By Krysty Wideen

Do you find yourself on the road a lot for work? Well, I do, and while I’m not trying to use this as an excuse for my absence from the blog-sphere (ok, maybe a little?), I thought I’d put out the call for some tools of the trade.

Many of us have seen Up in the Air with George Clooney – enough said – and while I wouldn’t suggest taking too many life lessons away from that movie, the ease by which he went through security made me envious! There are so many inconveniences of air travel these days, so it’s the simple things that make life easier.

Here are a few things I do:

1. I never plan to get to the airport at the last second. Let’s face it, things happen and that security line up can be quite the bottleneck. Why add extra stress to my life by rushing in? (If you’re an MBTI junkie… I’m also a J.)

2. I either carry as little as possible on the plane, or everything I have. I hate carting around three different bags as I always lose something. But, if I’m going to take a lot on the plane, I might as well skip the wait for my checked baggage.

3. I cherish my time on airplanes as time to think, wind down, relax, and basically have alone time. I usually prefer to sit away from the people I am traveling with because I can enjoy the time alone to collect my thoughts. I’ll bring work, books, and movies so that I have options (for longer flights). It’s all about re-framing:  to me, being on the plane is a positive thing.

4. I nap. A lot. Seriously, learn to sleep on planes. If you are having trouble, splurge for the $6 glass of wine!

5. I’m loyal to one airline. This way you get points or rewards and you can get benefits and access to other conveniences along the way. (I hope none of you reach the 1 million miles club like George Clooney’s character…)

Any other tips for happy business travel?

Krysty Wideen is a learning and organizational development consultant with The Refinery Leadership Partners, based in Vancouver. Her professional interest and expertise is in emotional intelligence, type psychology (MBTI), conflict, team dynamics, learning design, and program evaluation. An emerging practitioner in her field, Krysty is actively seeking new information, ideas, insights, and experiences and loves to share them with the online community through the BC HRMA and Refinery Leadership Partners Blogs.