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What is it like to travel for work?

Posted On: April 4, 2016

Jennifer Kumar, the Managing Director of Authentic Journeys has been traveling for her work since she started her career after graduating from college. In the video below, Jennifer shares her experiences about traveling for work, how she got to India, why she went to India and is now living in India for a second time, and some of the realities of traveling for work. 

If you are looking out for a job where you have to do a lot of traveling, this video shares some insight into traveling for work.

Time table of topics discussed in the video:

0-2:35 – Introduction to topic and a sampling of who Authentic Journeys works with (Company FAQ)

2:35 – 5:15 – The fortune telling parrot (a personal story)

5:15 – 7:50 Why was I traveling for my work since before I even started my career?
In this section, I speak about how my initial career passion, and how I got to India. Initially, my passion was to work as an international student advisor. I was told I should study abroad to qualify for this job, but lacked the actual skill for this work that I had so much passion for, so my career took a bit of a detour, or so it seems, for sometime. While this detour may have deterred me, it was a critical stepping stone to getting back to what I really loved to do and wanted to do.

 
7:50 – 12:25 – What was it like to travel around the countryside in New York for my job? Here, I talk more about the hidden costs of traveling everyday for work and how to balance the hidden costs of traveling with getting the actual job done!

One of the hotels I stayed in in Trivandrum.

12:25 – 18:25 – Travel I have done for Authentic Journeys. I speak about some common questions about traveling for work that I never asked but learned on the job… while traveling!  

• Which places have I traveled to in India for work?
  

• What is it like to travel for work?
• What are some of the realities and pitfalls?
• How do you finish all your work, when you are spending most of your time in airports, hotels, taxis or en route to the next client site or client meeting?
• How do you track your time, expenses, and what funds do you use to fund your business travel? 
• What are some differences about traveling domestically versus internationally?
• What are all the things you get to do when you travel? 
• Do you have time to do all your work? 
• How do you prepare for business travel? 
• Is there really time for fun, downtime and site seeing?

One time I got to see the Rubik’s Cube Festival in Mumbai!

18:25 – 25:00 – Can do you “do things” onsite? This section is for you if you are traveling onsite to the US. What is it like to go onsite in the US for work? Prepare your presentations, meeting agendas, and other work-related materials before traveling domestically or abroad for work. Is there going to be time to site see or do fun activities after work when onsite in the US? Tips for doing fun, free things in the US. 

More travel-related posts: What NOT to do in Airports | 9 Tips for Expats Visiting India On Work |  What I like about working in Kerala as a US Expat 

Jennifer Kumar helps you to use your time wisely while traveling for work. Together we can help you prepare for your meetings, presentations, and business interactions more effectively so that you can also get to enjoy some of the local flavor of the area you are traveling to. Contact us to start your one on one corporate coaching sessions today. 

Want to see more pictures of my travels for work in India? I’ve traveled to Calcutta, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Kottayam and other towns when I lived in Kerala, India (Kochi).