By Mike Stanton-Rich
I’ve got this friend; we’ll call him Bob, because that’s hisname. He works for a global company with offices all over theworld. They sent him to Japan a few years ago so that he couldbe closer to his accounts. They sent wife and family with him,are spending all kinds of money to keep them here, and thenproceeded to put Bob on the road (or in the air, in reality).
Bob is a professional road warrior. He gets home a couple ofweekends a month, greets his boys, asks a few questions, andthey proceed to laugh at him and say something like: “That wasstupid! If you actually lived in Japan, you might know theanswer to that.” Bob is not amused.
But Bob knows they are right. Technically, he spends more timein Thailand and China that he does Japan. And I suspect that hehas gotten more sleep in a business class seat every month thanhe has in his spacious apartment in Japan. Mrs. Bob is notamused.
Given the circumstances, the Bob’s have learned to adjust. Bobmakes more money than he ever has in his life. Mrs. Bob spendsmore money than she has ever has. And the little Bob’s are in agreat school, and get anything they want. The Bob Family appearsto be perfectly normal because many of their peers have the sameexact story.
Bob has learned some tricks of the trade and even wrote themdown for a guy who was about to take on a similar job inAustralia (which in reality means all of Asia).
Here are a few to entertain you:
Buy a good back pack and leave the brief case at home- A briefcase is easier to steal or lose in a foreign country, plus ittakes up one hand. Put the backpack on your shoulder and thatleaves the traveler’s hands free for pulling a suitcase, andcarrying another item.
Never exchange foreign currency-it takes too much time, youalways lose money, and you will be coming to that country soonanyway. Bob keeps five or six envelopes in his backpack that herotates through his wallet depending on his travel plans.
Get an iPod- if you are going to spend 80% away from your home,might as well bring your entire music collection with you. InBob’s case, he has a different play list for every trip. He saysthat his reason for buying an iPod came home to him in Thailandafter sitting in a cab for fifteen minutes with a driver wholiked weird string music with chimes. Never again Bob proclaimed.
Buy some melatonin- Bob is not a doctor, but he thinks like one.He will give you a prescription based on your height, weight andnumber of time zones you will be crossing in a day. He says hesleeps like a baby and never feels jet lag. Other road warriorswho consider him a genius have adopted his methods.
Keep all of your computer gear organized for the trip you aremaking- this is real important since the only way youcommunicate with your family and your work is by email andinstant messenger. You should know how to hook up every phoneline, wireless modem and power cord for the country you are in.Bob offended Mrs. Bob on their anniversary when he didn’t gethis computer hooked up in time for some late night dirty talk byinstant messenger.
That brings me to his last advice to the guy about to take a newjob:
Keep pictures of wife and family updated regularly with adigital camera (that may be the only way you see them thisweek)- this is a sad commentary on the life of a road warrior.This is not a normal existence by any stretch of the word, andyet many people lead lives like this across the world.
Will Bob survive his job? Probably. He figures he can put upwith a lot of hassle for the money he’s making (though heconfesses that he plans to retire and do something else by thetime he’s 50). Will Family Bob survive? Probably. They have gota lot of grit and really don’t want to go back to the picketfence world of Pennsylvania.
Has their quality of life suffered? Bob, answered, “What qualityof life?
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