Every now and then I have to get on a plane and fly to another country. I don’t enjoy doing it. It’s cool to travel somewhere a couple of times and get a feel for another country and its people, but after awhile it become tedious and tiring. I never divulge where I’ve been when I’m talking to other people. The primary reason for this is that I am highly unimpressed by people who visit other countries for work—the exception being those select few who are executives. Travel is part of an executive’s job responsibilities. Other people will tell you they have to travel for their job—this is utter crap. Most people I know who fly to other countries don’t do so because they have to, they do so because they want to.
Many of my colleagues love to travel on the company’s dime. They also don’t have a lot to do in the office, so it’s a chance to get away and do something other than stare at a computer. For me, it’s just the opposite. I hate traveling because I have too many things that need to get done from my desk. When I’m forced to travel, my workload doubles because I’m not nearly as efficient on the road as I am at my desk. Also, with all of today’s communications tools, is there really a need to get on a plane? Like I’ve said, I’ve already developed the relationships in person, why do I need to continually meet face-to-face when we can just do a videoconference?
Half the time I am forced to travel with my colleagues. Usually this angers me even more because when we get to our destination I usually have a million things to do while some of my peers basically sit around all day. Don’t get me wrong, there are a couple of other individuals in my department who need to be there and are just as busy as myself. My favorite is the Baby Boomer who always tries to fly everywhere but has nothing to do when he gets there. He also loves to tell other people about how much traveling he has to do and how important his role is to the company. Give me a friggin’ break!
When someone tells me they visit a lot of other countries for work, I always have to suppress rolling my eyes. You know the person I’m talking about. They try to pretend that there so much more worldly than everyone else because they spent some time in some foreign land. These people annoy me. I also love it when someone speaks multiple languages and expects me to be impressed. I could really care less. This is not a sign of intelligence to me, it’s just a sign that you have too much free time on your hands.
Do me a favor if you’re a frequent flier, keep it to yourself. No one cares, and if they do, they obviously don’t travel for work. You’re not impressing anyone; instead, you’re just embarrassing yourself for those who are in the know. Sorry for the rant, but sometimes you just gotta let it out.