We have all been trained to worship our work; while there is nothing wrong in giving due importance to your work worshiping it is taking it a bit too far. Many will not agree with this especially in a country like mine where we are trained from childhood that there is only one sure shot way of being successful in life and that is by working day and night, and treating your job like your life. I am sure most of us have seen our parents working with his mindset and many of us do too. This post might come across as me deterring people from working and therefore succeeding in life, when I am trying to  lay foundation of a lifestyle which is not just sustainable it is also satisfying and you will end up hating your job a little less.

The first step is to realize that there is a lot more to life than work and chores. There is nothing wrong if your life revolves around your home and office, as long as that is what you want. In most cases we all want a little bit extra and some of us want a lot extra from life. None of us are wrong it is our life and we all have all the right to demand what you want from it as long as you are ready to work for it. It is easy to want to be  a guitarist (ask me) but to actually get to playing and practicing is a tough job. It means that you need to take out time and maybe some money and get to it. It also means that you stop procrastinating. The 'YOU' in these past few lines is me, it has been over 5 months since Aj bought me a guitar and it has been almost the same time since I have picked it up to learn or play. As of now I know more about how NASA works than how to play that guitar. It is still in my things to do but I haven't being doing this.

Meet David Robert Hogg Travelling with his two kids

It is more than just travel

Longing travel and Travel with job series are much more than travel, yes I believe travel is one of the best ways to claim your life but no one shoe fits all. This is about creating a change and impacting life of others both those close to you and those you barely know. Over past few years I have had people look at us travelling and say you must be earning good, do you have any work load and you must have the best boss in the world. We make decent pay but nothing out of the ordinary, in fact many who have asked that earn way more than us. We also have regular workload with spikes every few weeks, we just manage it better. We have to agree we have a great boss but that is because we rarely spring surprises on him.

So if we are in the same bracket as every one else why we can do it and they can't. Those who look at us and then run around looking for an excuse as to why they can't travel or so something else they want don't want it as bad. If for you life is fine if nothing happens then who am I to tell you otherwise. The saying that we deserve the politicians we have extends to this scenario too, if you have done nothing to change it you deserve the life you have.

Meet Cory Lee who is travelling the world on his wheelchair

How we got here

When I joined my first office in 2009 I had rosy dreams of travelling every weekend and living my life to the extreme. I had the dreams but working to realize them was too much and meant planning, getting around parents and their permissions and simply learning to stand on ,my own two feet. The change came when started travelling for GoUNESCO, on our very first trip to Ajanta-Ellora we came across a British couple who had sold off everything and were now travelling the world. Before them I had never heard anybody doing that and I vividly remember going all polite and treading around their property sell off story. Till March 2013 these things never existed in my immediate universe and by extension in the world.

Meet Lainie a single mom travelling with her son Miro

To my surprise they were happy and I envied their freedom, as we traveled more we felt drawn to traveling and experiencing something new every day. When I started this blog in May 2013 I had nobody reading it, some old colleagues would come across it and they would say it is a great blog. When I think back to my earlier posts they were terrible, ramblings of someone who just wanted to catalog her journey through a challenge. Had I known that simple act of travelling to World Heritage Sites for a day or two will change the way we look at travel and the world around us I would have done it earlier.

When it came together

For us it did not click till we came back from Srinagar with a trip which had been changed more times than any other trip ever. From a trip across northern India it became an unforgettable journey to be a pat of a friends marriage and experience Kashmiri hospitality first hand. We wanted to see all that there was to see, all that we could experience and take everything that he life throws at us in our stride. The decision of the British couple we didn't even exchange names with was making more sense. As we challenged ourselves to sleep in trains every night for a week or going to Sri Lanka without booking any accommodation we learnt more about ourselves than about the place or the journey.

Ajay with a Kehwa pot

It took us over a year to understand what we wanted from our lives, maybe we still don't know. Our future plans change every few days, one day we are working hard on a project and then we are hard pressed with office work. We know how quickly things can change and how fickle we ourselves are. We all behave like a kid in a candy store more times than we would like to admit. Let me be the first one to tell you it is OK, there is nothing wrong in wanting a lot. The truth is if you do not demand and want how will you work towards realizing it.

Take an action

You would know I am running a series which talks about the How of Traveling with your full time Jobs, I believe it is important that we understand the Why associated with it. For me the important thing is that you understand and accept that there is more to life, whether you want it or not and whether you work for it or not is your choice and I respect it. If the line ' I am supposed to ...' is how you wish to live you life no problem , but if you want to mold it on your terms and get your independence back it is time that you start and we are here to help you through it.

Tell us in comments what you want from your life and we will try to help the best we can.(on a side note we are broke ourselves.)

We tackled asking and getting leaves in the last installment of Travel with Job series it is now time to talk about advance planning. Even as I write this I can imagine a lot of you sighing and giving up. Don't! It is easy to plan for your travel and if you have a full time job and a boss you report to you there is no other way to get travel in your life.

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Before we start on the how of the planning let us talk about the Why's.

