Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alexis Di Gregorio. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alexis, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about the best boss, mentor, or leader you’ve ever worked with.

I took a corporate job in 2016, building out a customer experience program for a staffing firm. It was an out of left field job for me, having been a creative person for most of my life I never imagined a career for myself in corporate America. I ended up really loving the job, and I attribute that mostly to the manager I had. A woman from Glasgow with a heart of gold and a drive to cultivate and mentor me. I had heard horror stories about people having managers who weren’t invested in them or their long term goals; so I’m thankful this was an incredibly reciprocal relationship.

What made her so special as a manager was not what she did for me while we were working together, but what she did or said during our time together that has influenced the person and customer experience advocate I am today. She taught me that my worth and value is not attached to the job I do, at the end of the day it’s just a job and I should be doing things I love. She helped me to understand a greater purpose I serve in this world, which is to help other people (which may be why I help people travel now!) and that trusting your gut instincts is critical to having a successful career in anything. To trust when things are working for you, when they are not, and how to move forward once you’ve made informed decisions that best serve you and your future.

I will be forever indebted to her and the time we spent together. I also have a deep appreciation for my Scottish roots now, so thank you Linda!

Alexis, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I first got into this industry when I hired someone to support travel for my destination wedding/honeymoon. The experience was amazing, and something in my gut was telling me this was going to be my next path. I ended up apprenticing with this designer for a year before branching out on my own.

My very first gig as a Travel Advisor was actually planning someone else’s boutique destination wedding, so to have that come full circle for me was a beautiful moment.

My experience so far has been all encompassing, I have built out room blocks for weddings, built out incentive trips for sales companies, and planned honeymoons and vacations for couples and friends. I can’t believe that this is my job now! It’s truly a gift.

I want you to have a “well lived” travel experience. I love working with people who love to travel thoughtfully. That means that we are conscious of where we are going, the significance of our impact as travelers being in someone else’s space, and embracing the local culture as much as possible. I want you to leave a little piece of your heart in the places you love to travel to, and being a Travel Advisor affords me the opportunity to do this.

What brings me the most joy is finding that cool unique hotel no one knows about, getting you on that hike with a local tour guide that brings their puppies with them, or finding you an amazing immersive experience you will think about for a long time.

I am ALSO a multi-hyphenate artist, and my personality is a huge part of why people like working with me. I’m funny, very attentive, and an amazing listener. You can always book travel on your own, but in working with me I hope that I inspire and empower you to see more of the world, and have a little laugh while doing it. AND! In doing all of the above, you find some perspective in yourself.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I believe it is so important to diversify your income portfolio. Resilience is the key to anyone’s success, and I take a lot of pride in what I do in all my industries.

Becoming a Travel Advisor was actually my life pivot. I had been in a job for almost 6.5 years and while I loved what I did, I was beginning to see that what the business valued and what I valued over time had changed. I didn’t feel like I was being optimized as an employee and I’m a Capricorn, so if you’re not using me at my 150% then you don’t deserve my 75%. I had to ultimately make the decision to leave the business, and upon leaving I was profoundly burnt out. I feel fortunate enough that I had accumulated some savings to take a few months off, and so during that time I uprooted my whole life, moved across the country, gardened, wrote, and rested until it came time for me to launch Root and Wander Travel.

It was the first time in my life I had really put myself first, over anything else. I have absolutely no regrets about it and for me, it was the best decision I could have made at that time. Though it has not been without its difficulties, I have a deep appreciation for having more control over what my future looks like.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Ask anyone about me, and I’d hope they’d say I am kind and connected. I love conversing with strangers, introducing friends, and helping people find opportunity. I am not in the convincing business, I’m in the inspiration business, and practicing kindness and staying connected is what helps me grow my client book. It also helps me find good people. I am a good person, and I want to work with good, kind, generous humans.

Unfortunately the sales industry in all of its facets gets a bad rep sometimes because like any industry there’s always a bad egg here or there; and sometimes they ruin it for the rest of the industry. But I believe when you put your best foot forward, and focus on the customer’s experience, being kind and connected will help you find the most success.

Also, your network is your net worth! Truly.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rootandwandertravel.com
• Instagram: Root.Wander.Travel
• Other: https://www.foratravel.com/advisor/alexis-di-gregorio

Image Credits
Katie Cassin Photography (for suitcase photo)