I like to travel:
Traveling is a great time to reflect on life. Think about the things you love. Think about the things that need to get done or what you might do different. The hours on the plan or the train merely give you “you time”. This is time you don’t always get. Even if you are flying with friends, colleagues or family, it is still time not in your day to day.
The opportunity to see places that are not in my backyard are rewarding. Especially if it is in a different region or country where people are different from what you are used to. My belief is you can respect what you have and you can have a more succinct opinion of the world if you merely just get out of your comfort zone.
Caveat – nothing compares to vacation travel.
My work requires it:
Traveling for work is often equally rewarding as you get to see your clients and peers in their element. We often make opinions and thoughts based on our surroundings. Getting to see how other people live and work gives you a perspective unlike no other because now you are getting the why.
Growing up, I was a “why kid”. Now as an adult, I am a “why kid”. Now in between, I was always the “why kid”. That is why calculus fascinated me because it answered a lot of math “whys” for me.
Now getting out and seeing why my clients do what they do and why they do it, I get a chance to show them how to do it differently, hopefully better and why I believe it to be better. Most of the time clients won’t give you that in person and if we concede to the phone, most of the time you have 50% of their attention if you are lucky. That is not talking harsh about them, but a captive audience is just what it is, a captive audience.
When you are in person, you learn more, retain more and are willing to interact more. By doing this with my clients, I am able to add an ROI that just won’t be attained because I tell you it will work.
Better to be in front of clients:
Clients are not just going to say, sure come waste my time. Come on, everyone wants their time and if everyone got it, they would not do their job. Therefore, be wasting your time and their time, thus making it more probable you will both be looking for another job for lack of doing your jobs.
However, if I spent $1,000 – $1M on a tool or service, I would want to know how it worked, why it works and how can I use it more efficiently. Why should someone blindly buy something from me or anyone for that matter?
Meeting people in different places is a great change of scenery and more times than not, your client loves to show you their digs, their city and what they are proud of. Meeting your customers that you may have never met before and talked a million times with on the phone goes a long way and now I know what it feels like to work there and what the culture really is. I cannot give the “I know what it’s like there” conversation when I really don’t know what it’s like there.
Seeing the old crew:
Having the luxury to get to see old colleagues and friends in different cities of which I don’t often get to see is an added bonus. We go through life with many experiences but when we move to our next venture we inevitably say, “see you soon” or “let’s get together soon”. How often does that really happen when you move on? Well, I will tell you, I keep in touch with old friends on Facebook and LinkedIn, but do I always get to see them? I get a better chance than most but not as frequently as I’d like. But I will still take those moments in a heartbeat.
Collaborate with peers I normally just talk to on the phone:
There is nothing like going into the war room with your peers and hashing strategy out in person. We all know when we are on conference calls or webexes, we have 2 monitors, watching the iPad presentation and texting. Not the most reliable way of getting the job done I assume. In-person you get to read faces, tones and excitement levels. On the phone, well, you get …the phone.
You get your own driver or car:
Getting to be driven around by Uber or drive cars I normally would not have driven is a bit of a novelty. It’s kind of cool not having to deal with the traffic, get on your computer and take calls.
And if I am driving, well I get to see what it’s like in a different car than I normally drive. It’s like I am working for consumer reports and I have the opportunity see what I would like or maybe don’t like. Mostly, I get in the car and say, “what the heck…where is…?”
Finally, the other perks:
If you have kids, you know your bed is not your bed for many years, so when you have a soft bed with tons of pillows and white sheets that are yours only, your get a bit of serenity, albeit seeing your kids are the best thing in the world.
Being able to try different foods in different cities is almost like being on a mini-vacation. Now being someone who only eats poultry and fish, it makes a bit challenging in certain parts of the country. But that also makes it fun because of the conversations I have after I get the cocked back head as to say, “Huh! You don’t eat meat. You don’t know what you are missing.”. Uh, ya, I do and I love what I eat.
This brings me to dining with my clients. That is always a treat because you get the person behind the partnership and you find just how pleasant these folks are when there is not the stress of contracts and renewals. The conversations and real people they are just makes my job so wonderful. I am not trying to sell you over food and cocktails. I am trying to get to know the real you. Don’t worry; I do not get too personal. We’re not there yet. But I do like to get to know the real you.
Airport lounges when available are the best way to have your private office and get stuff done with no interruptions. These lounges, small, medium or large are just a treat. I save money for my company as the food is so inexpensive compared to the regular part of the airport. The noise levels are at an absolute minimum and your free upgrades are amazing.
I will leave you with this. Taking the train to a meeting is AWESOME! It is the best mobile office ever, albeit a bit shaky at times. 4 hours to San Diego (if I am lucky) in my car couldn’t be more stressful. But 3 hours by train watching the ocean half of the time while making calls and closing deals is priceless. ~The Organic Recruiter
Stay tuned for Why I travel – Part II (Why travel is a bummer)
