A working week is a mixture of scheduled and unscheduled meetings and activities, with the stretch between Monday and Friday going in the blink of an eye.. or lasting a lifetime. Surrounded by your peers and staff, everything is at hand with the creature comforts never far away. When you find yourself on an interstate business trip, everything is different. Surviving and thriving in this new environment will depend on your home base, how flexible your plan is, and whether you prioritise local immersion. Here’s how you can make the most of your interstate business trip.

Find the right home base

There are many things to pique your interest when travelling interstate, but we all crave the familiarity that comes with a home base. Requirements should include a space to work, to relax and a kitchen to keep yourself restored and revived. Serviced apartments in Melbourne provide a spacious and well-priced solution that balances the comfort of home, with the delight of an overnight stay. Remember to take into account the location and inclusions of your chosen home base, rather than simply finding the most affordable price on the market.

Flexible Schedule

Just like your week in the office has unexpected events, your clients have the same issues. It may turn out your meetings start later or earlier than scheduled, resulting in your allocated times shifting one way or another. While it’s always tempting to try and fill in every minute of your trip with meetings, you really need to leave enough time between them to cater for the unexpected. It’s also important to take time after the meetings to record all the necessary details, and perhaps reflect on your performance and the key actions that need following up. You may even find that these stolen moments or blocks of productivity allow you to establish some rigour or ideation that you didn’t have time for in your office.

Right tools for the job

Not many people feel they have mastered the art of packing, so you’re not alone. Ensuring you pack all your work materials, personal items and incidentals will cover your bases and keep you confident throughout your interstate trip. Phone chargers, laptop chargers, notepads and pens are often the things that are forgotten, so prioritise the tools that will maximize workflow. Take the time to think through your schedule a couple of days before you leave, and marshal all the necessary documentation and soft copy files - even the ones you don’t think you will need.

Become a local

Make sure you take the time to actually look around the town you are staying in and experience some of its charms. There is any number of local travel guides offering ideas on what to see and where to go, so what’s the harm in embracing these insider tips? Another win-win is to demonstrate an interest in the location to your clients in question. Perhaps ask them for ideas on what to see and experience, while building a strong rapport in the process. To make the most of the time you have, you can walk to your meetings to take in the sights on the way. While it’s great to relax in your serviced apartment at the end of the day, there is no reason you can’t venture out and experience some of the city’s evening bustle. Pretty soon you really will feel like a local and will have a greater experience still on your next visit.

An interstate business trip can be just that, or you can make it an immersive adventure that blends work and play. When you return to the office, regardless of how it went with your meetings, you will be glad you gave yourself a great head start.