I’ve been thinking about doing a travel tips post with all of the travel I’ve been doing of late.  Of course, when I got back from Pubcon, I noticed that others had the same idea.  But, I’m going to go ahead anyway.

1. Be Chill.   Back in my management consulting days, I used to obsess over my travel.  Did I get an upgrade? the exit row? an aisle seat? all my miles credited?  etc., etc.  I shudder to think about what I must have been like to deal with back then.  Without being a complete push-over, my attitude now is that there will usually be full planes, occasional problems with reservations, seat assignments gone wrong, etc.  But, really, now that I’ve come to accept that, I get far less stressed when these things happen.
2. If it’s important to get there, get there a day early.  This almost became rule #1.  If you have a speech to give or a cruise to catch or a can’t miss business meeting on a Monday, you need to fly in on Sunday.  For international travel (or other locations where there is only 1 flight per day), make that 2 days ahead.   Why?  Planes are usually full now, so if your flight gets cancelled, you may not be able to get re-booked until the following day.  I almost missed my late afternoon panel at SES San Jose because my early morning flight got cancelled and there were very few available options.
3. Smile and be nice.   People in the travel industry often have pretty stressful jobs.  There are delays, packed planes, staffing cutback and, let’s face it, less than fabulous pay for those on the front lines facing customers.  On flights, I make it a point to always greet the flight attendants with a smile and “good morning” or “good afternoon.”   It doesn’t take much effort for me respectful to those who are there for us while travelling and seems to make the whole experience better.  Related thoughts:  be patient for older folks and people with kids and offer to help if you can.  You will feel way better about the whole thing.
4. Don’t check bags.  Most people just think about the extra time getting your bag after the flight and the possibility that it will get lost.  Those are good reasons, but the #1 reason not to check is flexibility.  If you want to change flights you need to be carry-on only.
5. Get to the airport early.  I used to cut it close all of the time, but no more.  I was in LAX a few weeks ago and all of their computer check-in terminals were down. I think I was one of the few people who made my flight, with no stress.  Especially with a laptop and wifi or a mobile card, you can get plenty of work done at the airport.
6. Buy food and water in the terminal. Unless you are flying in trans-continental first or business class, buy food before you get on the flight.  In most airports you can get a sandwich or burrito for about $10 and it will be far better than the food (or in most cases, nothing) that you get on the flight.
7. Bring ready-made snacks.  Jeremy suggested protein shakes.  For me, it’s Clif bars or granola bars.  Have something that gives you at least a couple of hundred calories to get you to the next spot you can eat.
8. Get through security like a pro.  It blows me away how long it takes some people to get through the line (even though I follow rule 1 and am chill about it, it seems to stress them out).  Be a pro.  At home, pack 1 (one) quart-sized bag with all liquids and gels you want to take, each no more than 3 oz.  Put it where you can easily find it.  When it’s your turn to put your stuff on the counter to go through x-ray, take out your laptop, your bag o’ liquids and put them in separate bins.  Leave your laptop in its own bin and add your cellphone and keys to the liquid bin.   Put your shoes in that one if it all fits or get a new one.  You also have to take off your coat if you have one.  Wear slip on shoes and no belt and you’ve made your life even easier.  Keep your boarding pass in your pocket and show it to the security person when you get past the metal detector.  The shoes and boarding pass showing are about 50% of the time, but why not just do it and be done with it?
9. Use your cell to remember where you parked.  Jeremy had a great idea about calling your cell with your hotel room number to remember that.  For airport parking, I do something similar.  I take a picture with my phone of the nearest sign and then another picture of the door to the terminal that gets me there.  The only time this hasn’t worked out for me was when I dropped my cellphone in the river while fly-fishing.  But what’s the chance of that happening again?

I hope the tips helped.  Please add good ones you think I’ve missed. 

Photo credit: Haseo