Between catching flights, syncing up across time zones, or finding strong WiFi, traveling for work can present unique challenges when it comes to staying productive.
But with the right plan and strategy, you can find efficiencies in your workday on the road and ensure you’re getting everything done in a timely, stress-free way.
Here we’ll explore the reasons why maintaining productivity can be challenging while on the go and offer seven practical tips on how to overcome these obstacles.
Productivity on the Road: Key Challenges
Whether you’re going to a new city or country, taking your work on the road can be difficult. You’re out of the normal routine and may not have access to resources that typically help keep you on track.
These challenges can derail your productivity.
Distractions and Disruptions in Unfamiliar Environments
Being somewhere new can be disorienting and create new challenges. Even commonplace activities like finding a place to eat or navigating a different highway can take more time and cause disruptions to the day.
Even exciting things like taking in new sites or tourist attractions are a distraction away from your work responsibilities.
Lack of Routine and Structure
Your routine will change on the road, even if you’re in the same time zone or state. This is because you’re operating in a different environment, so there are variables beyond your control that impact your day. This makes it harder to remain productive outside the normal work structure.
Jet Lag and Fatigue
Even traveling short distances can be tiring, which impacts your energy levels and ability to focus. This is augmented when you travel across time zones and have to recover from jet lag.
Limited Access to Resources and Tools
Working while on the road often means you don’t have access to the same resources you normally use. This could be your computer set up at a home office or hard-copy and human resources at your workplace. Another challenge is Wi-Fi access, especially if you’re working from a hotel or cafe that isn’t set up as a professional workspace.
7 Tips for Business Travelers to Optimize Your Workday
While it’s impossible to eliminate these challenges, it is possible to mitigate them. Here are seven tips for business travelers to be productive and optimize your workday while traveling.
1. Plan and Prioritize Tasks in Advance
Many productivity challenges can be addressed through careful planning and preparation ahead of your work trip. It allows you to think through some potential roadblocks and come up with solutions ahead of time. This can both increase your productivity and reduce stress while on the road.
Here are some places to start:
- Create a detailed itinerary and schedule: Where are you staying? What is the Wi-Fi like there? What amenities do you need? How far are you traveling? Will you feel tired? These are some questions that can inform your itinerary and schedule to ensure you have adequate workspace, time, and energy to work.
- Identify critical tasks and deadlines: Take some time to map out your deadlines and critical tasks ahead of time. This helps you plan when you may need to complete certain things and ensure you’re equipped to do so.
- Use productivity apps or tools to stay organized: Think about what business management tools and apps will help you work better while on the road. You may need to download and set something new up, so leave time to get it done before leaving. We cover specific tools and apps to try below.
2. Establish a Consistent Routine
As much as possible, try to establish a consistent routine while working on the go. This doesn’t have to be the exact same routine as home as there are so many new variables, but consistency goes a long way.
Here are a few ideas to try:
- Set regular working hours: The easiest thing to maintain consistency throughout your work day is to set up a schedule that you can follow. This means determining your work hours and sticking to them. It’ll help you separate work from after-work activities (like sightseeing), and create a more cohesive schedule for people you work with.
- Find a dedicated workspace: While it’s technically possible to work anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection, it’s not always the most productive environment. Find a dedicated workspace while on the road so you can focus somewhere quiet and access amenities like printing services and on-site support to help when you need it. Coworking spaces like The Post are a great option while on the road. We offer drop-in day passes or bookable meeting rooms for on-the-go pros who need a productive work environment.
- Stick to familiar rituals: Wherever possible, stick to familiar routines you’ve established at home. This could be your morning routine of meditation and work-out, or evening wind-down with a book or journaling session. Whatever it is, this helps set you up for success by sticking to familiar routines that promote focus and productivity during the day.
3. Minimize Distractions
New environments are full of distractions like traffic noises, meeting new people or seeing interesting attractions and sites. This makes it hard to focus on your work and get things done.
Here are a few ways to minimize distractions:
- Use noise-canceling headphones or earplugs: Get into a deeply focused state by playing your favorite tunes or blocking everything out with earplugs.
- Disable notifications on mobile devices: This is a good productivity hack even when you aren’t traveling, but turning off notifications is an excellent way to stay focused and avoid distractions.
