Productivity Tips and Tricks for Travelers
Bring Your Own Power StripWhy should you bring your power strip (or at least an outlet adapter) when traveling? Well, you never know how many power outlets will be available at your destination. If you arrive at your hotel and discover that it only has a single outlet you can get access to, you may be forced to choose between charging your laptop or your smartphone. With a power strip, you can create several outlets from a single plug-in, allowing you to charge all of your devices simultaneously.
When choosing an airline, make sure it offers wireless Internet access. The good news is that most of the major airlines now offer WiFi, although there are still a few that have yet to make this transition. By having access to the Internet, you can browse the web, check and respond to emails, and do any other task that requires an Internet connection during your flight. Keep in mind, however, that you may be required to pay extra for WiFi. Most people, including myself, will agree that it’s a small price to pay for the ability to use the Internet when you’re 30,000 feet in the air. Just have a backup plan though, because sometimes the WiFi doesn’t work when it should.
Okay, this isn’t necessarily going to boost your productivity when traveling, but it’s still a neat little trick that many people don’t know about. The next time you get ready to book a flight, make sure your web browser has privacy enabled. Airlines will often display custom pricing to users based on their personal information. So if you frequently search for luxury goods, they may give you a higher price, assuming that you’ll pay it. You can bypass this manipulative pricing scheme by enabling private browsing in your web browser.
Rather than driving around the airport parking lot aimlessly for hours in search of an empty space, fire up your smartphone and check the status online. Nearly all of the major U.S. airports now display this information on their website, allowing travelers to see which lots are open and which ones are closed. Using this information, you can drive straight to an open lot to find a space; thus, preventing unnecessary downtime during your travels. Or even better, take a shuttle so you can use the commute time to be productive.
It’s easy to forget the basics of good nutrition when you travel. This is due largely in part to the simple fact that travelers don’t have access to kitchen amenities, with many hotels only offering a mini-fridge and microwave. As a result, travelers tend to pick up fast food for their meals, which offers little-to-no actual nutritional value. If you want to stay healthy and keep up your productivity levels up, you should base your meals around fresh, lean meats, along with fruits and vegetables.
Have any other traveling productivity tips that you would like to share with our readers? Let us know in the comments section below!
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