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Let’s face it, business travel doesn’t exactly set the stage for truly experiencing WHERE you are. For example, a recent expedition I set out on went as follows:
Woke up in San Francisco. Flew to Minneapolis. Had meetings. Next day flew to Chicago. Had meetings. Next day flew to Los Angeles. Had meetings. Had more meetings. Flew back to San Francisco. By Friday– I could have been in a moon crater and I would only have about a 50% chance of knowing where I was.
And this is a dilemma for someone who actually likes to travel, such as myself.
So this week I had a wake-up-fly-to-Boston-have-meeting-have-another-meeting-then-fly-back-to-New York-in-one-day experience. Business, of course, plays center stage of the theatre production called My Crazy City Career, but here’s the supporting character in this performance: Adventure.
I’d never been to Boston! I really wanted to experience Boston!! New Place!!! New People!!!! New Adventure!!!!!
Was I able to do any of this?
No. Not really.
But I did what I could in the small windows (um. literally.) I had. Here are my tips to experiencing a new place when you have little time to do so:
1. When entering the New Place, open your eyes! If you’re flying, look up from your laptop or away from the tv screen and check out this New Place. An aerial view is a great way to get a sense of a New Place. (Boston! My face was basically glued to the little oval window soaking in the amazing historic-looking estates in the outskirts of the city, the white or brick church steeples, the purposeful boats in the harbor, the crazy zig-zagged streets of the city, etc.) If you don’t get to this New Place by air and you’re on a train, in a car, or perhaps arrive via beaming mechanism, my advice stands. Open your eyes and look around! (especially if you’re driving. good tip.)
2. In this New Place, be on the lookout for at least one detail that is A. unique to the location B. unique for you (something you see for the first time?). Really. Challenge yourself to spot just one thing, ONE THING, that is different from what you see in your “usual” day to day. And yes, I know, you’ve got a lot to do…very important things…blah blah blah. But…ONE THING. That’s all I’m asking for here. (In the Boston Logan airport I saw a row of white rocking chairs. So cool! Bringing a little bit of New England feel into the airport… well done!)
(photo by Matt Walker)
3. Take five minutes to relax yourself enough to receive this New Place. The architecture, the rhythms, the dialect, the food, the smell– receive it. Look, I know… you’ve got a Very Important Presentation you need to prepare for in your mind or a Very Important Meeting that needs to go “your way”… but to that I say this: relaxing enough to get yourself grounded where you are could actually help you to achieve success with whatever you’re there to accomplish. And taking a few deep breaths and noticing the life of a New Place can help you feel more alive in yourself (as opposed to feeling like a walking, flying, taxiing, laptop toting, smart phone addicted, Crazy City Career Zombie). (En route back to the Boston Logan airport, the taxi driver drove us along Newbury Street. Newbury Street!! Charming and astute architecture, trees lining the street, great feeling.) (*Sigh*) (*Smile*) (*return to checking emails*)
(This photo is not mine and doesn’t really capture what the street felt like to me…but it’s what I could find for now and shows a bit of the charm. Well, sort-of-but-not-really. Look, I don’t have time take an actual picture. Very Important Emails to be checked…)
4. Be Grateful. You have a job! You’re exploring new land! You’re getting out and about when otherwise you’d be cooped up in an office with office air and office chairs and office desks and office colors. While biz travel may add stress to your already stressful day, feel gratitude for at least one small moment. You’re alive. You’re doing your thing. You’re experiencing a New Place.
Safe travels and remember to (at least try to!) enjoy the show!
In fourth grade, the night before picture day, I went to my mom. “Mom, my bangs are too long.”
“Ok. We’ll make a hair appointment.”
“No, they’re too long now.” (I’ve always been more of a present moment sort of person.) (um… I think that may also be called impatient.)
“Well… I could try to…cut them…but they may not turn out so great…” (My mom, willing to be my accomplice on the many ridiculous adventures but all the while maintaining a fair level of practicality.)
“Great! Cut them! Yay!” (I totally got my way)
(Well, if I had wanted super short bangs that made me look like Audrey Hepburn — or so my mom said — then yes, I totally got my way.)
“Mom! What are you doing?!”
“Yeah, they are kind of short…”
True to form, I panicked and cried (clearly the emotional one in the family) and then we laughed. Nothing we could do now.
Fast forward to last weekend and my latest installment of Never Have I Ever.
I cut my own bangs.
Now, I must admit, I was a little scissor shy but I took a deep breath and figured, hey, it’s not picture day, I don’t actually care what the other “kids at school” think of me. More than likely, they wouldn’t even notice. (Of course, last time I got a haircut, 5 male colleagues commented on my hair. That was odd.) Plus, this week is promising to be packed full of stressful city-career chaos leaving no time to get a proper bang trim.
So, I cut my own bangs. Impatience lives on…
What do you think?
A friend of mine LOVES the game Never have I ever. For those who have never played, it’s generally a game played at a bar: The first person says “Never have I ever… taken off all my clothes and frolicked in a public fountain.” And then if anyone has actually done this, they drink. Then the next person says “Never have I ever…” Well, you get the idea. I guess the conclusion is that the more “adventurous” one is, consequently the more drunk one will get. (which makes sense… “drunk” and “adventure” can be rather synonymous.)
So, I’ve decided that, because I spend most of my time working the good city girl job, on the weekends I will do something I’ve never done, go somewhere I’ve never been, try something I’ve never tried. Big or small. Complex or simple. And most likely completely sober (much to my friend’s chagrin).
In short, I’ve decided to challenge myself to a game of “Never have I ever.”
Two weekends ago was when I first started this, I had never been to Half Moon Bay so I got in my car and drove there. First off, how great is the name? Half Moon Bay. So sensual and delectable. Second, it’s a small town– even the thought was reprieve from city stress. And even though it was a foggy, drizzly day, I decided to go anyway. I was in the mood for a peaceful journey and the impending rain would most likely keep people in the comforts of the indoors.
So, true to style, I headed outdoors.
And it was lovely. Calm. Misty. Cool. And Perfect for my first entry of Never Have I Ever…
