I picked up this terrific read from Ann Handley of Marketing Profs this morning -- an 8-point guide to surviving business travel -- and still catching up from a finished a week of business travel myself, I wanted to share its wise and funny insights.
To her tips, I would add two points:
- Always pack a change of business clothing in your carry-on if you are checking luggage. I'll never forget being rerouted from Philly to Newark, but my bag went to Philly and couldn't be delivered until midday the next day. I was in jeans and had a business meeting at 9 am, where suits were the attire. The town where my client worked had no department store. Fortunately I was able to postpone the meeting until lunch (when the luggage arrived in the nick of time).
- Invest in a lighter laptop for that airport racing and schlepping, which I just did, especially if you need a real laptop, not an iPAD or such, for your work.
Speaking of O'Hare, last evening my colleague and I had a 30-minute conversation while he sat in a small regional jet for 30 minutes waiting for a gate, with his next flight scheduled only 35 minutes ahead. Finally his plane started moving, but not toward the closest gate -- they took a 10-minute cruise completely around the B and C gates all the way over to the F gates -- he was nearly hysterical! He made his flight with minutes to spare, but this is the stuff of heart attacks...and in today's skies, business travelers live this way constantly.
Reading "The Middle Seat" by Scott McCartney in the Wall Street Journal is my regular business travel therapy. Check this one out -- so who gets the armrest? and other inflight etiquette.
