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could “surface act” and fake a response: “Sure, that’s no problem,” while feeling annoyed on the inside. Or, the leader could “deep act”: “Sure, that’s no problem,” while modifying the annoyance to a sense of genuine excitement.
As part of the investigation, the research team examined the relationship between trip leaders’ scores on each of two scales with trip participants’ evaluations of their leaders. Two interesting findings emerged from this analysis. One is that the guiding industry attracts super humans. Personality traits such as honesty/humility, extraversion, agreeableness, conscien-tiousness, and openness to experience were seemingly higher in trip leaders compared to other samples and groups from other studies (such as the hospitality industry and college-age students). The personality trait of emotionality (fearfulness and anxiety) was lower in trip leaders. This means the active travel industry attracts the right stuff. Now what about the best of the best? What personality traits do the top-performing trip leaders have?
The top-performing trip leaders—the ones that guests rated highest—had more honesty and humility, which includes sincerity, fairness, and modesty. They also had lower levels of emotionality. Research shows that although any combination of personality traits—even high levels of emotionality—can make a successful trip leader, those with higher levels of honesty/humility and lower emotionality are the most successful.
Another important factor is how trip leaders display their emotions. The more successful trip leaders were more likely to show genuine emotions to their guests and less surface acting. For example, when dealing with guests during difficult situations, successful leaders were able to show genuinely positive displays of emotions rather than faking an emotion they thought was appropriate. In trip leading, being genuine goes a long way.
Knowing the characteristics that make a great leader can be useful for not only the trip leader but also the employer. During the hiring process, the employer may consider evaluating personality traits of prospective trip leaders to see if leaders have the right stuff and can exceed guests’ expectations. One way to do this could be to include problem-solving hypothetical scenarios. These scenarios can measure the level of honesty/humility, emotionality, and genuineness with which a candidate might respond in a real-world scenario.
Honesty/humility scenarios can provide insight into candidates’ abilities to connect and interact with others while putting the guests’ needs above their own. Genuine emotional displays can test candidates’ levels of sincerity during a potential guest interaction. For example, how would they treat a hostile guest? How would they handle a guest who isn’t fitting in with the rest of the group? In each scenario, a trip leader’s levels of honesty/humility and genuine emotional display can shine through by putting the guest’s needs before their own and finding a genuine connection with the guest.
Emotionality scenarios can show the candidates’ ability to remain level-headed in emergencies and to limit unnecessary worry and frustration. This approach also may help determine whether candidates have a lower need for external dependency. For example, how would they handle an international border crossing where the customs agent is trying to deny a guest entry into the country? Would they maintain a level of calmness and talk through the situation? Would they come to an agreement while maintaining the need for the guest to cross the border?
Outdoor trip providers that rely heavily on their participants’ experience will find that identifying candidates with certain leadership personality traits and emotional displays will be more likely to deliver their participants a memorable and exceptional experience. So, the next time you interact with a trip leader, pay attention to see if it’s their honest, humble, genuine manner, and their lower emotionality, that make them outshine the rest.
Liz Gauthier, M.S., Ohio University
Andrew Szolosi, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Program Coordinator, Ohio University
Photo by Azrul Aziz on Unsplash