So, how's your new year so far? Fantastic, I hope. I have already found it to be exciting and filled with promise.

One thing I've managed to hang onto from the holiday season is how important it is to share and care. I love how everyone warms up to being nicer, more sharing, more caring during the "holidaze." I've also noted how important that attitude is to our travel business.

In my 20-plus years of being a luxury travel consultant, I know one thing for sure: Sharing is immensely, hugely, undeniably important in the travel business. But in years past it was not so easy to come by.

When I entered the travel industry (many moons ago), I couldn't believe how close to the vest so much information was held. It frustrated me, alarmed me and angered me. The good news is things have changed quite a bit.

I am ecstatic to say that my host agency now has an incredible corner of information to go to nearly any moment of the day or night. We call it "Agentshare," and here's how it works. If you have a question, a problem, a bit of info you feel the other agents would love to hear about, you share it. By e-mail. In minutes. Quite the concept, right?

In the past week, I have learned "from Agentshare" that ...

• The Belmond Hotel Caruso in Ravello has a lovely restaurant with terrace dining for lunch and dinner, but terrace must be requested well in advance to avoid disappointment.
• If I book a Celebrity Xpeditions cruise to the Galapagos before Jan. 31 for any of my clients, I can offer them roundtrip air to the Galapagos from any point in the U.S. for $199.
• I can call a direct contact number for a person of authority at an Iceland tour operator company who, literally, was able to (and did) help me refund a client in full almost immediately when she was experiencing great hardship in her life and had booked a tour without adding insurance.

Need I say more?

Because of a thoughtful program put in place by my host agency and due to my colleagues taking sharing seriously, my business and our agency's business have been made much more professional, experienced and fun.

I know that many of us have a love/hate relationship with technology — hundreds of emails every day, the guilt trip when we don't reply to many of them, the thought that we're never going to ever have an "untethered" feeling in this demanding relationship.

Don't break up just yet. It's currently the easiest, fastest way to do that important thing we love to do — share.

Consider becoming active in whatever "share" program your host agency might offer. Also, if you don't have a share program, bringing an idea like this to your agency just might result in a special thank-you.

Make the time to share your knowledge and rejoice in the fact that, as much of an expert as you are, there are others who might still have fantastic, timely information or advice that could be helpful to you — and, most importantly, to your highly valued clients.

Maybe a fellow agent has just returned from a far-away, exotic corner of the world and is able to update you on the latest and greatest. Or maybe they can advise you that some properties just aren't what they used to be.

And so, fellow travel advisors, I ask you. Isn't this world a better place if we care enough to share? Of course it is.

Commit to doing your part — care, share and continue to be merry. It's how we’ll keep ourselves alive and well and our industry thriving for the ever-increasing new entries to the wondrous world of our fantastic travel business.