The Pro's and Con's of Traveling for Work

I love my job and I love to travel so combining the 2 is sometimes a lot of fun. I get asked every single day if I like having to travel for my job and the answer is always "yes and no." So, I thought I would do a post on the good & bad of traveling for work.

First of all, I only travel once a month or once every 3-4 weeks. I always leave on a Monday morning and come back on Friday afternoon so my trips are always 4 nights and 5 days. So, I will start by saying I don't mind traveling once a month. If I had to do it more than that I don't think I would like it much. Here are the lists I have come up with of the pro's and con's:

Pro's:

-I have majorly racked up on airline miles and hotel points. I always fly Continental and always stay in any of the Hilton hotels. I have a TON of miles and points now. My hubby and I have actually taken almost completely free trips because of how many miles & points we had.

-I save money when I travel! Traveling for work means all your meals are paid for. So, I hardly have to spend any of my own money when I travel for work, unless I go shopping :) But all meals, drinks and gas are paid for by the company.

-I get some "me" time and a break from the day to day routine. Not that I need a lot of "me" time but sometimes it's nice to have a day or 2 to yourself and have a break from the stress of every day life at home. I miss my husband like crazy when I travel and sometimes I get a little home-sick but it is still nice to have a little time alone.

-Sometimes it has worked out for my husband to fly in to where I am to meet me and we can spend a weekend in the city or somewhere close by. I will work Monday-Friday and he will fly in on Thursday night then we have a mini vacation and come home on Sunday. This has been one of the biggest "perks"!

-I have gotten to see some really awesome cities and places that I would probably never see if it was not for this job. I love to travel but we tend to stick to tropical places or places in the South where our family is but because of my job I have gotten to see places ALL over the US! I would never plan a trip to places like Detroit, MI or Providence, RI but I have gotten to go to both because of my job. Nothing against those cities, but I would probably just not ever plan a vacation there. Plus, we don't have kids right now so it is fun to get to see and do so much right now because I know once we have kids that will alllll change :)

Now for the con's:

-Sometimes it is kind of lonely. Eating every meal alone, sleeping alone every night or going sight-seeing in the evenings alone gets a little old. There are so many times I have been places and wished my husband was with me to share it with.

-It is hard to get into a routine at home or commit to certain things. There are several things I want to do at home but the traveling gets in the way. The cake class I took was 4 weeks but I had to miss the 4th week because I was traveling. There is a boot camp I want to do but the sessions are 4 week sessions. I would have to miss 1 or 2 weeks. There are some photography classes I want to take but it is really hard to makeup a missed class and I would miss 1 or 2 weeks of the course.

-My diet suffers BIG TIME and the time changes always throw me off. Not for everyone, but for me, eating healthy while traveling is SO SO hard. I swear I always gain a few pounds when I travel. Just about everywhere I go there is a time difference. It is always just one or two hours different but it seriously throws me off and takes me the full week to get used to it. By the time I am adjusted, it is time to come back home then I am all messed up for a couple more days.

Here are all the places I have gotten to go, thanks to my job:
Lake Charles, LA
Birmingham, AL
Dallas, TX
Avalon, TX
Detroit, MI
Windsor, Canada
Tacoma, WA
Woods Cross, UT (SLC)- Hubby and I spent a few days in Park City after this trip.
Providence, RI- We spent a weekend in Boston and driving the Maine Coast after this trip.
Phoenix, AZ
Deerfield Beach, FL
Kansas City, MO
Hatfield, PA (Philladelphia) - We spent the weekend in NYC before this trip.
Benicia, CA (San Fran area)
Pomona, CA (LA area)- going here in 2 weeks!
Englewood, CO (Denver)
Theodore, AL
And more to come over the coming months....

So, there you have it...the good and bad of having a job where you have to travel some. I definitely recommend it, especially if you are single or don't have kids. But, it is definitely not for everyone but I am lucky to have my job and for the opportunities it has given me :)