Business trips not only takes you away from the office but also break your usual routine. It becomes hard to keep up the typical hard-working mindset when you aren’t waking up in the same room or eating the usual food and not working on the same desk. At the same time keeping an eye on your employee engagement activities is a challenge.
However, in spite of jet lags and endless travel, you have probably some meetings to take care of. We have gathered some easy steps that you can take to make some productive adjustments while on a business trip. To gain more knowledge we have learned from successful road warriors who revealed their secrets for getting down to business quickly and producing great work even on the go.
Keep technology by your side
Before you leave, finalize which gadgets will serve you best on the go. Decide whether you need a laptop for a heavy-duty project or just a smartphone will do the work. Traveling light is suggested, try leaving some devices at home. Depending on the focus of the trip.
Whatever devices you are bringing, access to reliable Wi-Fi is a must. Most premium airlines give access to the internet as a flight service. Make sure you are on one of those flights. Of course, you have a team back in your city to look after. Use teamworks time tracker. That way you are able to keep track of your team’s productivity while you are bouncing around new cities.
Health is priority
From a jet lag to eating junk food, traveling can affect your health in a lot of ways. In the end, if you are not taking care of yourself you are going to feel pretty sluggish. Especially on a business trip, you can not afford poor health.
Take enough sleep, eat healthily, use plenty of bottled water. And make time to have short sprints. If you have any regular meds, take them with you for the whole trip, don’t rely on foreign stores.
Keep yourself scheduled
By keeping yourself scheduled, you can make better use of travel time. It’s easy to get disorganized while you are on the road with changing time zones and endless nights of travel. Use time blocks on your calendar to work on priority projects, meetings, and short breaks. Predetermine what work you need to get done. Try breaking your Calender in 15-20 minutes of increments.
Plan an extra day
It might sound counter-intuitive to be out of your office a day longer. But some experts add an extra day in their trip, either at the end of the trip or merge it in between. Coming back immediately returning to your routine takes a lot of sustained energy. Even a few hours of relaxation can be helpful. An extra day will give you time to review your business trip and follow up on your company’s work during the trip.
Know your destination
Before you land, pre-book your hotels and get an idea about your hotel surroundings. Look for a nearby conference center. Arranging a car service is a plus.
Knowing this kind of information will save you valuable time on the trip. You can start being productive as soon as you arrive. Load up your smartphone with pre-booking apps for dinner reservations and cab services available in that country.
Give your meals a business purpose
Staying on schedule during short trips can be a real challenge. Instead of getting time out for good meals. Arrange your meeting in nice restaurants, these meal meetings are an efficient change of pace and will also increase your trip experience.
Stay in the heart of the city
If you are given a choice to stay anywhere. Try staying in the heart of the city, so you can experience it firsthand during downtimes. As a byproduct, you will walk more discovering the city, finding hot spots to eat and much more. Staying in the heart of the city will revoke your mind and body.
Seize downtime
In the end, cover up your empty slots that could be during flights and in-between events. Take power naps, meditate maybe, or visit iconic sights of that city. Connecting to work all round the clock can be overwhelming. Take time to unplug and recharge. And, trips present this opportunity perfectly.