1. You know all the answers

There are a few questions which define any trip- When, Where, How, For How Long. If you have all your days free or dedicated to travel many of these questions might not be as important to you as someone who has to manage a job along with travel engagements. Unless you know and decide on all of these factors chances are you are not going anywhere.

2. You can schedule your obligations

Unless you go on to become a perpetual nomad you are going to have quite a few social and family obligations that you have to fulfill. right from grabbing a cup of coffee with your friend to throwing a dinner party for your parent's anniversary. It is all important and requires time. Most of these can be pushed around or decided last minute but  things like birthdays, and reunions do require some advance planning.

3. You can ask for leaves on time

If you have ever been a supervisor you know how irritating it can be to get a last minute leave application asking for a week off. Not only is it inconvenient for all parties concerned it can also lead to disagreement and unwanted strain in the work environment. For detailed reading about Leaves and how to ask for them read this.

4. You will save a lot of money

Have you ever heard that because you are booking jut a day in before the flight you will get a huge discount. Most probably not, because that does not happen. As you get closer to the D-day everything becomes expensive especially if it is the holiday season. I have seen 12000 Rs ($200)  flights get to 27000($450) during Diwali, Christmas or Durga Puja. If you want to be travelling on those dates you better plan early in the year. Even if you are not travelling during peak times it is better to decide early and book early.
We were able to book Hyderabad to Delhi flights for two for Rs 2400 because we knew our dates and took up the airlines on their offer as soon as it was launched. The same flight today are over Rs 6000, and we would have probably taken the train than spent 12000 total on flights. Everything is cheaper when booked in advance and you can take better advantage of deals floating around.

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Now that we are clear about why we need to plan in advance it is time to get to the planning part. For that you need a bucket list, no not the scrap of paper where you scribble all your wishes, instead you need something like what I have below. You can either make your own in a excel file or copy this Google Doc to fill your own.



Great now you have the biggest tool you need to increase your travel time and decrease your cancellations. Let us get started and go through how to get the most out of this Ultimate Bucket List.

1. Where

This is the basic question of any travel expedition whether it ranges from a few hours to a few days. Fill in the places you want to be visiting this year. Yes, the entire year and fill in only the places you can visit, be realistic you might not be able to trek in Nepal and go on a cruise to Antarctica in the same year so choose one and put it in. In general there should be 4-5 places where you can reach in maximum 4 hours journey and 2-3 places 8 hours or more away.

2. How

How do you plan on going to the place?
Will you drive, fly or take the train? This will change the category of the place and the time it takes to reach it. For example a flight to Andaman is just 2 hours but a cruise ride from mainland India can take nearly 3 days!

3. How Long

How long do you plan on spending at the place?
 Keep it real most of us would be lucky to get two 10 day trips in a year, so hoping you will get two months off to go ad explore turkey is not going to help anyone. But in case you can get those kind of leaves put it against the destination you have selected.
All of the above were your wishlist almost like the way bucket lists are supposed to work what follows now is the stuff which will make or break the deal and require you to do some extra work than jotting stuff on paper or your excel file.

4. When

When Do You plan to Travel?

When are you going to travel to a certain place? 
This will require you to take out the calendar ( You can get a printable calendar here) which shows holidays and can be used to mark your leaves. It can be both physical like a printout or table calendar or a digital one like Google calendar or Ical.
You should know when you can travel to the destination of your choice. Very few people would like to travel to Alaska in winters, or to a desert in summers. Here you need some basic but invaluable research which you can get by just entering Best time to go to---- in Google. Write it down in the best time column under when section of the list.

Look out for long weekends and situations where you can get 4-5 days total by taking a day or two off. Plan your longer trips next to the long weekend and smaller trips in the in-between months so that you do not feel deprived. Most people find it comfortable to travel for 3-4 days in a month with a week or ten day vacation once every three months.
By now you should have exact dates for your travels. Highlight your leaves on the calendar and enter the dates you want to be travelling in the bucket list.

5. How much

How Much will you be spending?
This factor can lead to quite a few changes in your previously prepared list, but it is important you take it up in the end. It is time now to decide how much is the trip going to cost you and what budget you want to assign to it. Take into consideration the time you have, time of the year you are travelling and how you plan on going there.
There are many books and blogs which will tell you how much you will end up spending in a destination. If it is too costly to fly at that time of the year change your dates or go somewhere else, and if you have to go there at that time look into cheaper stay and entertainment options.

All done

Now you have your travel plans and the days you are going to take off marked and clearly detailed. It is now time to get your leaves in order and start looking for great deals to book your travel and stay. Look out for the next post in the Travel with job series dealing with the best credit card to support your travels.

Most working individuals long to take some time off and destress there are those who manage to go off for a week or two in a year and then there are those who are either too scared to ask for a day off or who just want to save up their leaves. You can be in any one of these categories but since you are reading this it is more likely you are in the fourth category which wants to take leaves but doesn't know how to go around and ask for them.

