02 August 2017
After moving to Dubai in 2007 with her husband, Adele Engelbrecht completed her Tourism Management degree and put her experience in the hospitality industry to use in the world of travel. After the birth of her son in 2013, she started a new life as a Travel Counsellor to be able to enjoy a better work-life balance. It’s proven to be a fantastic career move for Adele and her family. As a Travel Counsellor, she works from home, meaning she can pick her son, Sam, up from school, and during the holidays, they can head out for an afternoon of fun together.
Why did running your own business as a Travel Counsellor appeal to you?
I decided to join Travel Counsellors to be able to spend as much time with my son, Sam, as possible. Flexible, full time working opportunities in the UAE are very limited, so Travel Counsellors stood out and appealed to me straightaway. It was not a hard decision for me to join Travel Counsellors and make this work for our family.
How do you balance work with childcare over the school holidays?
I took the second week off at the beginning of school holidays to do a staycation, and later we will be leaving for a family holiday for 3 weeks in August. For the remaining 7 weeks I have my son enrolled 3 days a week in summer camp, the other 2 days he is with our nanny. As there is often little family nearby for most of us living here as expats in the UAE, I try to work more flexible hours around the days he does not attend summer camp so we can do something fun together.
Do you have any holidays or other plans for this summer?
Yes, family road trip to the US for 3 weeks in August
What do you enjoy being able to do with your kids now that you run your own business?
I love being able to pick my son up from school in the afternoons and attend school and sport activities as much as possible.
Describe a typical day over the summer holidays for you.
Get up, spend some time with Sam, go to the gym, take him to summer camp at 9am, work in the morning, pick him up at 2pm, and then work again until around 5pm when I spend time with him. Then I work after I put him to bed for an about an hour 3-4 times a week to finalise tasks for the day. On the days he does not attend summer camp we will have a playdate in the afternoons instead.
Do you think being a Travel Counsellor is a good career path for other working parents?
Yes, with the help of my husband and nanny, it has created a good work-life balance for my family and I. I think it’s important that you have some support from say a nanny or grandparents, otherwise it might be difficult if you still want to spend a lot of time with your kids and give your career as a Travel Counsellor as much time as you want. What I also enjoy is that I have the control over when I take my annual holiday. I normally choose a time when (I think) it will not be too busy for most of my clients travelling and then take my holiday, it’s much easier when you’re self-employed.
Do you have any advice for working parents who are thinking about becoming a Travel Counsellor?
Look at your circumstances to see if juggling tasks will be in your best interest and suit your lifestyle. I like diversity and change, so it works for me. I plan my week ahead to make sure client meetings, training etc does not clash with school timings, especially if my husband is going to be away working, so my advice for other Travel Counsellors is to plan your time.
Would you love to be able to take time out of your working day to spend with your kids? Get in touch to find out how as a Travel Counsellor, you can.