Carlsbad, Austin, and Houston this week.
This is actually a record for me even in pre-pandemic times. Three events in six days with three different companies. Keynote talks, strategy retreats, board retreats, brand development, and executive team performance is my focus for the next week.
I've heard a lot from executives lately about the tension of stress and joy of returning to business travel. Mainly stemming from feeling like untested expectations are unrealistic. When actually failing to reset habits is the true cause.
Here's how to handle returning to business travel…
Preparation Yes, it is going to take you far longer to pack and you will forget things but nothing that instacart or online delivery in your country can’t solve….
The real preparation you need to do is with those who work with you. Let them know how to contact you and who to talk to in your absence.
It is unrealistic to expect that those traveling can keep up with the deluge of texts, IM’s, Slacks, and emails. Cover their back. Help them out. Set rules for what to expect when from those traveling again. There won’t be the immediate responses that we have all grown accustomed to.
Reality Check Don’t go back to your old travel schedule. Travel will never be the same…Customer visits will never be the same… Conferences will never be the same. Ask everyone. How can we do this differently?
Customers are looking for new ways to interact. Customer Advisory Boards are the new powerhouse, do you have one? Let me know and I can share work I have been doing that transforms how your customers view you.
Building in fun Nope, I don’t mean cheesy team building. I mean laughing till you cry, hugging people ( if you both like to hug), being sarcastic if that’s ok in your country and company culture and finding ways to laugh at yourself. Work doesn’t have to be annoying and tedious and some of the toughest work assignments are made easier when you get to laugh along the way.
Find a common thing you and your team like to do together. Whether that is eating, sight seeing, Learning about the history of the city you are visiting or helping a local good cause.
We all have a lot of catching up to do. So whether you love or hate going out with those you work with, perhaps it is time to adopt some new habits.
Dawn Ringstaff, VP of Channel at Area 1 Security is a great role model for adopting new habits. As we say talking before 400 technology leaders gather for the Women of The Channel event tomorrow. Dawn shared how she has recently adopted a new habit of approaching anyone who is sat alone at a conference to ask if they really want to be alone or want to talk.
Imagine that. For every one person who found it hard before lockdown to socialize with strangers… there are ten times as many who find it hard today to initiate conversation and say hello.
Be like Dawn, approach someone sat alone and check if being on their own is a choice or if they would like to say hello.
Ask your team how they want to reconnect.
Meanwhile, you can never be too early to book into my calendar.
…I’ll be in Europe in July, and traveling very sporadically in June and August, so if you are thinking of a strategy retreat, conference, workshop, or event let me know now so you get your preferred dates on my calendar for 2022 and 2023!
If you want to read more about how to find new ways to communicate, check out Words That Work, Kogan Page, 2022, to learn more.
Dedicated to growing your business,
Val
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