A new kind of business trip
This week I experienced a whole new side of the meaning of business trip, one that has left me utterly and completely exhausted. I had had my fair share of business trips before now, your typical board room meeting(s) followed by a late dinner with the client and early morning flight home. I have found those trips to be quite tiring as well, but mostly because I'm out of my routine and for some reason flying makes you tired. Why is that? All you do is sit.
This trip, however, was a whole new experience. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend one of our program events as staff, which is nothing like the corporate meetings I was so accustomed to. It was in Florida, which couldn't be better during December for this Minnesota gal, and I was looking forward to a change of pace and a little time out of my dull office routine.
What I didn't realize was what I was in for. I was on the go from sunrise to long after sunset every day. No joke. I had never realized how much goes into a single event (which in this case was actually multiple events over the course of 3 days). Gift bags, airport transfers, unusual meal preferences, activity logistics, room deliveries for 100 people...our list was never-ending. Just as soon as I felt like we made progress, our list doubled. I spent half a day checking each of our VIPs' rooms prior to their check-in to make sure every light bulb worked, remote control functioned, view was appropriate, drapes were just right, and overall cleanliness was acceptable. I had no clue that people even worried about that kind of thing. Oh, to be important.
By the time we sent off the last of the departures to the airport, I was beat. More tired than I have ever been, I think. My colleague and I sat outside by the pool for a late lunch and enjoyed a little sunshine - the first I had seen in 5 days. I soaked in the warmth as much as I could, knowing I was headed back to the tundra (which surprisingly isn't so bad yet).
While I was really glad that I had agreed to go on this trip, I have a new appreciation for this type of work. I used to be jealous of the staff that got to travel to all these amazing places for events of this kind. Now I know that they often work 16+ hour days and rarely get to enjoy any of it like the actual guests do.
I did enjoy meeting several of my clients that I had worked with all year through email/phone and schmoozing with a few big wigs. I also felt like this kind of work, as tiring as it was, was right up my alley. I'm hoping I get to do a little more of this in the future, though I'll be content to spend most of my time at my desk in Minnesota.
Here's a poor quality photo from my phone, taken while running from one place to the next, just to prove I was actually there. :)
This trip, however, was a whole new experience. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend one of our program events as staff, which is nothing like the corporate meetings I was so accustomed to. It was in Florida, which couldn't be better during December for this Minnesota gal, and I was looking forward to a change of pace and a little time out of my dull office routine.
What I didn't realize was what I was in for. I was on the go from sunrise to long after sunset every day. No joke. I had never realized how much goes into a single event (which in this case was actually multiple events over the course of 3 days). Gift bags, airport transfers, unusual meal preferences, activity logistics, room deliveries for 100 people...our list was never-ending. Just as soon as I felt like we made progress, our list doubled. I spent half a day checking each of our VIPs' rooms prior to their check-in to make sure every light bulb worked, remote control functioned, view was appropriate, drapes were just right, and overall cleanliness was acceptable. I had no clue that people even worried about that kind of thing. Oh, to be important.
By the time we sent off the last of the departures to the airport, I was beat. More tired than I have ever been, I think. My colleague and I sat outside by the pool for a late lunch and enjoyed a little sunshine - the first I had seen in 5 days. I soaked in the warmth as much as I could, knowing I was headed back to the tundra (which surprisingly isn't so bad yet).
While I was really glad that I had agreed to go on this trip, I have a new appreciation for this type of work. I used to be jealous of the staff that got to travel to all these amazing places for events of this kind. Now I know that they often work 16+ hour days and rarely get to enjoy any of it like the actual guests do.
I did enjoy meeting several of my clients that I had worked with all year through email/phone and schmoozing with a few big wigs. I also felt like this kind of work, as tiring as it was, was right up my alley. I'm hoping I get to do a little more of this in the future, though I'll be content to spend most of my time at my desk in Minnesota.
Here's a poor quality photo from my phone, taken while running from one place to the next, just to prove I was actually there. :)
OMG I totally just left a long message and the dang thing isn't letting me submit. To summarize: you're awesome, so cool that you get to travel, must've been an exhausting trip, this type of work is totally up your alley, but don't do it too often, cuz we'll all miss you!
ReplyDeleteAlso, noticed your posts don't show up on my main page. I have to actually go into your blog to see if you've posted anything new. What's up with that? have a feeling mine is doing the same thing, because I've posted a bunch of new stuff lately and have gotten 1 comment...maybe that's because people find my posts lame, but who knows. Just sayin'...
Sounds very exhausting but glad you liked it overall. Hope you get to do more of it (but not too much for your sake!) in the future! Oh and I think there is something proven about the change in air pressure and oxygen that makes people sleepy during/after flying. At least that's my excuse!
ReplyDelete