After working for an airline for five years (four of which were at an airport, and one of which required me to commute weekly) and backpacking Europe for the last five months, I’d like to consider myself qualified to be an expert traveler. 

I developed a little system after a lot of trial and error, so I thought I’d share my secrets.

Simplify Security

Don’t make airport security any more of a hassle than it already is. 

Wear slip-on shoes and a belt that won’t set off the metal detector. Better yet, keep the belt off until going through security, so that way you won’t have to sacrifice style points for function.

Keep all liquids in a shaving kit that can be easily identified in the security line. In addition, keep your laptop separate as well. I also keep a second, smaller shaving kit in my bag for all my electronics (iPod, camera battery, USB, etc) cables. And when you get home, re-stock your shaving kit right away so it’ll be ready for your next trip.

Carry-on only

Unless you’re on an international flight and away for more than a month, don’t check your baggage.

Keep it simple with a single carry-on bag. Invest in a quality roller bag for extended business travel; I suggest a Travelpro bag (what we, in the industry, refer to as the Original 22). Mine has never failed. For business day trips, I take only my Roots laptop bag (seen below).

For pleasure trips, I’ll choose a small leather duffle. And while backpacking in Europe, I bought a Deuter bag that satisfied the strict carry-on requirements for European low cost carriers such as Ryanair and EasyJet.

Dress in layers (and be smart about it)

This one is simple. It’s easier to take a layer off than it is to find something to put on. Nuff said.

Here are my top three tips-within-a-tip:

• Pack smart and have a strategy. I place everything out on my bed and visualize the entire trip – everything from whether I’ll be going out at night, to that early breakfast meeting. And only pack what you need.
• Embrace wrinkle-free! I hate ironing and only do it when I absolutely have to (which is too often as it is), but well designed, wrinkle-free clothes have taken half the hurt of out ironing for me.
• You can just keep your coat off until past security, but instead, I’ll wear a warmer hoodie or sweater, which are not required to be removed at security.

NEXUS means you’re up next

Invest in a NEXUS card if you travel between Canada and the States often. It’s a simple process and cheap option ($50 for 5 years) for eligible Canadian and American citizens who travel frequently. Now with Obama and Harper’s Beyond The Border shared parameter plan signed, the NEXUS program will see even further benefits.

This system works like this: US airports have a “preferred line” at TSA security check points for cardholders and airline crews. In addition, cardholders can use iris scanners to bypass any long lines at US Customs pre-clearance facilities at major Canadian airports. This process can save you anywhere between 15 and 60 minutes.

NEXUS cardholders are also automatically eligible for the US Global Entry program at all US ports of entry. I used this option between London and San Francisco a few weeks ago and it worked flawlessly.

Knowledge is power

Airports are busy places. They can be confusing for people who don’t travel often, and even trip up the most seasoned travelers at times. But the fun doesn’t stop there. External, uncontrollable factors such as traffic and weather can change things at a moments’ notice.

That’s why the first thing I do when I walk into an airport is check the flight information display screens (FIDS) for recent gate changes or updated departure times.

Keep in mind that all airports are different – some keep FIDS outside of the secured area, while others will only show this information once you’ve gone through security. If you don’t see the information right away, head through security as soon as possible, and you will most likely find the information that you are looking for on the other side. Most airports in Europe, for example, don’t assign gates until approximately 30 minutes prior to boarding – so if you’re in Europe and you don’t see your flight, don’t fret.

BONUS TIP: Make use of that status card

Many credit card programs, or airline and hotel loyalty programs have great perks when traveling. Everything from lounge access to fast-track security and boarding lines. I use my American Express card to purchase everything from gas and groceries to clothing, which gives access a number of airline lounges when I travel. Virtually every airline offers a similar program – Air Canada’s Aeroplan, United’s Milage Plus, and American’s AAdvantage to name a few. So choose a program that works best for your region, carrier and travel habits.

That’s it!

Hopefully these travel tips help you “fly” through the airport next time you travel.

-Connor

We’ve seen this for a while – it’s not a new story. It’s the beginning of an end. Here is why I think that it was a number of startups and a series of mistrials and tribulations, and not a Fortune 500 company, that really led to RIM’s demise.

We’ve seen it in it’s messaging. We’ve seen it in its advertising. For many years now, BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) has been considered RIM’s most valuable asset. But the problem lies within the proprietary messaging service’s very name – as the name suggests, BBM, in its current form, works only with RIM-built devices. This has led to a number of Silicon Vally garage-starters to enjoy the first mover advantages in the space. Of course, having Apple develop iMessenger did not help either.

