Daily life can be hectic; some days are a whirlwind. Usually, on crazy days, my everyday routine and familiar surroundings keep things reasonably sane. I might need to scramble as I look for my keys but, I typically only need to look in a few different places. Also, if its 8 am or 4 pm on a weekday, I know where I should be. When traveling for business all that goes out the window. Unmoored from routine there is so much more to try to keep track off, a different schedule, travel plans, luggage, etc. Oh and chargers! So many chargers. Over the years, I bet I’ve left at least fifty chargers plugged into sockets around the world.
Recently, I dusted off my Roll Aboard for a business trip in Tucson sponsored by Corning® Gorilla® Glass and started thinking about all the different things I do to take some of the stress out of business travel. Assuredly with less travel stress, I get more accomplished, enjoy more of the scenery and spend less time scrambling around my hotel room looking in every pocket and bag for my cell phone.
Taking the Stress Out of Business -Pack Tough, Pack Light, & Pack Strategically
Packing Tough: While I am not always the most graceful ballerina on the block, on a daily basis I can hold it together. However, there is something about traveling that brings out every klutzy tendency I possess. I can’t seem to get on or off a plane without a giant bruise appearing someplace. Traveling is hard on me and my stuff. Last year I tried to bring an aging suitcase on a multi-leg trip overseas. It died mid-trip. Dealing with inconveniences like attempting to find a place to repair a cracked cell phone screen in rural Vermont (virtually impossible) or shopping for a new suitcase in a European capital is a huge time suck and a terrible way to save money. Packing tough is about making sure all your gear is up to the trip.
On my trip with Corning’s team from Gorilla Glass, I learned about the exceptional damage resistance of Corning® Gorilla® Glass 4 provides. I was thrilled to know my Samsung Galaxy Note5 has Gorilla Glass 4 on its face and on the back covering the camera lens. Above, you can see my failed attempt at scratching Gorilla Glass 4 with a key. No luck! Thank goodness for that extra protection, even when I’m not traveling, I’m pretty bad about jamming my phone into pockets along with keys or in my purse along with everything. Drops are always a concern too. When I’m running around in between meetings on a trip I can get distracted and extra klutzy. Case in point, on my second evening with the Gorilla Glass team, rather than put my phone in my bag, I was holding it on top of a stack of papers and a notebook. The best place to stash this pile was surely the seat of a chair. Not safely in my bag or on a nice flat table. The seat had an angle. You can see where this is going. I set my stack down then watched helplessly as the phone slid right down smack onto a concrete patio. After an afternoon of watching amazing demonstrations of the dramatic protection Gorilla Glass 4 helps provide against drops, I didn’t want my phone to be the exception especially as it connected with concrete. Fortunately, like 80% of Gorilla Glass phones dropped from a height of approximately 3 feet, my phone met with a concrete patio, and there wasn’t a single scratch or crack. The next day aided by the Tucson scenery and the exceptional optical clarity provided by Gorilla Glass 4 I took the fantastic photos you see below.
Packing Light: We all know that less can be more, but when you are talking about business travel this is a truism. The more you bring, the more you’ll need to keep track of; this holds true for clothing, toiletries, and even electronic devices. From dealing with restrictive carry-on limits to remembering where you might have mislaid something in your own hotel room packing light has its advantages.
Limit footwear. Make sure all articles of clothing coordinate. -I usually make a call to either coordinate outfits around blacks or blues, not both. Eliminate bulky jackets and sweaters. These simple tips can save a tremendous amount of space. Pick one or at most two accessories that could go with any outfit. The more you pack, the more time it will take to repack or hunt down when it’s time to go home.
Packing Strategically: Packing light goes hand in hand with packing strategically. It is all about figuring out what you can take that does double, triple, or quadruple duty. Take a hard look at your electronics. On one trip last year, I noticed I had FIVE devices with me. Insanity. At that moment, I knew I needed to time to upgrade my phone so that at a minimum I could ditch both the camera and the tablet. Also, I now ask myself if I really NEED my laptop. I advise taking a look at your schedule while you make that assessment. Will you even have time to do significant work that requires a computer? If I’m just doing emails, note taking and light edits and can access materials from the cloud a great phone like my Galaxy Note5 is up to the task for all those things. Why lug around a laptop if it is just going to get jammed into a room safe of dubious value?
If I incorporate these strategies into my trip from the start, I can cut down on the stressors that can make business travel frenetic. If I can’t factor in all of them, my top tip is to ‘pack tough’. When you are confident that your clothing and gear is tough enough to put up with tough treatment or, like my phone, has extra protection from Gorilla Glass 4 you’ll have the freedom pack less, to focus on business, make new connections, and even take in some of the scenery.
This blog post was sponsored by Corning Incorporated the opinions and text are all mine.
