1. How did you become interested in your profession? What do you enjoy most about your job? I have always loved languages and cultures and I studied to become an interpreter and ended up working in the European Union in Brussels. However with so many daily meetings between so many politicians and so many nations it was a natural learning ground for learning international protocol and meeting management skills. The jump to meeting planning was inevitable. What I most like about my job today is the fact that whenever I organize a congress or incentive I am able to bring together so many cultures, languages and nations under one roof for a congress, convention or meeting and help them to peacefully and productively interact. I have a privileged profession which allows me to travel all over the world and meet the most amazing people.

2. What was your first year like? My first year was as stressful as it was exciting. Meeting planning requires so much endless detail and 36 requires hours of work in one day! However when it finally comes together there is no better feeling. At that time everything was done by hand on pen and paper and fax. Today with the internet my life seems so much easier in comparison.

3. What were/are some of the obstacles you have encountered (overcome)? I live in a Latin culture and being an independent woman working in a world of men was challenging and sometimes very stressful. Add to that the fact that I had a family and worked a 12 – 18 hour day! And of course when I started my company banks would not finance projects for women without the husband’s permission!! Today the obstacles have changed and new ones emerge such as the growing trend towards terrorism and the fear to travel which greatly affect my profession.

4. What is the most unique aspect of your business? My business is unique in many ways but we pride ourselves in the personal touch. We are there from beginning to end. At the end of every event if a client looks out of the airplane window I will be there waving him goodbye. The fact that I have a vast experience of many cultures is also important in that I can easily perceive the needs of my clients wherever they originate from. Our clients stay with us for many years because we spoil them rotten.

5. From where do you draw inspiration? From people, from life my children and my husband. I truly respect people of all nations. In addition to that I love life and all its surprises good or bad because by being unexpected we are kept on our toes. My children keep me in touch with the present and all the possibilities of tomorrow and my husband has taught me greater understanding and endless generosity, unselfish love and dedication to family which are his greatest characteristics.

6. What significant partnerships have played a role in your success? I have met many wonderful people along the way and have also suffered great disappointments. At this moment in time the five partnerships that come more easily to mind are my first client who believed in me when I started out; my mother-in-law who lent me the money to start my business; my partner and life-long friend Dalia who has stood by me through thick and thin; Heidi Richards whom I seem to have known forever and who has made believe in the power of friendship between women even when it is across the globe…and finally my computer without which I would have a hard time surviving!!

7. What would you say is your “claim to Fame”? My children and having organized the first ever large scale congress in Lisbon (6.500 people) when everyone said it was impossible.

8. If you could only offer one piece of advice about the internet/ecommerce/websites to our readers, what would that be? Become friends with technology. Do not let others intimidate you with their knowledge. Face it, touch it, flirt with it. It is a window to the world, a way to connect with people and with cultures, it is a way of getting your message across whatever it may be and it has placed everyone one level and made the world better. It can provide mobility for the handicapped, companionship for the lonely and it is the greatest business tool ever invented. Trust it and it will become a tool you cannot live without!!

9. What are some of the trends you are noticing in your industry? My industry is becoming too technical and less people-friendly. We must focus less on the amazing audio-visual and more on the networking and more on culture, socializing and leaning about each other in meetings. We must make travel broaden our minds again and not just our waistlines!!

10. Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers? I believe to be successful you must be happy. So work at being happy and the rest will fall into place. And of yes….attend the WECAI congress I promise to make it the event you will always remember for the right reasons!!

To contact Linda, visit: www.cpl.pt

© 2006 - Heidi Richards is the author of The PMS Principles, Powerful Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business and 8 other books. She is also the Founder & CEO of the Women’s ECommerce Association, International www.WECAI.org (pronounced wee-kī) – an Internet organization that “Helps Women Do Business on the WEB.” She can be reached at www.HeidiRichards.com.