Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Holewinski.
Hi Sarah, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I am a Green Bay, Wisconsin, native with a goal of seeing everywhere. Since I was a kid, I loved traveling to see my family, and flew by myself at the age of 8. Ever since I have been a travel connoisseur! I love traveling and have a deep passion for exploring new areas!
After growing up in the frozen tundra my husband, Alden, and I decided to pack up and move across country to Arizona. This allowed us easy access to frequent travel and so many new adventures! Since then, we have begun short-term living in other countries. We are currently living in Mazatlan, Mexico, and enjoy immersing ourselves in the culture of where we are visiting.
Professionally I spent many years working in Social Services, including supervised visitations, substance abuse counseling, working with troubled youth, and Wisconsin Works TANF fraud benefits. After several years, I decided I needed a more positive career and became a certified wedding and event planner. We moved to Arizona, and I began my career in Marketing and Event Planning. After a few years I grew into Corporate Leadership and became a COO of a large healthcare corporation in Arizona. While I loved what I did and the amazing team and culture I had built, I was still missing my passion of frequent travel. I decided to take the things I loved most from my careers over the years and create my own dream career and lifestyle.
This led me to start Vacay Mode Travels and help people create their unforgettable Destination Weddings, Honeymoons, and Romantic Getaways. I absolutely love helping people create memories with their loved ones that they may not otherwise make the time for. We are so busy working every day to provide for our families, and I am here to remind you that it is ok to take a break enjoy some R&R time, and reconnect with your loved one.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I am definitely a planner, so overall, the road has been pretty smooth as it was carefully thought out. However, this curation of my dream career and lifestyle did not happen overnight. Over the last 15 years, I have learned and pushed myself to grow out of my comfort zone and have constantly challenged myself to get to the next level. I really had to learn to be comfortable with the uncomfortable. Our recent move to Mexico definitely has taught me a lot and has made me so grateful for so many things in my life.
The biggest thing I would tell anyone is if you are looking to make a change in your life, set a goal and break it up into manageable steps to achieve it. Above all else, positive mindset and belief in yourself is key. If you don’t believe you can do it, you have already taken yourself out of the game.
Every morning I practice a daily abundance routine consisting of gratitude, affirmations, and goal setting.
As you know, we’re big fans of Vacay Mode Travels. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
We have a deep passion and many years of travel experience on our team. All Vacay Mode Travels Advisors are Certified Travel Professionals. I am also a Certified Travel Industry Coach as well as a Certified Destination Wedding and Honeymoon Specialist. We love using our expertise to help couples create their unforgettable destination wedding, honeymoon, vacation, or romantic getaway. To us, there is nothing better than couples enjoying exciting adventures that lead to lasting memories!
What sets us apart from other Travel Advisors is the concierge level of service we provide. We want to ensure that everyone has an unforgettable experience, so we are extremely thorough and personalized in our curation services. We get to know each one of our customers, their likes and dislikes, preferences, travel style, so when we present their trip to them, it is personalized to exactly what they are looking for, saving them hours of research. As a Virtuoso agency, we only work with top-notch suppliers that we know and trust to provide a consistently exceptional experience. In addition, we ensure that everything is going smoothly for our customers from trip planning to travel navigation and all the way to their safe return. We are here to help every step of the way!
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk-taking.
Risk-taking is an essential part of business growth. To me, it is all about taking calculated risks. I like to evaluate every risk and ask myself how this can benefit our business and also evaluate a worst-case scenario. This allows me to go in with a plan in the event any course correction needs to be made.
About 9 months ago, my husband and I decided to leave our corporate jobs, forfeiting our very comfortable income and risk moving to Mexico to work on our Travel Agency full-time. It was a HUGE risk, but the potential for gain was so much more than what we were losing. We have truly learned how little we actually need to be happy, and our business has grown exponentially over that time. We are now living our dream life and truly look forward to our work each and every day.
Pricing:
- Planning Fee $150-1,000 (varies depending on complexity of trip)
Contact Info:
- Website: www.govacaymodetravels.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vacaymodetravels/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vacaymodetravels/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-holewinski-01253a223/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@govacaymodetravels
- Other: https://calendly.com/vacay-mode-travels/consultation
