burns.
Next time you're in Chicago, take the boat tour. Look
up. Every building on that river proves that rebuilding with intention beats
rebuilding out of habit.
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