Joomla! site syndication http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting 2008-07-08T19:51:05+01:00 http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting/images/M_images/joomla_rss.png text/html 2004-07-07T11:54:06+01:00 http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting/Travel-Like-a-Consultant/Don-t-Check-Your-Luggage.html WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER CHECK YOUR LUGGAGE ON A BUSINESS TRIP Ok so this may seem like a silly issue that’s not worth your time - think again! My goal is not to just provide generic advice - there are many resources out there, which do just that - but real-life, practical tips in a field that’s challenging enough without the hiccups that abound when you’re on the road. 1.) LOSING IT! This is the scenario - you’re on your first consulting gig, you are all excited, you check in for your flight and figure hey! it’s so much easier to check my bag on these tiny planes with no overhead space. You have a connection to make in, let’s say, Chicago, and you don’t want to be worrying about your bags. You don’t want to do work - you’ll have plenty of that to do later on, you’ll catch a few z’s. You get to your final destination and guess what? They lost your luggage, and you have a presentation first thing tomorrow morning. Uhm…the catch? Your paperwork is in your bag…yeah, the one that you just checked, that’s right. Although avoiding the above may sound like common sense, it happens too often! I’ve seen people check their laptops too, which is something I understand even less. Make sure that you pack well - have your laptop within easy access (you have to take it out during security screening), only check your garments (if you have to check anything), and even then, have a garment bag you can put a spare set of clothing and underwear into (garment bags are easier to stow on the plane). It is best to keep your important work on a disk or a key chain USB storage device, and have a back up online in case that is lost (or if your laptop is lost/stolen). Online storage is fairly inexpensive and ensures that you are totally mobile - all your work can be accessed no matter where you are. 2.) STUCK IN TRANSIT! Ok, this is taken from painful personal experience so listen closely. I checked my bags on a flight with a connection. My first flight was significantly delayed, and I missed my connecting flight - the place I was going, however, was out of the way and that was the ONLY flight that particular airline offered that day. I had to be at my client’s however, at 8 a.m. sharp the next morning. Now, when it’s a new client, you do NOT want to regale them with tales of your travel woes, and so I boldly tried to rebook my flight. Well, that didn’t work so well, since the gate agent would NOT rebook me on a different flight without my luggage going with me. The new flight rules require that the luggage list and the passenger lists match i.e. the flight crew may choose to take your luggage off the plane if you’re not on it. Although you can rebook your flight on a different airline (and pay for a separate ticket, thus doubling your travel costs), you have to make separate arrangements for your luggage, which can be very difficult (due to security concerns). Again, your luggage is as good as lost for a few days which may make all the difference. The bottom line is to consider your travel arrangements and plan accordingly. As I mentioned above, online document storage, bringing garment bags with spare clothing, or simply packing light are very important. It is often difficult to pack lightly if you are gone for a two week span - which happened to me when I worked in California and commuted across the continent, which is where an apartment instead of a hotel room can be a better option. In any case, checking your luggage is not normally a very good idea, and if you do, be prepared for delays that often happen with air travel. text/html 2004-07-07T11:54:06+01:00 http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting http://consultantsonthego.com/consulting/Be-a-Consultant/Balancing-Consulting-and-Family-Life.html One of the absolutely most important issues you have to think about is - how will this affect my life? You may think that’s not important now, but trust me, how your family will react to your new career, and the changes that will affect them as well as yourself, Some questions to ask yourself (along with your significant others) are: 1.) Do I have enough money saved up to put me through the periods where I am not working/I am looking for a position. Emergency funds are especially important as a consultant. Most contracts allow your employer to terminate you at any time, while you still have to give them anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks advance notice if you want to quit. Make sure that you tailor your emergency fund based on your normal monthly expenditures - create a budget, track your expenses for a couple of months, and you will have a good ballpark of what your initial savings should look like (a good budget tracking sheet can be found here (link)). I would have at least 2 months worth of savings under my belt, although you can (if you’re a risk taker) gamble on the fact that if you’re making triple your normal salary, say $100/hour versus the $30/hour you made in your full-time job, you will save plenty of money once you get the job. The trick is, it’s sometimes difficult to land that first contract, but finding it is a full-time job in its own right, so you can’t always keep your old job while you’re looking. Be smart, plan ahead. Make sure your spouse is comfortable with the idea of a cyclic income. Make sure he or she is aware of what you’re getting into. More than one relationship fell apart from the stresses of long absences and fluid income cycles.