Heena shares her career journey and the advice she has received from her mentors and advocates. We discuss her approach to challenges, how she built her extensive network, and the “Imposter Syndrome”. She offers advice on improving communication skills, taking risks, and personal empowerment. She also shares her thoughts on the most important leadership qualities.
Heena shares her career journey and the advice she has received from her mentors and advocates. We discuss her approach to challenges, how she built her extensive network, and the “Imposter Syndrome”. She offers advice on improving communication skills, taking risks, and personal empowerment. She also shares her thoughts on the most important leadership qualities.
Greetings. I'm David Kung, the founder and principal of DEI Advisors. We are a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering personal success. I am delighted to welcome Heena Patel with Travel and Leisure to our show today. Heena, welcome.
Heena Patel:Thank you. I'm so excited to be here, David.
David Kong:Yes, am I. And I'm sure the audience will benefit from your tremendous insight. Let's start with very impressive career journey. You have, a very interesting journey transitioning from the hotel side to travel and leisure, which was Wyndham destination previously. Can you talk about this journey and some of the highlights and the success factors?
Heena Patel:Yeah. I grew up in the hotel business with the last name Patel. It's Been synonymous with the hotel industry for many decades. But what was really interesting to me was Learning that there were so many different facets of hospitality. And as I continued my career in the hotel industry, which I was very passionate about and had a very long trajectory with MMG and other companies out there. I found that I wanted to experience the other side of the business and really understand how hospitality was brought to life in different areas and different verticals. When I got my first opportunity to do that on the resort operation side with Wyndham Destinations at the time. And I really enjoyed the journey of learning about the vacation ownership side of the business, learning about the exchange side of business, really understanding how people were taking control of their vacation journey and how there were different ways that people could travel. And being a part of a A publicly traded company that was as large and is as large as Travel Nature has given me the opportunity to spread my wings a little bit and explore different parts of the industry. And for that, I'm completely grateful.
David Kong:It's so exciting to listen to you, and it really points to the many opportunities that our industry offers. It's not just operations and hotel side. You can branch out to be and vacation ownership and many other areas. Congratulations on your tremendous success. Let's talk about mentors and advocates. They are tremendously important to our career progression. I was wondering if you can share any experience that you had with mentors and advocates, and if you enjoy that experience, can you share some tips on how 1 can go about finding them?
Heena Patel:Yeah. So I feel like I've had both throughout my entire journey. Early on As a young person trying to understand a family business, mentors came at me from my own family. So individuals Who were growing their own entrepreneurial strength while they were building their own hotels. I can remember, An uncle who's still a mentor to me today, Sunil Patel, who's been a part of the hotel industry for many decades. And, he always pushed me to think differently. He's you see how people are doing it today, but that's not how it always has to be. And the more that you're able to broaden your horizons and think differently, the better that you'll understand this industry, but you'll understand yourself. And he's that's what's primarily important is that you're a part of something that you're passionate about. And so really early on, I had, some really strong individuals in my life who helped me say, you don't have to do it the way that you've always seen. You can Look outside the box and find something different and find what you're passionate about, and you can make that a career. And I think that really helped me out as I was becoming a young adult in starting off my career in the hospitality industry. And, I've I look back and I say, there were individuals and moments, advocates who said to me, you might not think you're ready, but you're ready. And I think being an Asian American and a female in this industry, it was really important for me to have advocates and mentors, Whether they were allies or whether they were from the Asian community really helping me to understand that it was okay for me to take that step To be present in what was happening and challenge myself to be A little bit more than what I thought it would be. And I look back on the early part of my career, and I don't think I would have Had the journey of leaving the hotel industry, coming into the vacation ownership industry without those types of mentors, without them saying, Hey. It's not really starting over. It's experiencing something new to find out where your next passion is. And then, journey the journey to travel leisure has been A great 1. I've had a lot of successes in my 14 years with them being able to grow from a entry level assistant resort manager all the way up to an SVP in the last 14 years has really been because I've been surrounded by people Who've taken the time and the energy to say, hey. We think you can do this. And not only do we think you can do this, we want you to push yourself to do this. And I think earning that confidence over time by being surrounded by people who are just really out there to see you expand your journey, students? Makes it easier for you to take those risks and those chances and find confidence in yourself to continue to move forward. I always say whenever anyone asks me about finding a mentor or getting the advice of new advocates On their career journey, I always say find those people that challenge you your you to think differently. It's easy to find people who are like minded and who fall into the same form that you do. It's really hard To build relationships with people who don't. And the more that you build relationships and mentorships around the people who are student. The more that you challenge yourself and you challenge those mentors to think of you differently. And I think that this served me well. I think it continues to serve me well. I'm constantly being pushed into new areas and to be to drive confidence in myself in identifying those new opportunities. And I think that as you go through a career journey, It's important to surround yourself by people who will challenge you, but who will also do it in a way that is lifting you up and advocating on your behalf and creating a sense of confidence in what you bring to the table. It's
David Kong:so wonderful to hear about your experience with mentors and advocates. And I really like the initial advice that you received from your mentor about thinking out of the box and being different. I think differentiation and innovation is so important to one's career progression. And be able to do that, you have to think differently. So that's great advice. And I also like the advice that you share about finding people that can challenge you and push you to be different and to be better. That's wonderful advice. Thank you so much for sharing that. Now we've all faced our fair share of challenges and setbacks and disappointments. I was wondering if you can share your general approach when you face challenges, and how you find the strength and resilience to overcome setbacks and disappointments.
