AMERICANWAY

AMERICAN INSIGHT A A .COM/FINAL APPROACH AAdvantage Member Spotlight AAdvantage member Candy Gebhart is vice president of global marketing for a major beauty company, but she doesn't let her busy schedule dampen her sense of adventure or her pursuit of the perfect pair of shoes. How often do you travel? "I normally make about two trips a month. Sometimes I'm away for a few days, and other times I'm away for a week. I always make sure I fly enough to obtain A Advantage Executive Platinum status – once you become Executive Platinum, it's hard to go back." What type of work do you do? "I'm the vice president of global marketing for the top beauty com- pany in the world." As a frequent traveler, what three items do you always have with you? "My iPhone, my iPad Mini and a cashmere blanket." What are your favorite desti- nations? "My favorite destinations are Paris and Hawaii. I love Paris because it's everything you dream of the city to be, every time. I would also have to say Hawaii, because it's the perfect balance of relaxation, outdoor adventure and shopping." What destinations would you like to see? "Maldives or another beach destination that isn't commonly visited. Any suggestions? I would also like to travel to Northern Canada to see the Aurora Borealis, although I'm afraid of how cold it will be." Do you check or carry on? "I used to only carry on. I could go nearly seven days on a business trip with my 22" carry-on and a com- puter bag. After years of sacrifice, I won't carry on luggage for trips longer than three days, so I have different shoe options for each day. It's all about the shoes — they normally take up the most room." What is your favorite part of flying? "It's the only time I allow my- self to completely relax and indulge. I usually fall asleep before take- off, and I take the best naps on planes. If I'm lucky enough to wake up before the plane lands, I'm also able to catch up on my movies." Follow Candy's travels on Twitter at @CandyGeb. Find Work-Life Balance with Zirtual Get more out of life when you share the load. The thing about being too busy is that we don't have time to figure out ways to get un-busy. So we just muddle along being overwhelmed and inefficient. Zirtual.com is a virtual-assistant service with a mission to make it as easy as possible for us to get tasks off our to-do lists. All virtual assistants are based in the United States, are college-educated and have gone through a training program that teaches profes- sionalism, organization and time management. "I've always felt that my energy should be spent on the things that I [can] only effectively work on, and everything else should be delegated," says founder and CEO Maren Donovan. She hired her first virtual assistant in college when, already an entrepreneur, she would test out five to 10 business ideas at a time. Today, Zirtual is helping people around the world navigate work- life balance. A user named Rebekah Iliff watched her free time dwindle when she took on an executive job and started writing on the side. She Candy Gebhart Zirtual wants to become "the UPS of virtual support." As a loyal American Airlines customer, you can visit www.zirtual.com/americanairlines to receive up to a 30% discount. American supports entrepreneurialism and small- business growth through its Innovators Initiative, which focuses on working with startups and small- business customers to empower their success. Visit aa.com/innovators to learn more. hired a Zirtual assistant to handle her travel and calendar, and now her stress has dropped from an 11 to a 6 (on a scale of 1-10). "As human beings, our issues are the same: We're filtering way too much, we have way too many things going on," says Iliff. "Zirtual can really enhance the personal- professional balance." Tim and Pang Chang used Zirtual in an unexpected way: for their personal life. Their challenge was juggling a 14-month-old daughter, a new house and per- formances with their band. For all of us stressed-out, over- worked people longing to catch our breath, Zirtual hopes to create "a world where good help is not hard to find." Written by Frank Gruber, CEO of Tech Cocktail, one of American Airlines' small-business part- ners. Gruber is the author of the book Startup Mixology. Learn more at www.tech.co/book. 824 Daily departures out of DFW A A .CO M/A M E R I C A NWAY N OV E M B E R 2 01 4 1 03

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