Signs a Hospitality & Tourism Career Is Right for You
One of the fastest growing industries in the US and around the world is the tourism and hospitality industry. In the US, there are more than 7.6 million travel, tourism and hospitality jobs, employing one out of every 18 people[1]. The leisure and hospitality industry employed the largest portion of the labor force in Central Florida in 2017[3].
Globally, tourism bookings reached nearly $1.6 trillion in 2017[2]. Throughout 2018, the hospitality industry was expected to see growth of around 5 percent[2].
If you are looking for a stable career path, something in the hospitality and tourism industry might be right for you. Jobs in the industry include working with the public as a concierge or front desk manager, and working as a culinary, pastry, or beverage manager.
Is a career in hospitality and tourism right for you? Here are a few signs that you’ll enjoy working in the industry.
You Love Working With People
Perhaps more than any other field, a career in the tourism and hospitality industry requires a lot of time interacting with other people. Customer service skills are a must-have. If you love engaging with others and working with people, then the industry is likely to be a good fit for you.
Customer service in the industry ranges from making sure guests have a relaxing and enjoyable time when they are out to dinner, to making sure guests at a hotel have everything they need for a comfortable night’s stay. If there’s an issue, you’re there to help guests solve the problem and enjoy the rest of their time at your hotel or restaurant.
Depending on your job within the industry, working as a hospitality and tourism professional might not only mean interacting with the general public. You might need to be able to manage a team, such as a group of servers and/or bartenders if you work in food service or the reception and front desk staff if you work at a hotel. If you’re a people-person, you’ll most likely find a career in the industry fulfilling and exciting.
You Like Solving Problems
If you’ve never met a challenge you couldn’t face or love the idea of solving puzzles and problems, you’re going to get a thrill out of working in tourism and hospitality.
Hotel and restaurant guests seem to come up with new and creative ways to stump staff and managers each day. You might have a guest ask you to find them tickets to a sold-out show or a restaurant guest who’s vegan, gluten-free, and allergic to nuts. No matter what the problem is, you’re ready to tackle it and look forward to finding new ways to approach challenges.
You’re Creative
Part of working in the tourism and hospitality industry involves finding ways to make people’s experiences extra special. You might have guests who are celebrating a milestone anniversary, people visiting for a special birthday, or guests who are staying in a hotel for a wedding. As a hotel or food service manager, you play a critical role in ensuring that each guest’s visit is a unique one.
Being creative means that you can come up with fun, new ideas to help people have the best possible time.
You Have Excellent Communication Skills
Communication makes the tourism and hospitality industry operate smoothly and efficiently. If you’re not good at expressing thoughts and ideas or if you struggle to interact with others, you’re likely to find a career in the business challenging.
But if you’re a good listener, you’ll go far in the business. Listening skills, from being able to hear what customers are saying when they have a concern or problem to being able to hear your supervisor or boss when they give you instructions, are essential. When you really listen to what someone else is saying, you can figure out a solution that works best for them, in the shortest possible time.
You’re Looking for a Challenging and Rewarding Career
If the idea of working in a field where the phrase “never a dull moment” rings true, then you’re going to love working in hospitality and tourism. The volume of people you’re likely to interact with over the course of your career means that it’s very likely things will be different from day to day.
If you are ready to get on the path towards a career in the hospitality and tourism industry, Orange Technical College can help. We offer a career certificate in Lodging Operations at our Mid Florida Campus. Completing the certificate prepares you for certification and licensing exams from the American Hotel and Lodging Association and National Restaurant Association, paving the way for a fruitful career.
To learn more about the program or to explore our other career certificate options, request more information today.
Sources:
- “Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality Spotlight,” Select USA, https://www.selectusa.gov/travel-tourism-and-hospitality-industry-united-states
- “2018 Travel and Hospitality Industry Outlook,” Deloitte, https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/consumer-business/articles/travel-hospitality-industry-outlook.html
- “Orlando MSA Statistics,” Orlando Economic Partnership, https://www.orlandoedc.com/Orlando/media/Orlando/Why-Orlando/about-the-region/OrlandoMSADataSheet.pdf?ext=.pdf