Work Travle... Glamorous or not?

Great Wall of China

 Many of you know that I have recently started a new job that requires some travel, thus far stamped in the passport is Canada, Mexico, England, France, Belgium, Germany, China, Honk Kong, and Indonesia with a few new stamps to follow soon.

I have had a number of people comment on how lucky I was to have a job that included travel to far away glamorous places. Well first of all, I do feel lucky and it’s not because of the travel it’s because I HAVE A JOB. Moreover I work for a family that values its employee’s quality of life as much as their own and show it by providing opportunities to young and old that if seized could fund a financially independent lifestyle.

Hong Kong Bay

 So, what’s the point of this blog entry? Well it’s to give you a little insight on what it’s like to travel for work and more importantly what it’s like to work for a small company that you feel personally responsible for.  

Disclaimer: I am writing this 6 hours into a 14.5 hour flight sitting in the second to last row of a 747 where I am conveniently close to the bathroom and enjoying my ample 3.5 inches of leg room.

Hong Kong Inner City

 Let’s first discuss the pro’s I have discovered in traveling for work.

• I don't fly to Cleveland… by that I mean the title on my business card has the word international in it. So with the exception of Canada when I get off a plain I am in a wildly different place with a wildly different culture awaiting me at the door. P.s. I love you Canada…

• I don’t drive a desk daily. I get to mix up my daily routine on a monthly ish basis with travel and frankly I like having trips to look forward to.

• You save gas money… aka food transportation and housing are paid for while gone. However, this pro plays on a comment I made above. When you feel personally responsible for the bottom line of a company the term “expense it” takes on another meaning, case in point the 3.5 inches of room my knees are currently enjoying.

• You get to stay in some pretty sweet hotels, at least in Asia. On the other hand, what gets me 5 star rooms and service in Asia would rent a dorm room in Europe.

• The food, the food is great! I tend to get treated to some of the best local restaurants and pastimes.

• Flier miles, obviously nice for vacations and future free upgrades.

Big Ben, London

With the pro’s always comes the con’s and there are a few noteworthy ones.

• Being away from home. Even though I have an incredibly understanding and supportive wife leaving her home is hard for many reasons many of which you can probably imagine.

• Traveling over weekends. Since many of my destinations are a day and a half away it doesn’t make sense to turn around in less than 5 days at the shortest. Not to mention that the cost of said plain tickets tend to be about 60% cheaper if you leave on a Saturday.

• Sights and sounds. You get to see and experience some really cool stuff but your either doing it alone (example, walking thru Paris) or with a business partner that only wants to keep you entertained.

• Jet lag. Even though I am getting pretty good at bouncing back I have quickly discovered new levels of exhaustion and mental fatigue related to jammed meeting schedules sandwiched by many hours of travel.  

• Racing/Training. Being off the bike for over a week, eating out every meal and rarely getting any type of physical activity while gone certainly puts a damper on my training regime.   

Paris

 Would I go so far as to say this job is glamorous? Not so much, but what I can say about this new job/career is that it’s a blessing to have been given the opportunity to enjoy my work, provide for my family and work for a company that honors God in everything they do.

Dresden, Germany

 For those of you that travel for work domestically or internationally I would be curious to hear your comments on the above and any interesting insights you may have to achieving balance in family, work, and recreation.

All for now but keep an eye out for the 2012 team and racing sneak peek due out soon.

All my best,

El Uruguayo