by Eileen Roth
Finding the briefcase that best suits your needs is half the battle. Basic designs include hard suitcases, soft bags, and double-duty computer cases. To choose your briefcase, consider the weight and nature of what you carry (read on for a checklist). Leather briefcases look better than vinyl, but they also weigh more, especially if you’re looking at a combination laptop case/ briefcase. Here are some considerations in the briefcase debate:
Hard case: A hard exterior does a good job of protecting its contents from bumps and bends, and also provides a writing surface while you ride the train or perch in a chair at a tableless meeting. Most hard briefcases don’t come with any place for pens or pencils, so a small holder helps to keep them all together.
Need an immediate fix to keep your pens and pencils from floating all over your briefcase? Try a cardboard pen or pencil box or a resealable plastic bag.
Soft case: Usually equipped with sections and pockets to hold pens, pencils, files, and a pad of paper, soft cases have some organizational advantages. They’re generally lighter in weight, and many also come with a strap for wearing over your shoulder. Soft spots of the soft case: a more casual look (which may be just fine, depending on your profession), no handy writing surface, and the things inside can get banged and bent — especially if you overstuff the bag, which those soft walls can tempt you to do.
Computer case/briefcase: If you use a laptop outside of the office, you can benefit from combining your computer case and briefcase, which gives you just one thing to carry and one item to track during busy, high-mileage days. Here are features to seek:
•Padded laptop section with room for the power cord and cable lock.
•Briefcase section that holds file folders and writing pads and provides pockets for pens, pencils, and business cards.
•Pockets for disks and/or CDs.
•Slot for a CD drive if you need to exchange it with your floppy drive.
•Strong zipper closure that can be locked if necessary.
Some briefcases are specially designed for public-transport commuters, with external straps to hold a newspaper and an umbrella. After all, you always need the news, and you never know when the weather is going to turn to rain.
Keep a luggage tag with your business card on your briefcase. If someone else at the office, a meeting, or the airport has one that looks the same, you can easily identify yours without opening it. (Keep a business card inside your briefcase too, in case the luggage tag falls off.)
A power briefcase is targeted to the task at hand, so it shouldn’t be stuffed full of shoes or cosmetics or files from yesterday’s projects. Essentials to pack in your briefcase include
Datebook/organizer
Business cards
Two pens: One blue or black (for normal use), one red (for high-priority entries in your calendar and underlining as you read)
Six-inch ruler for (underlining as you read)
Highlighter
81/2-x-11-inch writing pad
A few spare file folders
Current project files
Customer/client files
Reference files
To Read File
Company or product literature
Optional add-ins include
Small stapler
Staple remover
Paper clips
Scissors
Sticky note flags
Rubber bands (to hold anything but paper)
You can buy plastic file folders to keep in your briefcase permanently for select papers from your To Read, To Discuss, To Do, and To Write Files. Alternatively, you can use a large plastic expandable wallet with separate sections to keep these papers organized.
Taking Control of Your Commute
Many of us need to get from here to there and back again every day of the working week. Commuting, whether literally or virtually, is a contemporary reality. It can contribute to or sap your productivity, depending on your approach.
Commuting options
Your best commuting choice involves a weighted equation of variables, from availability of your own wheels to proximity to public transportation routes, traffic conditions, workplace needs, and personal style. To sort them out, use the following list to consider your priorities. Is it time for a change?
Public transportation (train, subway, bus): You don’t have to be an environmentalist to know that taking the bus, subway, or train wherever you want to go saves gas over driving. You can be a realist and realize it saves you money too. You also gain time, as you switch your attention from the life-or-death task of driving to reading the morning newspaper or a book, working on your laptop, or catching up on the day’s project or client files.
Car: If you drive, check different routes and do a time/benefit analysis based on actual traffic flow at the time you need to go. The most direct route may also be the busiest and take the longest. Expressways may move faster because they have no stoplights, but not if they’re clogged with other cars with the same idea.
Technology developers are starting to sell devices to help drivers plot the best routes based on time and traffic conditions. Stay tuned, and drive carefully.
Carpool/vanpool: You can combine the best of public transport with private destinations by joining a carpool or vanpool. In addition to saving gas, you can relax when you don’t have to drive and use the time to socialize or discuss business.
If you carpool or vanpool with business associates, beware of turning every morning commute into a morning meeting. You don’t want to be mentally drained before you even see your desk.
Bike: If you possess cycle-savvy, biking to work can give you the best of many worlds, as you double up your commute with a workout and morning wakeup. Bicycles can carry bags behind the seat or mounted on a rack over the rear tire, baskets in the front or back, and even hold water bottles on the frame. Look for the accessories you need to turn your bike into an eco-friendly commuting machine.
