If you’re someone who is travelling for business the first time or the tenth time, it’s vital to know what to take with you. Forgetting something important could be a disaster, especially if you forget your passport or an important document for your meeting in another country!
To help you avoid any disasters and pitfalls, we’re going to tell you exactly what you need to take with you. Of course, it completely depends on the type of trip and how long you’re going for, in terms of the miscellaneous items of clothing you take. We’re not going to cover that kind of thing, because we’re sure you can figure out how much clothing to take with you! No, we’re going to focus on the business side of things, because let’s face it, you’re travelling for business, not pleasure.
The problem with business travel is that everything can be a little unorganised. You’re going to end up in a boardroom you don’t know, sat on designer office chairs, and discussing your business back home with someone who might be a total stranger. It could be about a merger, it could be about staff training, it could be about anything! For that reason, you need to be relaxed, you need to be organised, and you need to not forget anything!
Do Not Forget The Following:
• Travel documents - This includes passport, confirmations, any visas you might need, as well as travel insurance documents (just in case). If you have a frequent flyer card, remember to pack that also
• Driving license
• Your business itinerary, including addresses and telephone numbers of anyone you are meeting with during your trip
• Emergency contact details
• Business cards to hand out when networking
• Cash and credit/debit cards, don’t forget the company credit card if necessary
• Phone and charger
• Laptop and charger
• Plug adapters for use in other countries
• Power bank for topping up charge
• Power extension cord
• Any laptop accessories you may need, e.g. USB mouse, keyboard, etc
• Any memory cards or USB flash drives you may need
• Any business documents and handouts you need
• Neck pillow and eye mask for flight comfort
• Clothes, including leisure and business-wear
• Toiletries
• Umbrella
These are the essentials for any business trip, and you should pack it all away in a sleek-looking case, which screams ‘I’m travelling for businesses!
Storage Whilst Travelling
It’s important to keep documents safe, but also secure. When you’re travelling, the risk of theft or loss of information is much higher, and for that reason, it’s important to look into office storage ideas, which aren’t static, e.g. cloud storage. Keep everything backed up somewhere safe, e.g. in your emails which are logged out on your laptop, just in case it is stolen. You should also ensure someone back in the office has access to the information you might need for any presentations or discussions, just in case you have a problem accessing them yourself.
In terms of paper documents, try and keep these to a minimum. It’s often the case that you can print documents out when you arrive in your destination, having kept them on a USB memory stick or in your emails. This cuts down the chances of them being lost or stolen, especially if they contain sensitive information. Office storage solutions don’t have to be about cabinets, they can be about technological methods too!
Office Furniture You May Need
It could be the case that you’re hosting an event or meeting and you need certain types of office furniture to use on the day. You could look into office furniture hire in that case, which would give you the temporary solution you’re looking for. Simply search for ‘office furniture near me’ to explore your options.
At the end of the day, business travel is about organisation and second-guessing what you might need. If you’re not travelling far, picking up something you’ve forgotten isn’t going to be a huge problem, but it will still take up time that you might not have. If you’re travelling overseas, finding items could be an issue, and is going to cause you extra stress too.
List making might not be your thing right now but in terms of not forgetting anything important, it’s vital!
Have you travelled for business in the past? If so, have we forgotten anything vital on our list? Share your ideas and let’s make sure that nobody ever forgets anything on a business trip again!