Heena Patel:Yeah. All of us are human. So when we approach a challenge, the first gut reaction is what did I do wrong? How is this happening? I thought it was on this path of success, and where did this come from? And the reality is once you get over that initial gut reaction, I approach challenges and setbacks as in what would I have done differently? Are there significant opportunities for me to learn from this change or this challenge? Is this gonna prepare me for a better response next time. And then once they get past that, it's really about identifying a strategy of coming back from it. I'm a very relationship driven individual. And so when I attack anything, I'm always trying to Figure out what's the benefit, not just for me, but for my team, for the people that I'm surrounding, for the people that it impacts. And oftentimes, that is also a great tool to use when you're coming through a challenge or a setback to do the same thing and go back to square 1. I think it's natural for most people to put pressure on themselves when there's a challenge or a set impact of about failure. And you know what? I what I've learned over my years within the industry and just my years as being an adult is that no 1 is infallible. Everyone fails at some point, And it's how you approach that failure and how you lift yourself up and surround yourself by great people who help you build beyond that. And if you can do that and you can learn to do it quickly and come past that, you'll learn how to be a fixer, which is Someone who learns to fail quickly, fix for solutions and continue to strive forward. And I think that's vital, not only in our industry, but in all industries that you make it a part of the acceptance process, make it a part of who you are and how you continue to move yourself forward and move your teams forward. I think it's also important as a leader that you have to teach people that. That failure is inevitable, that people will challenge you and you might not always make the right decisions and that's okay. And I think that when you are able to do that as a leader, you create an environment where innovation isn't stifled by fear of failure. But that innovation is promoted by the idea that failure is okay and learning from it is okay. And growth through failure is important for creation. And so I focused more on that side of it. Early on, it was hard for me, but I think I've Inherently learn the discipline of acceptance and driving through and figuring out how to learn from it and do better the next time.
David Kong:I love everything that you said. I just absolutely love it. And you are so right that We're all gonna face challenges setbacks and disappointments. That's just gonna be something that we experience in life. You can't avoid it. But I like that you talk about being introspective and trying to learn from the experience and surrounding yourself with a tremendous network that can lift you back up, and think about how you can do better next time. And I especially like what you said in the end, which is to welcome failures, because that's how you can grow and become better and how you can innovate. I just really love everything that you said here. Thanks for sharing that. Now, you talk about, building relationship with different people. Can you share some tips on networking? You have such a great network.
