The short answer is yes. People make money doing this.

Some make a little. Some make a lot. Some make more than they ever earned in their previous careers. And some never make much at all.

My coach, yes I have a coach, likes to say people are like popcorn. Some pop early. Some pop later. Some never pop at all.

That's true in travel, real estate, law, medicine, and just about every other business or profession.

The challenge is that I can't tell you exactly how much you'll make because I don't know how many relationships you'll build, how many customers you'll help, or how consistently you'll prospect, follow up, network, ask for referrals, attend training, participate in events, and work the business.

What we do know is that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports median annual earnings for travel advisors of approximately $48,450.00 per year. That means roughly half of all travel advisors earn more than that amount and half earn less.

Now before you get too excited or too discouraged by that number, remember there are roughly 310,000 travel advisors in the United States. That includes everyone from highly engaged full-time professionals to people who signed up, completed a little training, and never really built a business.

The real question isn't whether somebody can make money doing this.The real question is where you'll fall on that spectrum.And that's where engagement comes in.

If you can consistently learn, prospect, follow up, build relationships, earn referrals, and stay engaged you will do better than those who treat the business as an occasional activity.

And there's another reason I'm comfortable answering this question. We don't succeed unless our advisors succeed.

Our rent doesn't get paid unless advisors are selling travel. Our marketing doesn't get paid for unless advisors are selling travel. In fact, our business isn't profitable unless our advisors are profitable.

That's why we invest so much time, energy, coaching, mentoring, training, marketing, events, lead generation, and support into helping advisors build successful businesses.

So, can this become an expensive hobby? Absolutely. If you treat it like one. Or it can become a profitable business if you build it like one.