Frequent travel may no longer be considered a luxury, especially among hard-working business folk, but it’s still often wrongly perceived as a highly glamorous aspect of one’s work. The truth can often be very different, with too many business officials suffering from jetlag every week, lost luggage stress, and the challenges of maintaining your workload without over-delegating to others in your team. Finally, those who travel for work rarely get to see the hidden treasures of their destinations, since they mostly stick to their extremely busy schedules and official endeavors.
Still, those of you who travel for business on a regular basis can still do so much to add a pinch of pleasure into the mix and make it less annoying and nerve-wrecking. Let’s start with a few simple steps you can incorporate into your travel routine to make the most of your travel agenda every time, and prevent shattered nerves in the process!
Work by exploring
If your travel agenda involves more than just attending a conference or meeting with your clients, but you need to spend several hours every day working on your day-to-day tasks, make an effort to do so anywhere but in your hotel. As practical as it may be, you may end up not seeing anything else other than the hallway of that one building and the airport. If you do a bit of research and ask colleagues who’ve been there before, you can make a list of cool cafes and spots where you can actually work.
That way, you can blend a museum visit into your schedule, or stop by a famous sightseeing spot on your way to the café of your choice. It often takes just a little bit of imagination to keep your schedule just flexible enough to work in some fun time into your chaotic business agenda.
Avoiding tech troubles
Whether you’ve left your cellphone charger behind, or you’re having trouble connecting to the local network in a new country, one simple choice can make these otherwise intricate issues infinitely simpler: opting for a trusted retailer with equally reliable customer support. For example, if you encounter any of the aforementioned tech issues, finding the nearest AT&T store can help you resolve the problem quickly and painlessly, so that you can prevent wasting time on tech issues that should be easy to overcome.
Although double-checking your packing list and your wireless plan can be of help in each of the circumstances, you never know when some of these pesky problems can catch you off guard. That is why having a reliable provider is a must well before you set sail to a new business travel adventure.
Pick your neighborhood
Some companies have a relationship with hotels and airlines for a long time, and you as their employee can only fit into a predetermined agreement they have in place. This, however, doesn’t have to be the case for others, and if you have the freedom to choose your location during your stay, it can help you move around with greater ease, spend more time taking care of business instead of en route to another meeting, or simply sightseeing more often.
The same goes for your quality of sleep, the work you’ll be able to do, and the appointments you can keep in any given environment. The prestige of staying in the city center might sometimes be trumped by the practicality of staying in a more serene suburb, or a particular artistic hub that hosts fabulous comedy evenings or blues gigs your clients would appreciate as much as you. Simply by choosing the right location for your needs, you can change the tone of your entire trip.
Pack smart and light
The general rule of thumb for frequent travelers is to always have a designated travel bag ready and packed to go. That often entails having your travel suit cleaned and pressed after every trip, your light layers ready, and your hygiene essentials updated on a regular basis, because running out of wet wipes on a long flight is out of the question. However, another relevant portion of your packing list should focus on your smart accessories, or tech gadgets that can help you travel with greater ease.
For example, packing a set of noise-cancelling headphones can make those remote meetings more comfortable as you won’t have to strain to hear others at the meeting even if you’re in a crowded area. Bringing your battery pack for a variety of tech tools such as your phone or your Kindle, to make your trip far simpler in case there’s no available socket for your charger.
Think of second options
If your plan “A” is complicated enough, many business people will steer clear of envisioning a second plan for their travels. This may turn out to be a dire mistake, as a single change in the plan can disrupt your entire organization, and you can lose a valuable spot with your clients, or miss a networking event that could help you grow your operations. Before such conundrums happen: think techy thoughts! With so many apps at your disposal, you can do a bit of research and choose the ones that can make planning easier for you.
In addition to using phone apps to track Wi-Fi hotspots, seek out the best, most affordable flight to a destination, locate a hotel with an available room for an unexpected layover, or find the best muffins in town so that you can infuse some fun into your business meeting. In case you get stuck somewhere and you cannot get to a meeting, you can use Skype or any other similar app to be present with the help of your phone – handy, right?
All in all, business trips can be far more pleasurable if you add some variety and some planning to the mix. Make sure to stick to practical solutions so that you can stay productive on the go, and still enjoy your travels so that you can stay inspired to keep roaming the world both for business and pleasure!
Scarlet is a passionate writer, interested in fashion, lifestyle, and health. She loves traveling, you could say that she is a real travel addict, especially when she has a chance to visit some exotic destinations. She would tell you that inspiration can be found in the most unexpected places.
