Road Warrior Tips for Consultants

If consultants have to deliver like Jerry Seinfeld, sometimes they have to live like Jack Kerouac. Travel is a part of the gig, sometimes every week for months on end. Your commute may be hundreds of miles and many hours away, and your home-away-from-home is where someone else washes the sheets, the shampoo comes in tiny bottles, and the TV has annoying menus.

Based on our years of traveling and learning to be comfortable with the consulting lifestyle, here are some key ways to make life a little easier. This will help you stay focused on the reason you are there – the customer!

Keep Life Suite

1. Get the room you want. It is OK to ask for a different room, like one that is located in a more quiet location. (We recommend getting as far away from the elevator as possible.) If you are going to be there on a weekly basis, request the same room because it’s nice to have something constant when away from home.
2. Get to know the staff. If you are going to be in the same location for a while this can come in handy. The hotel staff has more power than you think. They are real people with names and families, and they also have the power to upgrade rooms, offer discounts and void charges for customers who are kind enough to take an interest. If you stay regularly, use the opportunity to get to know not just the service staff but also the cleaning and maintenance people.
3. Leave a few good words. You are a consultant, so use some of your skills here as well. Let the management know when you have received good service. It will go a long way and can help make small issues magically disappear!
4. Most major hotels are quick to find ways to compensate you for a bad experience. If you have a noisy neighbor, tell the management, and you may get a free breakfast. If the internet is painfully slow (a common issue these days), they will usually write it off your bill. Just don’t be afraid to ask…politely.

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Rule The Air

These tips might not put the splendor back in air travel, but they will make the process a little less lousy. A miserable flight can cost more than temporary discomfort if you’re not rested and at the top of your game when you meet with your client.

1. Choose a seat near the front. Airlines usually assign seats back-to-front, and families with children tend to plan further ahead than business travelers, so request a seat near the front if you happen to be someone who prefers not to sit near active toddlers or noisy infants.
2. While you’re at it, request the exit row. Children aren’t permitted, and you get more legroom. (Everyone knows this by now, right?)
3. Master the security check. Choose your security line on quality as well as quantity. Pick the line with the most people like you. That is, single travelers with a laptop who clearly look ready to meet with a customer.
4. Stay hydrated. Planes have only 3% humidity, so you get dehydrated quickly. Carry a bottle of water on board. To keep costs and carry-on weight low, carry an empty bottle and ask the flight attendant to fill it for you.
5. Use the time to rest and reflect. When you are strapped into a seat, there is no better time than to take advantage of that time to reflect on the day ahead or the one you just completed. Jot down the ideas and items that you want to remember. Then as they say, sit back and enjoy the ride. Take a moment to look out the window and remember that you are moving hundreds of miles an hour at thousands of feet in the air, seriously.

We could go on and on about this, but to sum it up, some of the best advice we received very early in our consulting career was: “Travel is part of the gig. Make it as comfortable and easy on yourself as possible, and don’t feel guilty about it.” This doesn’t mean you always get to fly first class and stay at the Four Seasons, but heeding this advice has helped us avoid burning out over the years.

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