Travelling is a must for most business people and entrepreneurs. I spend a lot of time traveling overseas, meeting clients and conducting various business activities for my company.
The upside is that I get to stay in nice hotels, eat great food in some amazing restaurants, see new cities and meet new friends and associates. “You have a great job” and “Being able to travel all the time must be so much fun” are some of the comments that many people say to me.
But traveling all the time has its downside. You spend days away from family and friends, you have to live out of a suitcase and there is often a lot of down time waiting at airports. To ensure that you can survive your time on the road, there are a few requirements that even the most savvy business traveller must possess.
These are my 5 top essentials that any business person or entrepreneur must have or be able to do;
1. Business doesn’t stop just because you are travelling. Being able to run your business and liaise with your staff via mobile telephone is crucial if you are going to spend days away from the office.
2. Airports take up valuable time. Finding great coffee at a place that has fast internet so you can attend to those pressing business needs is essential.
3. Its all starts at breakfast and charging up the power reserves. Its amazing how many times I have missed lunch and even dinner due to pressing work commitments. Load up on your breakfast.
4. Unfortunately a suitcase isn’t very accommodating to business pants and shirts. Being able to iron your clothes is paramount. Fortunately for me, I learnt the fine art of ironing whilst I was in the police academy.
5. And finally, the most important in my book, especially if you have family waiting for you at home, is to touch base with them at least once a day. A quick phone call to say you love your wife/husband or a Skype call with the kids to see if everything is ok ensures that the stresses on loved ones caused from you being away from home is minimised.
I would love to hear about your top essentials for travelling on business.