Just don’t go: Telecommuting
If you work at home, travel time is about 30 seconds — so do you even need to go to the office? Telecommuting presents some tangible benefits: no interruptions, no set schedule, no travel, and you get to wear what you want. The challenges include keeping on top of your time, working effectively with your team or clients, and perhaps convincing your boss.
Variables to factor into your telecommuting decision include
Commute time: Can you save a lot of time by not commuting to work? If so, consider staying home.
Office appointments and meetings: Do you need to be at the office to see clients or attend meetings? Running back and forth may be more hassle than staying based at the office.
Delegating that needs to be done face-to-face: If you oversee projects or frequently delegate tasks to staff, you may find face-to-face contact is more effective than telecommuting.
Technical and technological resources: Do you need equipment, peo-ple, or books available at the office and not accessible from home? Can you borrow the books or equipment or talk to the people by phone or e-mail?
Subtle interpersonal factors: Will physical distance keep you out of mind at promotion time? Are you comfortable and productive working alone? Does your boss actually believe you work as hard as you do?
I suggest two popular ways to strike a telecommuting compromise:
Schedule all your office obligations for one day a week and work the remaining four from home.
Choose one day each week to stay home and dedicate to your high-focus projects, and then head for the office the other four.
Working and Playing from the Car
Whether or not you use the car for your daily commute, the horseless carriage may take you shopping and on errands, to meetings and appointments, to movies and meals out. Hanging out with friends, heading for the beach or gym, and driving children to and from school or activities all involve getting in the car. In fact, your car may seem like
a second home or office, which means you need systems to make the space work in your favor without storing a warehouse’s worth of stuff in your vehicle.
Functional necessities: Car checklist
Your car may take you far from the comforts of home, so you want it to be well stocked. A few supplies will make your car trips smoother, safer, and more productive. Make sure to put these supplies neatly in their places, however, rather than strewing them over passenger seats or piling them on the floor.
Glove compartment
The glove compartment is a great built-in way to contain basic car supplies. Bear in mind that you don’t want to try to open your glove compartment and sort through things while you drive, so if you know that you’ll want a cassette or your change purse on the road, pull it out before you start. Some things you may want to store in your glove compartment for easy access include
Manuals for car, sound system, and electronics
Tool for unlocking tires
Two-sided change purse for meters and tolls (quarters on one side, dimes and nickels on the other, about $3 total)
Small travel package of tissues
Pocket flashlight
Auto mileage book (for business write-offs)
Receipt envelope (for business expense reports)
Cassettes or CDs (optional)
Scissors (optional; great for trimming stray threads)
Driver’s seat area
Some items you want right at your fingertips while you drive, such as sunglasses, a pad to jot down quick ideas, some change, and perhaps your mileage log. Some cars come with a divided section between the two front seats to hold such items. If this organizer is optional when purchasing a new car, I recommend you get it to keep things neat and minimize driving distractions. Keeping the following items in your driver’s seat area can make your ride nicer.
Sunglasses
Garbage can or bag
Water bottle (in hot weather)
3-x-5-inch notebook or small padfolio (optional)
Pen/pencil (optional)
Small tape recorder (optional)
Cardboard sun visor (optional)
Who knows what aspect of driving sparks ideas, but have you ever noticed how many genius thoughts come to mind on the road? Don’t lose them! Keep a small pad of paper or minitape recorder on hand to record your brainstorms while you wait for the light to change. A hard-backed pad, sometimes called a “padfolio,” is easier to write on than a soft notebook.
Nothing messes up a car more than trash, so be sure to have a place in which to stash yours. Auto supply stores stock different types of trash cans to sit on the floor, some with built-in cup holders.
Because I don’t have a front seat storage section in my car, I use a small trash can on the floor instead. There, you’ll find my sunglasses, tissues, scissors, pen and pencil, pocket flashlight, and auto mileage book all nicely contained and easy to access.
Most people don’t wear sunglasses in the house, so where do you suppose you usually reach for them? That’s right, in the car. So why not just keep them there so you don’t have to search the house every time you leave? You can stop by your vehicle to grab them if you’re hitting the street directly or if someone is picking you up. Or just keep a spare pair in the hall table drawer.
Trunk
The trunk is the place for anything big or bulky, as well as the easiest-access spot in the car. Why wrench your back reaching for or wrestling with something on a seat or the car floor if you can put it in the trunk instead? On the other hand, the trunk should not become a permanent storage site simply because it’s out of sight.
