Fellow of the American Psychological Association, Media Psychologist, and Author
Memoir Writing, Blogging, and Ghostwriting​
Weekly Doses of Pop-up Psych
We all make cringey mistakes and deserve to move on, rather than feel confused or regretful after an icky social situation. Each week, I will dissect a murky social, life cycle, or pop culture topic to help you understand, learn, and move on. As a former academic, I am a super-picky consumer of research (and you should be too) as well as the content I create and share, so those new solutions, data and/or additional resources have certainly met my approval.
Five Tips to Make Traveling Suck Less
I’ll never forget the sweet, young couple that I sat next to on a flight from Cancun, Mexico to Philly. I was coming home from a yoga retreat in Tulum and they were returning from Cancun, where they celebrated their recent college graduation. It was their first trip out of the country and they shared that they got very overwhelmed at the process of going through customs on the way into Mexico. My motherly instincts kicked in and offered to help, which they welcomed. I gave them a quickie course on how to fill out the declaration forms and talk to the customs officers, while they followed my lead.
I remember that back in the day before 9/11, you could carry on large bottles of liquids, show up at the gate ten minutes before the flight (and still board), and meet people directly at the gate, instead of waiting on the other side of security. Unfortunately, travel regulations have changed to limited liquids, baggage restrictions, as well as x-ray scanners and random pat downs.
Traveling Doesn’t Have to Suck
Admittedly, the process has become a pain in the tush, but definitely worth the hassle if it means being somewhere amazing, spending time with people you love, or attending an event. You can either bite the bullet and do it or not. When traveling with kids, you are teaching them the process, with a few pro tips on getting them there while staying sane.
Make traveling suck less by dressing comfortably.
I’ll never forget when I caught a flight to Santorini from Athens and saw the beautiful, young European women running to catch their flights in stilettos. I hope in my next life I can be that woman, but in this one, I need sneakers. Airports and train stations have lots of standing and walking. Then, you are sitting for long periods of time during the trip, so wear whatever makes you feel comfortable. I have this great pair of loose fitting black pants, with deep pockets that are my travel go-to’s (unfortunately they have been discontinued or I would post the link).
Make traveling suck less by getting to the airport or train station extra early.
Have you ever arrived at a train station/airport later than anticipated that you almost missed your trip? Allow extra time for everything. You never know when you will get in a long line for luggage, security, the restroom, food, or for anything else you need. It’s very stressful getting there on the latter side and having to wait in such long lines that you don’t get to do anything else before the trip. It’s better to sit around bored for an hour with extra time than begin a trip panting, hungry, and not having everything you need for several hours.
Make traveling suck less by following the rules.
Don’t become the poster child for a Netflix series on bad airport decisions. It’s really tempting to try to sneak something from one place to another. However, keep in mind that you and your property will be x-rayed so traces of anything suspicious will be torn apart. When traveling with anything beyond books, laptops, toiletries, and clothes, stick to the guidelines for the air or rail carrier.
Make traveling suck less by staying hydrated.
Flying dehydrates us, so start drinking water the day before the trip. The last thing you want to do is be dehydrated to the point where you feel headaches, muscle cramps, nausea, or vomit. Drink extra water when consuming alcohol. Bring your own empty water bottle to the airport. It needs to be empty to go through security, but most airports and train stations have filling fountains. The airports and train stations sell bottled water, but it’s expensive.
Make traveling suck less by anticipating delays.
Delays are beyond your control. If you anticipate delays, you won’t be disappointed. Delays happen in all forms like sitting at the gate for hours or on a blocked train/plane. Give yourself an extra day or two when you have something time sensitive like a cruise, conference, retreat, or other event that is hard to miss. Thankfully, most trains and airplanes now have outlets to keep electronics charged, so you don’t have to bring as much to do or worry about your devices running out of juice.
What are your best travel tips?
Please shoot me an email jb@joannebroder.com to share something I might have missed!
Hi, Beautiful Readers and thank you for reading this! I'm Dr. Joanne Broder, Media Psychologist, Author, and Fellow of the American Psychological Association. Please consider me to help you write your memoir, blogs, speeches, e-books, as well as coach you on your dissertation or thesis. Click here so we can connect!