On the road again.

May 26th, 2009

bigrig

My agenda for today includes a few hours of driving on the stretch of I-35 that connects Austin to Dallas, where I’ll spend the next two days at the Inbound Marketing Summit. (If you’re there, please find me and say hello.)

I’ve been doing more traveling for work lately, experimenting as I go with different approaches to maintaining (or even increasing?) my productivity. But now I want to tap your brains with some informal poll questions so that we all can benefit from our collective experience as business travelers.

So, my hearty road warriors . . .

  • How do you stay productive when you’re traveling?
  • What pieces of technology do you rely on when you’re traveling?
  • What are your key sources of information on the road?
  • What types of work can you not do on the road — and what types can you do better on the road?
  • How do you evaluate whether a particular piece of business travel is worth it?
  • What’s your best advice for someone taking on a lot of business travel?

Please, friends, educate me (and each other!) in the comments thread.

~

Photo by skez, used under a CC-Share Alike license.
Category: Productivity, Technology, The working life

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3 Comments so far

Julie Anne May 26th, 2009 8:15 am

WOW! Those are some amazing questions. Where to begin?

In regards to your question, “How do you evaluate whether a particular piece of business travel is worth it?” The short version is that business travel, though being vilified as a useless and expensive endeavor, is actually more important now than ever! Granted, everyone needs to take their medicine and be responsible with their resources – coach instead of first class, corner deli rather than filet mignon, etc. – but being face to face with those we do business with is of paramount importance. Now is the time to mine for gold, reinforce existing partnerships, and explore new opportunities.

This economy WILL recover. It’s just a matter of time. The work done now to create relationships and loyalty will be the building blocks of the new economy’s success.

A great article, written by Ben Stein, about business travel was printed a couple months ago in the New York Times. It’s worth a read… http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/22/business/22every.html

~J

Julie Anne Rondo
Marketing Events/Logistics Manager
Dykema
Metro Detroit

Jen May 26th, 2009 8:23 am

My 2 must have pieces of technology are my iPhone (which with the right set of apps can do nearly anything) and my Garmin Nuvi (which has saved me hours on trips finding a quicker way to get from here to there then Mapquest). My best tip is to bring some comforts with you on the road and develop a schedule. I always pack a few things to relax me: some aromatherapy lotion, comfy slippers, my running gear… and it really helps to define down time versus work time when on the road. Schedule an hour or two every night to decompress and you will be much better prepared mentally for the next day. Also, this seems like a no-brainer but watch what you eat! Fast food is quick and easy when you are on the go, but if it becomes a staple in your “road diet” it will leave you sluggish and your productivity can suffer.

Tim Walker May 26th, 2009 9:46 am

Julie Ann and Jen — Great ideas, thanks!

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