A collapsible crate is a great addition to your car trunk, whether you’re an apartment-dweller toting things upstairs or just generally have a lot to carry from the car. The crate may fold up small, but it makes a big difference. An alternative to the collapsible crate is a collapsible shopping cart or just a big canvas bag with handles into which you can throw all the bags from your errands and carry them with one hand.
Round out your trunk take-alongs with emergency equipment: flares, a blanket, tennis shoes, energy bars, water, some spare cash, and, in winter, tire chains, snow scrapers, sand and/or salt, and a shovel, and you’re good to go.
Electronics
Cars are increasingly electronic machines, both in terms of basic functions and a growing array of gadgets you can get to turn your auto into a home office, rolling entertainment center, or smart vehicle with extra safety and navigational capabilities. The overriding concern with any electronics in your car, whether a cell phone, CB radio, or video, is that they not distract from driving. Some gadgets that may make working or playing from the car better include
A port to connect a handheld computer with a cell phone.
Wireless connections to the Internet.
A dashboard CD/CD-ROM player, digital address book, and voice- activated phone system.
Wireless concierge systems that do everything from looking up directions to making dinner reservations to locating and unlocking your car.
A night vision system that sees farther ahead than your headlights.
A system that notifies local authorities when your air bags are deployed.
Rear-seat entertainment systems for videos and games.
Extra goodies can turn your automobile into a magnet for car thieves. Purchase an antitheft device, whether a car alarm, a tracking device, or both, to prevent thieves from going mobile with your property.
And don’t forget the old-fashioned cell phone and even older-fashioned CB radio for calling for help when you’re stuck, lost, or wondering about road conditions.
Do use a cell phone to make driving safer by carrying it for emergency calls when you need help on the road. Don’t diminish the safety of your driving by talking on the phone while behind the wheel, which experts estimate to be more dangerous than driving drunk. If you must make a call, pull over.
Appointment accessories and protocol
If you work out of your car, doing sales, making calls, or attending meetings, you can turn your wheels into a rolling office with a few tricks and tools.
Equipment: Taking info with you
A number of manufacturers make special organizers just for people who work from the car. From a simple file wallet that you can easily carry around, to a plastic box for hanging files that you can leave in the trunk, to various other formats and features, there are many ways to keep files, literature, and everything you need to be effective organized neatly in the car.
You may want to buy a minidesk that includes a table for writing or working on a laptop and even has a built-in section for hanging files, as Figure 21-1 shows. A small tape recorder is great for taking notes as you drive away from a meeting. You may wish to explore some of the electronics discussed in the previous section for help storing addresses, getting directions, hooking up to the Internet, and so forth while you’re in the car.
Figure 21-1: An organizer for working from the car.
Scheduling appointments: Making use of distance and time
When you’re on the road, each appointment has higher stakes due to the time you’ve invested getting there, so make sure your drive time pays off. If you’re in sales, for example, and you spend a lot of time on the road, your productivity depends on making calls to clients efficiently. Here are some tips to speed you on your way:
Try to make all your appointments in the same geographical area — one suburb today and another tomorrow. Be flexible enough to allow for last-minute changes.
Confirm appointments the day before. You don’t want to drive an hour only to find out the person forgot to write the meeting down and isn’t available.
Determine if you want a morning, afternoon, or mealtime appointment before you call to arrange it. You may choose a lunchtime slot for a social, get-to-know-you appointment. If you plan to make a formal presentation, a morning meeting may be better than the afternoon,
when the contact has more on his or her mind.
Plan your appointment. Decide what topics you want to cover and what materials you need to have with you. Schedule follow-ups after the appointment, and be sure to document what happened in a contact- management program or file immediately after leaving.
Trips for Business or Pleasure
Making tracks out of town can be very fun and productive after you’re under way, but getting going can bring even a seasoned traveler down. Whether your trip is an overnight jaunt or a monthlong vacation, equip yourself by getting organized out of the gate.
Every trip needs a plan, and you can make yours fast with our old friends the Five Ws plus How. Each time you prepare to set out, sit down with a piece of paper and jot down the answers to these questions.
Why go? Is your trip for business? For fun, adventure, hedonistic pleasure, a romantic getaway, to see the world? To visit family or friends? For research? Answering this question will help you sort out your travel plan priorities.
What type of trip is it? A conference, trade show, meeting, vacation? Analyzing what you’ll be doing can help answer some of the other questions, especially what to pack.
Where to go? Do you want to travel to your client’s headquarters, or have them meet you at your manufacturing plant? Is visiting Grandma at her house always best, or might she love to meet you at the beach? Should the attractions be tailored to adults, children, or both? Do you want to stay at a hotel or someone’s house?