Recognizing a need for cross-platform messaging services, a number of third parties – mostly small startups – have filled a gap that the Canadian tech giant, with years of expertise, could have easily filled. WhatsApp only charges $2 on an annual subscription basis after a one year trial. With relatively small development costs, and existing platform and a superior product, RIM could have easily charged $25/year or more.

But the emergence of WhatsApps (and a number of other third party messaging services) is not just competition, but rather a metaphor for the Waterloo-based company’s flawed strategic thinking. 

A paradigm shift needed to occur. Failed management and corporate bickering led RIM to completely miss the theoretical boat. They could’ve sold BBM to consumers for millions, and to corporate users for billions more.

RIM first started to fall apart in the early 2000’s when it became complacent in it’s R&D efforts. Hazy executives used their clouded judgement to mistakenly forecast their industry’s advancements further than simply email. At one time, RIM was on top of the world, with Ontario’s Kitchener-Waterloo region widely regarded as Canada’s technology hotbed – even Google made Waterloo it’s Canadian home. 

Once email became the norm for smart phones, however, RIM’s focus shifted to security, reliability and integration with apps such as BBM – all strengths which could be provided for devices built by other manufactures.

RIM needed to become a service company; they needed to accept the fact that they will never be a best-in-class hardware manufacturer when competing against category leaders such as Apple and Google’s Motorola.

For the consumer segment, RIM is at the mercy of its competitors. It needs to play within the existing framework of innovations such as the App Store and Android Market. RIM should take every positive feature from BlackBerry OS and develop each as third party apps for Android and iOS devices or, if its competitors allow, through licensing partnerships with Apple and Google integrated into their respective operating systems.

And to survive, RIM should focus the majority of time its time on keeping corporate users. Everyone knows that corporate sales is RIM’s real bread and butter. It needs to bundle its corporate segment strengths (security, encryption, and service reliability) to offer a compelling product. An offering that needs to seamlessly integrate with existing corporate IT infrastructures, but that is flexible enough to cope with the dynamic new services of the twenty-first century that will undoubtably deliver real business value.

The real question is, has the boat sunk? Is it too late?

Disclaimer: I’m self-declaring myself a Miracle Whip ‘hater’ and I can’t stand the stuff! This does not, however, translate into a dislike for their advertising campaign.

The folks at Kraft’s Miracle Whip brand are taking an interesting angle for their latest marketing campaign. They’ve hired a number of celebrities (Pauly D? Okay, maybe sudo-celebrities) to disapprove of their brand, forcing consumers to “Take a Side.”

I’ve yet to decide whether or not Kraft has done something brilliant or just shot themselves in the foot – but that’s just it. They’ve picked James Carville (CNN politic contributor and Democratic party strategist) and Pauly D (from MTV’s Jersey Shore) for a reason. Perhaps appealing to America’s slightly-more-intelligent population who find Pauly D’s disapproval positive?

Their campaign is integrated, with the various spots driving traffic to a YouTube site where you can become a ‘lover’ or ‘hater’, a Facebook page and a Twitter account. The YouTube site displays a Twitter stream of voters who are voicing their opinions, and also affords users the opportunity to trade personal data for a free sample or Miracle Whip.

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Just grabbed this from Joe :

Day 1: Ten Things You Wanted/Want To Be When You’re Older

Day 2: Nine Things You Can’t Live Without

Day 3: Eight Places You Want To Visit

Day 4: Seven People Who Inspire You, and Why?

Day 5: Six of Your Favorite Books

Day 6: Five Things You Can Eat Everyday

Day 7: Four Songs That Describe Your Life Right Now

Day 8: Three favorite Cartoon Characters

Day 9: Two Movies You Absolutely Love

Day 10: One Quote That Describes Your Life Right Now 

It’s that time of year again! That lull between Christmas and New Years when we take time out to reflect this past year.

Below are what I think are the top five movies of 2010!

Rewind: it’s (Mo)vember 2009 and we’re boarding a flight up to Calgary, AB enroute to Winnipeg, MB for the National Business School Conference. This was my first executive conference as I had missed WCLR last year. Not knowing what to expect, we arrive in Winnipeg during what was unusually warm weather for the Asper folks, yet uncomfortably cool relative to my west coast environment. 

Immediately, you could identify the serious briefcase-holding easterners, the casual west coasters and “the crazies” from the Maritimes. After a few discussions, you could start to see who the gatekeepers were and why you’d want them on your side.

When it comes to smartphones, traditional thinking is that Blackberries are for business, while iPhoned are targeted at creatives and the consumer market. In the past, I could accept that, and to a large extent even now, this still holds true. 

But I’m not a traditional thinker. With the upcoming release of Blackberry OS 6, now—more than ever—is a great time to buy a Blackberry.