Girls In Tech

I’ve been traveling lots lately and wrapping up my Fall Speaking Tour for Intern Queen Inc. Every day it feels like I’m in a different airport with more gossip mags in front of me – tempting me to purchase them ! It’s so difficult to really focus while you’re flying and encourage yourself to get things done. If you are on JetBlue – all you want to do is watch the television set on the back of the seat in front of you. If you are on Delta, you want to Facebook your way through the skies with their Wi-Fi planes. It is all too easy to put your head on that window and fall fast alseep – you usually even miss the drink cart.

The airplane is a great time to catch up on work/business. Here are a few travel tips to make the most out of your travel days:

1. READING RAINBOW. Most people have that pile of things “to read” and “to go over”. Before you travel print out or collect any magazine articles, blogs, books, papers that you’ve been wanting to read or look over. The plane will provide you with plenty of time to go through and get rid of whatever you no longer need.

2.  TWITTER FAVORITES. I’m always marking plenty of Tweets under the “favorites” category and I usually don’t get around to reading them. The night before I fly I copy paste all of them into a large document to take on the plane with me so that I can catch up. If any of the Tweets send me to interesting articles – I print those out as well. On the plane I make note of things I want to “RT” and interesting “Tweeps” I might want to reach out to.

3. BUSINESS/TECH BOOK. Now is the time to grab that book that you’ve been waiting to read. Try to select a book that is business or tech related so that it has better chances of inspiring you and providing you with ideas for your own business. Always bring a notebook with you ! I just bought and quickly read the Ivanka Trump book, THE TRUMP CARD: Playing to Win in Work and Life, and found the business tips helpful and inspiring.

4. SKIM THE MAGAZINE RACK. Use your layover time to skim any magazine articles you might want to read. I usually end up wasting money on a ton of them and only reading a few articles. I really enjoy WIRED, ENTREPRENEUR, INC, FAST COMPANY, BUSINESS WEEK, and NEWSWEEK.

5. PLAN YOUR FLIGHT. It sounds cheesy, but I always write out my plan for the flight. I’ll even include time for a short nap if the flight is long enough. This keeps me on track during the flight.

6. FOLLOW YOUR MORNING ROUTINE. Normally have a latte or some tea in the morning ? Try to follow this ritual on the plane. It will help you feel more relaxed, organized and put you in a productive mindset. Also, make sure you eat some carbs before you get on the plane so that you have a bit of energy.

FLY SAFE !