Travel Time
We have spent more time travelling since October than in any other year. And by travelling I mean actual time spent on some mode of transportation that may or may not have wifi available. We always travel a fair amount, so this is not new, but normally we try to make the stays in each place longer to save on travel time. With new clients, conferences and a vacation this has not been possible leaving more time on planes, boats and cars lately (no trains yet). So what is the best use of this time?
Productivity
- Off-line work projects – There are many items that cannot be completed without wifi (newsletters, website updates, blogs, social posts all come to mind) but when you actually sit and think about it for a minute there will be items on your to do list that can be accomplished without the internet. And we have discovered that by tackling these while there is absolutely no chance of being distracted by the internet the job gets done much quicker! Who knew?!
- Clean your inbox – Most of us have an inbox that we truly despise. On a recent 4.5 hour flight to Toronto I set out to accomplish the mythic ‘inbox zero’. You can answer emails and have them hold in your outbox until you hit the ground and do your email filing. The only thing you may have trouble with (depending on how your email is configured) is moving emails to the trash. You can however – make a trash folder or flag your trash and dispose of it in one fail swoop later.
- Organize – You know all those things you have downloaded to read but never get there, delete half of them. You know all of those bookmarks on your internet browser to read later, gone. How about the enewsletters you are saving, how realistic is it that you will ever read them. Spending an hour cleaning up files, folders and junk will make you feel so much better when you arrive at your destination.
- Podcasts – Working on a computer in the car is not do-able for some people (including us) so listening to podcasts – both business or personal is a good way to pass the time and learn something along the way. Audio books work too.
- Books and Magazines – If you do not feel like working, or your travel is for vacation and rejuvenation purposes then dive into a good book or magazine. Again, it is amazing how much you can read when there is nothing else to take away your focus.
- Breathe – Take the opportunity to do nothing. Just sit and look out the window. Can’t sit? Listen to a 15 minute meditation? Music? Watch a movie? The night before your trip download a few options and just see what you feel like.
Planes, Boats, Cars and Podcasts
Here are some of our favorite podcasts at the moment, they tend to change all the time. You might see a theme in these ones…
http://www.travelfreedompodcast.com
http://www.tropicalmba.com/podcasts
http://zerototravel.com
We, Jeff & Tara Ciecko of CK Golf write two blogs, one is our 19th Hole Blog where we share personal experiences and the other a Biz Blog where we comment on general business and internet marketing best practices, golf course marketing and give golf industry related opinions. We have owned CK Golf for 8 years and provide marketing, social media and business services to the golf and other industries. Our 19th Hole Blog is about the places we visit and the things we do. When we say that we like or dislike something or have a good or bad experience this is our opinion and the truth as we see it, not something we have been paid for. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact us anytime.
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