Heena Patel:Yeah. I'm not a naturally social person. I come across as being very social, but I'm not a naturally social person. And so what I found myself doing as I've been building my network Is to not create boxes of networking. A lot of people feel like when you network, you have to network within your industry. You gotta network with people who have better networks than you. You have to network with individuals who could eventually give you connections. And I took a step back from that and I said I just wanna surround myself by great people. And people who had similar ideas for me when it came to socializing and relationships and driving driving personal values. And when I took that approach, that's when I really brought into my network. And I, I pride myself on being able to pick up the phone and not just know people in my industry, but street. Be able to know people who aren't in business at all, who are philanthropic, who are maybe not even working. But that they challenge themselves in different ways. And I think that's what served me well in being able to Create an environment where I get a real broad view of perspectives, but I also get a really broad view of values and the way that people connect. And I love that. I love that, I've got Some people in my network who are super social and I'll see them on a weekly basis, then we might connect on work things or things that are happening. And I love the fact that I have people in my network that might not speak for 6 months, but it feels like they're my best friends. And I can walk into a room and Really feel challenged by them. And I think that's the beauty of networking. The beauty of networking is not to stay rigid and To really identify people that you share common interests with, doesn't matter where they come from, doesn't matter who they are. It really just matters that you can connect with them. And then know that networking isn't about seeking out an outcome. Networking is really about creating a sphere of influential people that you can have great dialogue with, that you can be challenged by, that you can challenge. And if you go at it that way, I think you create an environment where you feel really comfortable and confident in those conversations. And you have a great band of people that you could reach out to when you have ideas and thoughts or questions. Students. And I think that's important. I think I think, unfortunately we've gotten into this very rigid approach In the business industry to networking being, formal and being very Industry driven. I think you need that. You always need that. And that's okay. But I think that The expansiveness of a network and the ability to grow it so that it is something that is more beyond just that is what drives your ability to be confident and be have resources And have people who are gonna engage you on a regular basis.
David Kong:That's wonderful advice. Thanks for sharing that. And I love what you said about broadening thinking on networking. It doesn't need to be restricted to the industry. You should broaden your perspective through connection with other people. And I also like that you said it's not transactional. It is true. It is opportunity for you to broaden your sphere of, friends that can help you think about things. Let's talk about communication. It's so important to our career. And you are a wonderful communicator. I really enjoy listening to you when you give speeches and enjoy the way that you communicate with other people. You seem so persuasive. Can you share some tips on how 1 can improve and getting better in communications. Yeah.
Heena Patel:I had to learn really quickly students. The more that you talk about the things that you love or that you're passionate about, the more that it is easier to communicate. And so early on, I found myself giving talks and speeches about topics that I was interested in, but I wasn't really passionate about. And it became very sterile in that approach. And so I've learned over time that the more that I focused in topics that I'm truly passionate about, That I can really dive into a personal connection to, the more it was easier to connect with an audience and the more that it was easier to really talk intelligence about the topic. And so I've tried to find ways to Relate the topic back to say, what is my true opinion on what I'm talking about? And how can I relate that back to how I approach things? And if I can do that, then it's easier to have that communication and be able to have that confidence in what you're saying about it. I also think that those types of conversation drive the audience to connect with speaker. Because the speaker then is talking from a sense of who they are versus a topic. Skills. And I've always found myself really tied to people who can do that. And so I've worked on it. But let's be honest. It's a skill. And as a skill, it means that you have to put yourself into situations that you can do it often and that you can do it at Any point in time, whether it's within your career or outside of the industry or at home or in, your community, It's about challenging yourself to do it that way so that you can build that skill. It's not natural For a lot of us, it's something that we have to work on. But being able to relate topics and being able to practice And being able to do it in a way that I come through versus the topic coming through has served me well.
David Kong:Those are great tips. Thanks so much for sharing that. Now you mentioned earlier about being Asian and being female, And a lot of people that are in those shoes have the imposter syndrome. And, many people in general have imposter syndrome. The negative feeling that we are not good enough or we don'tbelong. Have you experienced that? And if so, can you share some advice on how 1 can overcome the Imposter Syndrome?
