We had the good fortune of connecting with Gary Kohn and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Gary, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I don’t ever remember a time in my life when I didn’t make risky decisions. I think for the majority they haven’t paid off but if I really think about the amount I’ve learned both through success and failure has been intense to say the least. I do thin k the thing that comes with age though if you are a risky person is the thought process around calculated risk. Before I started Luxury Travel Hackers officially I was making a huge career change…at 49 years old! I had worked in Film and TV as a producer for the majority of the last 25 years so moving into a space and field that I have no connections or real experience in was a massive risk but I thought about it for a few years and did a lot of research and development. That time gave me the opportunity to really see where the company could go and as I went down the rabbit hole to learn the model it increasingly became obvious that I would be dumb not to pursue it. They the moment to decide came and I asked myself if this endeavor would make me happy. Thats the one thing I’ll never risk…my happiness. Needless to say I started the company and the only thing I can say is…It hasn’t been boring!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I spent the last 25 years as a film and TV producer and learned during that time that everything is a story. It doesn’t matter what you do, it’s the story that captures peoples heart and motivates them to act. I felt this was lacking in the influencer and content based travel sector. This is what we do really well and what sets us apart from others. Anyone can take a pretty picture or feature a nice drone shot but it’s the story you tell in the short amount of time you have someones attention that motivates them to act.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’d do one of two things. One, spend the week in Catalina on a boat, scuba diving, hanging out at the spa, snorkeling, jet skiing etc. Catalina is a true hidden gem of California. Two, take a California road trip. Big Bear, Joshua tree, Palm Springs, Death Valley, Napa, Big Sur, San Luis Obispo, Yosemite, Mendocino, San Fransisco and Los Angeles. California has so much diverse terrain and some of the greatest driving roads in North America.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
As a founder life can seem pretty lonely at times. Like your own your own really as to weather you succeed or fail but in reality the amount of people who have helped me get where I am with this company is astonishing. My first advisor Woodrow Zeigangel was instrumental is where we are today. There were days I hated him and days I loved him but in the end it was really him who got me where I am. I will say that 95% of his advice is awesome and 5% is the worst thing I’ve ever heard come out of someones mouth, haha. I love to learn so when I really knew I had to up my game in the startup world I Read about 50 books and listened to maybe 500-600 podcast episodes in a 2 year period. My co-founder Katie Warner has been amazing at reminding me to keep my cool in all situations and reminds me that company culture is key to our success. Brian Hammers, my head of production has such a great creative vision and work ethic. He keeps 100 moving parts organized and seamless and pushes me out of the way when frankly…I need to be. And Noah Schneider, my producer thinks of it before I do usually so 9 times out of 10 when I turn to him with something I need it’s already done.

Website: www.luxurytravelhackers.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luxurytravelhackers/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-kohn-66b508a2/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Luxurytravelha1

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/luxurytravelhackers

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2lFJfYyD_HuZymFd7W72aQ

Image Credits
Luxury Travel Hackers for all Pic credits

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