- Utilize productivity apps to block distracting websites or apps: If you need an external push to stay focused, consider using productivity apps like Focus or RescueTime, which block distracting websites.
4. Take Care of Your Physical and Mental Well-being
Traveling can take a toll on your health and well-being. Long hours, different time zones, new climates, and unfamiliar food all make it harder to take care of your physical and mental well-being.
Here are some ways to keep health top-of-mind:
- Get enough sleep and manage jet lag: Rule of thumb to manage jet lag—sleep according to your new destination, not just when you’re tired. Try as hard as you can to sleep at a normal time and get enough sleep. This ensures you’re rested and ready for work.
- Stay hydrated and maintain a healthy diet: While fast food is convenient when traveling, we all know it’s not the healthiest. Try to opt for better options by eating full meals, purchasing groceries to make your own healthy meals, and getting enough water to drink.
- Practice stress-relieving techniques: Traveling brings unexpected challenges that can be stressful. Take a break with meditation, gratitude practices, yoga, journaling, or mindfulness practices which can help relieve stress and bring a sense of calm to your day so you can do your best work.
5. Utilize Technology and Remote Work Tools
Since you don’t have access to your normal work set-up while on the road, it’s important to prepare for productivity in advance. This means setting up remote work tools and technology to get things done while on the road.
Here are a few things to think about:
- Use cloud storage for easy access to files: Many professionals already use cloud storage, but storing files on local computers is also common. Ensure everything you need is stored on a shared cloud so you can access the files easily while on the road.
- Utilize project management or collaboration tools: Keep up with colleagues or clients by utilizing project management software like Trello, Asana, or ClickUp. This helps streamline communication and ensures everyone is on the same page, even across time zones.
- Leverage video conferencing for virtual meetings: Whether it’s Zoom, Google Meet, or another platform, ensure your video conferencing technology is working and ready to go to have a streamlined virtual meeting experience while traveling.
6. Seek Out Coworking Spaces
As discussed earlier, finding a dedicated workspace is a key component of maintaining a consistent work routine while on the road. While coffee shops and hotel rooms offer Wi-Fi and somewhere to sit, they can be full of distractions and lack the amenities of a dedicated coworking space.
In addition to a productive work environment, coworking spaces offer access to resources (i.e., A/V equipment or printing), on-site staff, professional networking, and local insights are all useful while on the road.
Here are some options to check out:
- Book a coworking day pass: Whether you need it for a few hours or a week, coworking day passes let you work in a productive environment during the time you need it.
- Rent a meeting room for privacy and focus: If you’re meeting with clients or customers, bookable meeting rooms offer a private and professional workspace. You can also make use of them for quiet work times.
- Take advantage of amenities and networking opportunities: Coworking spaces like The Post have on-site staff to help ensure you have everything you need to work well. This could be printing, A/V equipment, advice about local hotspots, or networking opportunities with other coworking members.
7. Plan for Downtime and Self-care
Whether you’re at home or on the road, one key to sustained productivity is taking your downtime equally seriously. Self-care, relaxation, and finding time to do something you enjoy is an important part of any schedule.
Here are some options while on the road:
- Schedule breaks and relaxation time: Lunch and coffee breaks are just as important while on the road, if not more so. Take time throughout the work day to decompress and re-align with your work goals and tasks.
- Explore the local area during off-hours: One of the best parts about working while traveling is exploring somewhere new! Make sure you get out of your hotel and take in the local sites. This could be a new restaurant or tourist attraction. If you need recommendations, ask your local coworking space.
- Engage in activities that recharge and inspire you: What do you love to do? It might be painting, yoga, a fitness class, music, dance, new restaurants… the list goes on. Think about activities that recharge and inspire you and pursue them in a new place. And, who knows? You might find something else to add to the list!
Traveling for work can be fun, but it’s not without its challenges—especially when it comes to productivity. We hope these tips will help support your workday on the road so you can enjoy the process, explore somewhere new, and feel good about what you’ve accomplished. I
f you’re in search of a professional workspace that will help you stay productive while you’re traveling to Tucson on business, you’ll find it at The Post. Book a tour of The Post today.