Heena Patel:Yeah. This was a lesson I learned really early on in my career. And what it was I thought I needed to be like everyone else in the room when I walked into a room. And so I felt like I couldn't be Hinaptel, the Asian American skin hotel person. I had to be Hina Patel, the hotel person. And what was hard about that is The beginning part of my career, I was really more rigidly what I thought everyone else needed me to be. And that was difficult. It was difficult because I was constantly correcting what my natural tendencies were to be something else when I was in a room of my colleague. And, it wasn't until I moved over to Travel Leisure and I spent a couple years in this great organization that I realized that was a lot of work self. And a lot of work for very little gain. And I was part of a company in an industry where they embarked on this Entire journey of being your authentic self, bringing who you were to work every day. And I was like, what's the worst that could happen? What was honestly the worst that could happen if I came to work And I allowed my full self to be present in every moment. And you know what it did? It took a lot off of my shoulders. Sales. It took a lot of second guessing how I was talking about things, how I was approaching things. It took a lot out of Reducing the conversations I would have with my peers and my colleagues because they didn't want them to know that other side of me. And you know what it did? It allowed me to approach my work differently. It allowed me to approach my relationships differently. And it allowed me the freedom and the space to think differently. And I think that once I got past it, I became the person I am today, which is someone who embraces who she is and is not afraid to walk into the office and represent my full authentic self, is not afraid to talk about how the Asian community is impacted by the decisions we make is not afraid to go to a gala that wearing a sari with my husband. It's it definitely Has allowed me to show my company, my organization, the people around me that it's okay to be who you are, But it's also given me the freedom to be a part of an organization who embraces who I am. And I think that If I could do anything, I think I would have done it sooner and maybe pushed a little bit harder earlier on in my career because I find myself looking back saying, man, I could have been a gain it could have been different in those environments if I self the way I do today, as I did back then.
David Kong:Listening to you, I was thinking to myself, I have the same experience. When I was coming up the ladder, I was always thinking I have to fit, and I was trying to be like everybody else. But look at us, we are different, right? And the way that we're brought up is different. So the way that we think is different. To try to fit is impossible. And it's better to embrace our unique self. I came to that realization, many years into my career. And once I accepted that, like you said, it's very empowering. All of a sudden, it frees you of all these negative thoughts. And that's something that we have to do. If we have those negative thoughts, we have to think about embracing our unique self, and be prepared to say something that's different, which is a good thing. if you have a meaning and people express different opinions, that's how you make better decisions. So I that, that you also have that same experience. Somebody said on the show the other day that talent is distributed evenly, but opportunities are not. So what are some of the most important things those of us in the underrepresented groups can do to help with our career progression?
Heena Patel:Yeah. I think it's always been about representation about visually seeing representation. And so I think as more of us And these minority groups continue to excel in our careers. It's really important to be present sales. And put ourselves out there so that others can see that. I think, if I look back I was a part of the hotel industry that always had Asian American male leaders whether it was in the Asian American Hotelers Association, whether it was in the franchisee associations, you saw this across. You didn't see as many female leaders, And you didn't see as many female Asian leaders in that space. You are beginning to see it now. I think for me, it's been really important To put myself out there and be visible to as many associates as possible, especially associates first Embarking on the so that they can see that there is representation, and then there's opportunity for growth if you support. And I think it's also important to know that not every Community is gonna behave the same way. Not every community is gonna challenge them to sell it the same way. Not every individual is gonna do that. And Providing the platform and opportunity and resources to do it is just as important. But individuals like myself who are part of these large organizations, being present in those industries, those community events, those DRGs, those diversity research groups is just as important as the job we do as leaders within our own areas. Because it is what will continue to expand the base and allow for those underrepresented groups to see opportunity and to seek opportunity. Self.
David Kong:So true. Thank you for sharing that. Now, you've worked with a lot of exceptional leaders, when you observe all these exceptional leaders in action, What are some of the qualities that you most admire?
Heena Patel:Yeah. So I have had the privilege to work across many different leaders, whether it's been in the organizations I've worked with or whether it's been in street associations or other associations I've embarked in. The first quality that I seek out is students. The ability to listen and learn. Some of the best leaders I've ever learned from or seen or have had the Opportunity to work with are the ones who are very more, very much the listeners. They wanna understand what the true opportunities are. They don't come into the room feeling like they have all the answers. As they come into the room seeking to understand what opportunities and growth and what people's ideas are I think that quality of being able to do that, especially at a level where you feel like you have to have all the answers, students. Those leaders that are the strongest ones I've seen there know that they don't and know that they surround themselves by very quality strong individuals who will help them seek out and identify the answers and move the business forward. So that's always been 1 that I've skills. Learned and thought out and tried to emulate myself. I think the other thing is skills. The humility. You don't ever associate a leader with being humble. But The reality of it is some of the strongest leaders, whether they are association leaders or whether they're industry leaders, Are ones that know that they're in the place because of what they've been able to grow with the people around them. Skills. And that humility and being able to be present in that time has really been a quality that I thought out. And it's someone that as An associate I want to see succeed, right? I want to be a part of them driving the results, Driving the industry, driving the business. And, I'm super lucky right now because I get a chance to work under Mike Brown, who is A phenomenal leader. But not only is he a phenomenal leader, he is so entrenched in what the community is doing. He's such a great listener. He is He's got a lot of humility when it comes to driving the business in the organization. And I seek to emulate some of those qualities. And I've also had that great exception with other people that I've worked with in the in T and L, but also other people I've worked with outside of this industry, Whether it's been with associations that I've been a part of or whether it's been in my community and in my own my own family. But the reality is the qualities I look for are the ones that students. Drive me to be better. And I think ones that listen and want to engage in what can happen and how it could be better, and sales. Ones that have and really wanna see authentic growth, those are the ones that I seek out and the ones that I wanna learn from and be stewards of. Self.
