From the course: Time Management Tips

Power tips for frequent travelers

From the course: Time Management Tips

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Power tips for frequent travelers

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- Travel is a necessary part for many of us, but how do we make the most of that time? How do we minimize the impact of all the interruptions that go along with taking a flight or driving a long distance and make the most of that time? Let's consider a few areas. First of all, the tools themselves. Now of course, the most obvious tool is your luggage. I recommend that you get luggage, if possible, that has lots of homes. By homes, I mean compartments, pockets, lots of different places to put things. That way, it's easier to make it be a little bit like a mobile office, and make it faster to pack. Also, you may want to download the travel app of whatever company you're traveling with. For instance, I used Delta and find that their app saves me a lot of time when it comes to check in and moving seats. Also, I recommend that when it comes to your tools, maybe you have double the tools that you normally use. In other words, I have a mouse that I use and I'm most comfortable with it, so I have one for my office and I have another one that's always in my travel bag ready to go. That way, I don't have to worry if I lose it, or just taking the time to repack it. Now, how about preparing for the travel itself? The most obvious tool here is to have a checklist. I recommend having a checklist that's prepared that has places where you go in your house to gather all the different things necessary for your travel. You may also want to have different checklists for different types of travel. For instance, I'm going to pack very different clothing for a vacation than I would for going on stage and speaking. And finally, if you're going to take a different device like I do, I have a special laptop that I use for traveling, make sure it's fully synced up with all your other devices before you go. Now, it's time to pack for your trip. First, I recommend that you schedule time to do this. Allow yourself to be focused during the packing time. If you're trying to multitask or rush the packing, that's going to increase the likelihood that you're going to forget something very important. Now, when it comes time for boarding, we want to make sure that we arrive early. Give yourself plenty of buffer time. That way, if something unexpected happened while you're trying to travel to the airport, for instance, you've given yourself a little bit of leeway. Also, if possible, I would invest in something that allows you to speed up the security process. For instance, I've invested in PreCheck, and that has saved me hours over the years. Now, what about during the travel itself? The first and most important principle is to be realistic. A lot of people tell themselves, I'm going to be very productive on the plane, I'm going to have lots of free time, and then they get on the plane and there's lots of transition, there's lots of interruptions, perhaps they don't even have an internet connection. So, what I would recommend is underestimate what you think you can accomplish. I typically, myself, estimate that I can only use about 50% of the total flight time. Travel is necessary, but a little bit of preparation and using a system can help you get the most out of the time that you spend.

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