Dawn Mullarney—also known as the Unique Connector—is a fellow Wisconsinite from Madison who brought 14 women to Cuba with me this past January, and she's doing it all over again next month.

Dawn spent over two decades in corporate leadership before nearly burning herself out. At 35, doctors thought she'd had a stroke. These days, she works as a business strategist and fractional advisor, helping leaders who've built successful businesses but feel like they're drowning under the weight of it all.

The Cuba trip was Dawn's first foray into leading group travel, and she picked arguably the hardest destination on my list. Not because she had some lifelong dream of visiting Cuba, but because she was drawn to the transformative nature of the experience itself—the giving back, the community, the discomfort that forces you to confront things about yourself.

We're getting into the messy, beautiful reality of being responsible for other people's travel experiences when you haven't even experienced it yourself yet. We talk about why the women she thought would struggle actually thrived, how watching other people be uncomfortable is one of the hardest parts of leadership, and why entrepreneurs who say they don't have time to travel are actually the ones who need it most. Dawn also shares some hard truths about letting go of perfectionism, trusting the process, and why sometimes the rain-soaked backup plan ends up being more memorable than the original itinerary ever could have been.

Upcoming Trips Mentioned:

Cuba: Jan 4 - 11, 2026

Links & Resources (Dawn)

Learn more about Dawn: uniqueconnector.com
LinkedIn: @dawnmullarney
Instagram: @uniqueconnector

Links & Resources (Laura)

Follow my personal IG: @lolawhiskey
Follow my business IG: @lauraericsongrouptrips
Follow our podcast: @type2travelpodcast
Learn more about upcoming trips: lauraericson.com
Check out our podcast page: lauraericson.com/podcast
Join my Facebook group: @lolalovestravel

Affiliate Links

Smooth move

Thanks for being here! As always, rate, review, share with a friend, and tag us if you’re listening.