David Kong:I love those 3 qualities that you've talked about. The ability to not impose themselves on other people, but rather seek to understand first and listen well. That's a tremendous quality. And the second 1 about humility, I totally agree with you. Great leaders are very humble and very respectful, and that's why they're more successful. And the third 1 is also important. lifting other people up and driving them to be their best self is really important. That inspiration makes them exceptional leaders. So thanks for sharing that. Now we have to take risk in our career to broaden their horizon, and to build a solid foundation. Can you share some tips on taking risks?
Heena Patel:Sales? Yeah. I think it goes back to what we originally started the conversation with. I am not a natural risk taker. I never was a natural risk taker. People I needed people surrounding me to push me into that space. And it really did come around supporting, surrounding myself by mentors and advocates who were somewhat of a safety net So that I could, learn how to take risks. And, the first time or the second time I did it, I really leaned in heavily on those mentors and advocates. But as I've grown my career and I've understood that, risks come with consequences and they come with benefits, and you gotta weigh out either option and take that leap. I've learned that I can do that on my own as well. And so I think on the front end on taking risks, it's really about Challenging yourself and surrounding yourself by people who are gonna be your advocates in that space. And then later on, it's about trusting in yourself spending the values that you have and the abilities that you have and knowing that you don't have to have all of the answers or all of the things to make that happen, but that you can grow into that space and having confidence in that space. And so I think That's what it takes to take risks. I also think that, some of the biggest risks that I've taken have been some of the biggest rewards that I've had. And some of the biggest risks that I've taken have been some of the biggest step backs that I've had, but also were opportunities for me to learn and grow. And I learned from every chance that I took. And so if I were to give anyone a tip, I would say early on, make sure that you have that support net. And later on, know that you're gonna learn from it. And it's okay To take a risk and fail at it, and it's also great to take a risk and learn from it and grow from it.
David Kong:I love that. And I like the part when you said that taking risk is beneficial either way because if it worked now, it pays off. If it doesn't work out, it's a great learning opportunity, and you grow from it. So either way, you can't lose. That's wonderful. I see that we are running low on time. So I just have 1 more question for you. Our show is about self empowerment. I wonder if you can leave your parting advice on self empowerment.
Heena Patel:Yeah. So empowerment is a challenge to begin with anyways. Empowering others is difficult as a leader, But empowering yourself, I think, is even more difficult. And the reason being is because most of us are our own worst critics. And most of us expect more of us as individuals than others ever will. And if you can put a mirror in front of your face and say, hey, listen. Regardless of what happens today, you're gonna do it with the values and the insight that you've learned all along. And regardless of the outcome, you're gonna be the same individual you were yesterday, but just with a little bit more knowledge. Then I think that you can walk away knowing that you're empowered to do anything that's in front of you. And I try to do that as often as possible Because I know that I am my worst critic. I am the 1 who's gonna challenge myself the most. And the more that I put that mirror in front of my face and say, You're gonna be better than you were yesterday, and you're gonna be better even more tomorrow. And those challenges and those opportunities are all things that will come and go. The more that I can say that to myself and the more that I can say that to others around me, the better that I feel And the better that I'm able to advance myself, but also to share that with others who are around me.
David Kong:That's such wonderful advice. Thank you, Heena. I appreciate you taking the time to be on our show and share of wisdom. Your perspectives and advice were just tremendous. I'm sure the audience would find them most beneficial. Thank you so much, Heena.
Heena Patel:Thank you, David, for having me. It was so great to catch up with you again.
David Kong:Oh, likewise. And to our audience, if you enjoyed this show, I hope you would join us on our website, deiadvisors dot org. Thank you. Thanks again, Hina. Thank you.