I have been writing about how fortunate I am to work as a guide and what I see as a real need for guides in the future. There is another side that needs to be considered and that is what will the guide of the future need to know besides “how to” and “where to” outdoors.
Over the course of my career communication methods have changed dramatically. I can still remember the first reservation I took by e-mail in 1998 and remember thinking that it could not possibly work. It did and still does but so does Twitter, Facebook and text on my cell phone. The point of all of this is that guides will need to adapt as the environment changes.
When I spoke to that class in Orono I stressed that I did need them to know how to operate s simple spreadsheet so that they can know what their costs are to determine if they are making a profit. The most important thing though is that they need to be able to learn and adapt as things change. I lodge owner recently told me that in the old days they bought three ads, mailed out mimeographed letters and were always full. He longed for those good old days but I knew that they were long gone and a new set of skills is now required.
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