Jet-Setting Productivity
Personal Strategies for Thriving in Transit and Beyond
POSITIVE AFFIRMATION
"Each step on a journey offers opportunity, whether it’s to be productive or positive, or both.
Today I will be a master of my work even while wandering.”
Hacking My Travel Routine
Every time I travel, I have this innate urge to share tips that have worked - some old, some new. Here are my latest findings after visiting Venice and Rome!
Gear
Water Bottle - Perhaps the easiest hack of all, fill up your bottle past security and stay hydrated on planes, which use “bleed air,” or air pulled from the engines. Lack of moisture helps with corrosion control, but it wrecks havoc with my skincare.
“Some commercial jets have a relative humidity level of 20%, whereas others have a relative humidity level of just 5%. To put those numbers into perspective, the relative humidity level inside of a typical home is about 40% to 60%.” - Monroe Aerospace
Cabiner - Use it to secure said water bottle or anything you don’t want to accidentally roll away.
Noise Cancelling Headphones… with a headphone jack - On longer flights, the in-flight entertainment uses a headphone jack, and although the airlines hands out complementary headphones, I suggest bringing your own for comfort and the noise cancelling.
GMT Watch - Keep in sync with your time zone with a GMT watch, which has an extra hour hand, so you know the time back home.
“If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere and if your GMT hand is set to local time, you can use your watch as a compass. Lay your watch flat and point the hour hand toward the sun. At this position, the GMT hand will be pointing North.” - Gear Moose
Apps
Google Maps and offline maps - Open the app, tap your profile icon on the upper right, tap Offline maps, and then Select Your Own Map. Especially useful on international travel where your phone may not work or data could be very expensive, you’ll at least know where you are.
US Mobile Passport App - When coming back to the United States, clear immigration way faster by downloading the app, filling out the few screens, and then be directed to a lane quickly. It’s as fast as Global Entry, in my opinion, and without the fees and registration hassle.
Local Transportation Apps - For example, in Washington DC, the Metro SmarTrip app allows riding the metro using your phone to tap in and out, and to add money. While in Italy, riding the train to cities and towns, the Trenitalia and Italo apps were effectively simple to purchase train tickets and not worry about getting in line at the ticket booth.
Logistics
Time Cushion - Even though we want to get to our final destination in the shortest time possible, don’t squeeze those layovers too short, just in case of flight delays. If you’re traveling internationally, definitely make sure you have a couple of hours when entering or leaving a country to clear immigration and customs. My rule of thumb is 1-hour layover for domestic and at least 2 hours for international.
Airport Lounge Access - I have to say, it’s a complete game-changer having access to an airport lounge while traveling. However, the quality of lounges varies widely (some are super crowded), once inside it’s usually a very pleasant experience with more space to spread out, including a variety of seating styles from couches to isolated desks. The food and drinks (and some alcohol) are all included, which could make this also a cost-saving measure when you don’t have to buy overpriced airport food. So, how do you get access for free? Read on…
Credit Card with Travel Benefits - The easiest way to gain airport lounge access is to sign up for a credit with lounge benefits. The most common are cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred or Capital One’s Venture X that come with Priority Pass, which grants unlimited access to lounges within their network. Or you can sign up for a specific airline’s credit card. For example, the United Explorer card comes with 2 one-time use passes. Additionally, these credit cards usually also include zero foreign transaction fees, reimbursement for travel delays, and more.
Productivity
Write Emails - Use the confined space on a plane with no internet connection to take the time to respond to emails. Think of it as the modern-day interpretation of writing handwritten letters to friends afar.
Learn the Language - If going international, definitely pick up on the basics, which will go a long way in garnering some likeability with the locals. Learn the simple phrases like hello, goodbye, thanks, excuse me, and
(things I love)
➩ Miir Wide Bottle, available in numerous colors, works so well that it creates ice cubes.
➩ Black Diamond LiteWire Carabiner, also available in numerous colors.
➩ Sony Over the Ear Headphones & Noise Cancelling.
➩ Tudor Black Bay GMT, not yet in my watch collection but one day!
AI Corner
Use Perplexity.ai while on travel by asking it questions like, “What is a restaurant located in this area that has been recommended by sites like Travel & Leisure?” Use Perplexity because it’s connected to the internet so it can give recent info, plus it cites all of its sources. Using AI for travel planning is a booming trend and a growing business.
