Well, Tom, you've asked the wrong person. You see, I'm not really in the "travel and tourist industry." I'm merely a traveler who occasionally writes about his experiences. Of course, that doesn't inhibit me from answering your question but it should affect how much weight you give it.

	Ask the Expert Rob Sangster Rob has traveled in more than 100 countries and all seven continents. His wanderlust has lured him all over Asia, Central America, about half of the countries in Africa and South America, the Pacific Islands, most of Western and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica, and throughout the United States. Ask Rob a question Meet Rob Previous Answers

To decide whether the travel industry would be right for you, let's look at what it consists of. Other than airline personnel, there are in-office travel agents and in-the-field tour guides (working in a spectrum that ranges from French art museums to river rats with Wyatt Earp mustaches). Then there are those who organize and operate tours.

You know best where your aptitude and personality would fit.

From my observation, being a travel agent requires great attention to detail, willingness to do repetitive tasks, and ability to withstand ambiguity and ever-changing ground rules. Oh, and the composure to work effectively under time pressure and to hold your temper as clients blame every glitch on you.

Given commission cuts imposed by airlines, increasing lack of rapport between airlines and agencies, and the blizzard of agency consolidations and failures, ask yourself whether travel agencies offer the growth potential you seek. We are not talking Silicon Valley here.

Call the American Society of Travel Agents (800 - ASK - ASTA) and ask questions, including questions regarding pay scales. In other words, find out if you can earn a decent living.

Are you cut out to be a guide? Certainly running the fierce rapids of the Bio Bio, bicycling across southern France, or hiking up to Anapurna have inherent rewards. And in adventures such as these, you would probably be guiding a pretty nice group of folks (notice my bias here). But what about guiding a gang of querulous bank examiners to the Acropolis on your fifty-third trip to Greece?

I gather you've traveled with the largest tour operator of them all (the United States Navy), but have you been on any commercial tours? Don't make any decisions until you have — and take lots of notes.

Do you have the superhuman patience and in-depth knowledge of psychology to smilingly guide people who complain hourly about how inferior where they are is to where they came from? I assume these are the exceptions, but they come with the territory. Can you heal every conceivable minor medical malady? While your group goes scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef are you willing to remain ashore to repair tomorrow's schedule that has totally collapsed?

If you're not discouraged yet, tour organizers and operators may be the best combination of work and pleasure in the industry. Review the Specialty Travel Index (specialtytravel.com or 800-442-4922). Identify operators that specialize in your areas of interest. Give them a call and talk with staff people about what the jobs are like. Niche operators are expanding and may be looking for qualified staff.

Those jobs attract some remarkably skilled and well-traveled people. Competition is tough but if you like what you hear, go after it.

Of course, there is always an alternative. Get a well-paying job that permits lots of vacation time and travel for the pure joy of being on the road.

Good luck. Rob LaHave, Nova Scotia

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