Five Ways To Manage a Job High on Travel

A TRAVEL-INTENSIVE job has its own excitement, but it can be hectic and demanding. Writankar Mukherjee spoke to a cross-section of experts to seek suggestions on how to manage a job that requires frequent travelling. 

Prioritise Work It is important for a professional to prioritise work, since all work may not require travel and all travel may not be as productive. Unnecessary travel without much productivity can impact performance. Says GlobalHunt India director Sunil Goel: "If there is work that can be done without travel, it is better to avoid such travel. It will help to optimise the travelling need and also improve work-life balance." 

Plan in Advance Professionals at times change jobs when their travel requirement becomes much more than anticipated and starts to affect their personal life. Headhunters say in such cases, it is best to create time schedule and cut down on unnecessary work. "Executives can club journey to various cities in one visit which can cut down flying time. They need to plan their travel schedule a few days in advance," says James Agrawal, director and business head (India) at BTI Consultants, a part of Kelly Services.

Build Routine Building a routine around travelling can help to bring some method in the madness. For instance, if one needs to travel to a certain place frequently, one can build a routine around it. For instance, reaching at night may help in planning the next day. Says Ma Foi Randstad MD & CEO E. Balaji: "Build a pattern around your travel. Avoid early morning flights and rather reach the place the night before. Some routine during travel helps."  

Travel Preparation Some pre-travel preparation also helps to manage work pressure. This includes setting an ‘out-of-office’ reply in your email and giving out the contact details of another pointsperson in the team. Also, try to give charge to someone else in your absence, who would then by default handle a lot of your work pressure.

Manage Stress Travel can be quite stressful. It is vital to catch up on sleep while travelling since a lot of people tend to be sleep-deprived when travelling. It also helps to continue an exercise regime during travelling. Equally important is to take food on time. And, of course, make travel schedules in a way that there are few days or ideally a week’s gap between each travel. "The best is to start travel early in the week and return by the weekend so that there is time for the family. Spending time with family can help to de-stress," says Angel Broking senior VP (HR) Dhruv Desai.

(The Economic Times, Mumbai, 06-09-2011)