Organized for Travel
Are you a traveler? Would you like to be able to pack faster and ensure that you aren’t leaving anything behind? I have traveled frequently for both business and pleasure, and have discovered that there are a few tricks you can use for stress-free packing and travel.
1. Make a checklist of items that you would normally take on a trip. You may need several different checklists – one for each type of trip. For example, I have a Business Packing List, a Horse Show Packing List, a Dive Trip Packing List, and a Backpacking List. Leave extra space at the bottom of the list so you can add unique items that you will need for the current trip. Be sure to include a large plastic bag on the list for dirty clothes. Keep the master checklists on your computer in a travel folder and print a copy of the applicable checklist before you start packing. Update the master checklists, when your travel requirements change.
2. Start early. A few days before the trip, start gathering items you want to take with you in a staging area. Every time you think of something you want to take on your trip, add it to the pile in the staging area and check it off your packing list. If you need to wash, Iron, or mend an item, you have time to do so, and then add the item to the staging area.
3. Review and assemble. The day before the trip, compare the items in the staging area with your checklist. Gather the remaining items on the checklist. Important – do not put anything in the suitcase until everything on the checklist is in the staging area. When you are ready to pack, assign everything a home and use a similar arrangement scheme on all your trips. For example, I always put underwear and socks in the font lower pocket, phone charger in the front top pocket, pants inside to the left, shirts inside to the right, and ditty bag in the top middle. If your luggage has several pockets or dividers, you probably won’t need additional bags to hold like items, but if your suitcase is one, big space, you may want to use bags to group similar items so you can find them easily.
4. Living on the road. When traveling, if you are on the move and not able to unpack your suitcase, you can still keep the contents in order. Put dirty clothes in the plastic bag you brought and maintain clean items in their assigned places in your suitcase. If you pull something from the bottom of the suitcase, take a moment to ensure that remaining items are still in their assigned places. If you have the opportunity to wash clothes while on the road, fold items and place them in the same places as when you first packed.
Travel can sometimes be stressful, but if you take a few minutes to plan and organize your suitcase, you will have what you need at your fingertips.
An example of a business packing list is shown below. Happy travels!
| Dress shoes | Ditty | ||
| Dress socks/hose | Tea | ||
| Workout shoes | Snacks | ||
| Workout socks | Medication | ||
| Casual pants | Phone charger | ||
| Dress pants | Sunglasses | ||
| Belt | Watch | ||
| Shirts | Passport | ||
| Jackets | Hair dryer | ||
| Jewelry | Brush | ||
| Workout shorts | Book | ||
| T-shirts | Cash | ||
| Underwear | Travel papers, itinerary | ||
| Gloves | Name tag/badge | ||
| Pajamas | Umbrella | ||
| Dirty clothes bag | |||
| Bite guard | |||
| Maps | |||
| Plane tickets | |||
| Computer | |||
| Briefcase |
