Can It Get Any Weirder? (Yes. Stay Ready.)

If you’ve been feeling like the tourism industry is cracking at the edges lately, it’s not your imagination.

It’s not paranoia.

It’s happening.

And it’s happening faster than most people are ready for.

In the last few days alone, two major industry shocks made it crystal clear: The game is changing. Whether we’re ready or not.

1. Florida is (Almost) Redefining Tourism Funding

The Florida legislature is considering Senate Bill 1114, which would allow counties to shift some of their Tourist Development Tax (TDT) revenues toward infrastructure projects, but only after meeting a minimum threshold for tourism marketing investment. Specifically, counties would be required to spend at least 40% of their TDT collections on promoting and advertising tourism, up to $50 million annually. Any excess beyond that could then be redirected to projects like roads, sewers, and public facilities.

As of now, the bill has been introduced and referred to committees but has not yet passed the Senate.

Destinations are still being funded — for now. But tourism marketing is no longer fully protected. It’s becoming a line item negotiable by local politics.

And if Florida — one of the tourism powerhouses of the country — is willing to start treating destination marketing as optional, not essential, what exactly do you think is coming for the rest of the country? (Maybe nothing. Maybe something. It depends on who’s paying attention.)

2. Brand USA Board Shakeup: Five Top Leaders Fired Overnight

Then, right on cue, Brand USA — the national marketing arm responsible for promoting the United States as a travel destination — saw five board members, including the Chair and Vice Chair, abruptly dismissed by the White House.

No explanation. No transition plan. No public-facing leadership move to stabilize the brand.

Brand USA isn’t just a line item on a budget sheet. It is the coordinated effort that tells the world to visit America. It’s how destinations, airlines, hotels, and local economies build their tourism strategies outward.

When the top crumbles, the message to the rest of the industry is loud and clear:

You’re on your own now.

So... can it get any weirder?

Absolutely.

It already has.

And it will again.

The question isn’t whether disruption is coming. It’s how you’re preparing for it.

Here’s how I’m thinking about it — and how you might want to, too:

Stop waiting for "normal" to come back. It’s not. This is the new normal: fast, unstable, political, and often unpredictable. The safest brands and the smartest people will be the ones inventing new models, not waiting to be rescued.

Protect your energy and your ideas. When systems get unstable, people get desperate. Ideas get copied. Creativity gets drained. Energy gets wasted. Stay sharp. Stay selfish where you need to be.

Build your own audience (this one's for my vendor homies). If you’re still betting everything on RFPs, client renewals, or political budgets, you are sitting on sand. Start building a direct connection to people who believe in your voice, your products, your vision. They will be your insurance policy when institutions fail.

Stay weird. In times of fear, boring becomes contagious. Resist it. Vanilla marketing will be the first thing to get cut. Safe content will drown in the noise. The people and brands who stay a little weird, a little loud, a little unforgettable — they’re the ones who get fought for.

Play for endurance, not applause. Short-term wins are going to get fewer and farther between. You have to build for sustainability, not just for clout, not just for likes. The goal is still standing after everyone else gets tired.

Bottom Line:

Disruption isn't just coming. It’s here.

You can either try to hold your breath and wait it out, or you can breathe deeper, stand up taller, and move smarter.

The future of tourism, marketing, leadership — all of it — belongs to the builders, not the bystanders.

Can it get any weirder? Of course it can. And lucky for you, you weren’t built for normal anyway.