We get 18 days of Annual earned leave, 7 days each of casual and sick leaves for a total of 32 days in a year. Looking around the world it can seem a good deal, or too less. France is known for weeks of off days while it is more of a norm to hear about 10 days of paid leave in US. If you get only 10 days off a year and you want more (naturally!!) you have a lot to do which may involve changing your job. More often than not it is quite possible to get a few days off to go and visit a close by destination. Actual problem is when you want more than a couple of days off to visit a place far away. Here's a guide on how to get those leaves without becoming a liability for your boss.

Know your contract

All of us have a certain number of leaves we can take in a year defined in our contracts or through company policy. It is very important for you to know what types of leaves you can take and under what requirements. Most offices allow you to call in sick for a day or two without a note from your doctor. While many restrict you to club sick leaves with annual paid vacation time. To use your leaves and avoid friction in office it is important you know what you are entitled to. There might be a case where your boss would let you combine a few things at her discretion but it is better to never bet on it.

Do your job well

It goes without saying that unless you work well your interests will never be considered important by the company. But there is a catch, if you do not delegate responsibility well and become the only person who knows about something, it will be difficult to get days off. Being a part of the team and contributing in it always pay off. If you do see people getting days off easily even if they are the slacking at their jobs, don't go on a tirade about it. Every employee is allowed to maintain their own kind of relationship with the employer and it is better to improve your's without commenting on other's.

Do not make it a habit to stay late.

Not only is it detrimental to all other employees it is not sustainable. If allowing you take a week off means the employer looses one and a half worth of work guess what you are going to find it really difficult to get leaves. We as architects have really weird schedule and are known to work huge number of hours a week. After my first office I realized it is not just possible to finish work in prescribed hours it is also difficult to get leaves when you are in office 12 hours a day. It doesn't matter if you are a bachelor or you have nothing to do, get out on time and find something to do with your life.

Plan your leaves in advance

To get the days you want it is important to know what days you want off. It might not be fair to other last minute planners but if you are the first person to declare your intentions there are high chances of your leaves not being declined. I know what you are going to say, I can't decide so much in advance, my wife has to finalize or my friends can't commit or what ever... Guess what mate, if you want a smooth leave approval it is better to know what all days you want off WAY in advance. And as far your friend are concerned ask them to commit now if they can't their loss. There are many benefits of advance planning and if you are not filthy rich you should be doing it anyway. Still not convinced sign up for the next post which is about how and why of planning.

Intimate your supervisor strategically

Great you now know by the 10th of January what all days you are going to take an off do not go and vomit the information on your supervisor. It is a strange psychological response to deny anyone who is asking for multiple things even if it is all justified. If you do not believe me think back to your childhood days when your mom would happily give you one thing but as soon as you got greedy and started asking for more, in a few cases she would even take the one she gave you back.
A good time is around 3 months for a week long holiday and a month or two for a couple of days or a long weekend. If it sounds way ahead of schedule and you worry that your supervisor will forget write a mail after verbal approval and ask her politely to confirm. That way even if your supervisor forgets you have some proof that you did inform them. We put up a calendar of our future leaves marked at our bosses table. If he forgets we just point to it.

Remind people of your leaves when the time comes near

Around two weeks before you are about to leave inform people concerned of your impending absence so that they cna clarify their doubts and priority work can be finished before you go. This will also make sure that there are less people looking for you when you are vacationing and you work will be in a better condition when you come back. There should never be a situation where your boss calls you up asking where you are and you remind him of your leave starting today.

Be Transparent

I have seen people lying to get leaves and if you are travelling in that time there are high chances your boss will know you lied. Pictures are almost every where on the internet and if one person form your office knows there are chances everyone knows. This is never good for any professional relation ship. Also remember these leaves are within your right you should not have to lie. If the only way to get leaves in your company is a health or family emergency rethink if you want to be working there in the first place.

Here's and Infographic showing how exactly to get what you want... leaves.

Be Firm yet Polite

If you want a day off and you are entitled to it there is no reason your company can stop you from taking it. If every day off is met by a veiled threat of being fired go to the last line of the previous point. As with any professional negotiation it pays to be firm. Remember you are just asking for a few days off  maybe a week or two, and plan on coming back and working with the same people. Being firm about your requirements does not mean you have to be rude or wave regulation in their face the moment you get in the discussion. Be civil and remember you are going to be working with these people even after you come back, there is no need to add strain.

Be clear about your accessibility while on leave

Can you be reached by phone or you will be off the grid? Can you and will you be working a few hours a day even if to reply to a few mails? All of these questions need to be answered if you are going off for a week or so. It is always better to inform relevant people you are not sure about connectivity and might not be available, if you are not sure you will be able to entertain any work related phone or mail. put up the out of office reminder so that your clients and colleagues know you will not be replying to them and they should approach someone else. This for one will help you get leaves in future much easily.

Be back on the day you promised

Unless you get stuck in some unavoidable circumstances or weather plays a spoil sport be back on the day you promised to be back. When you flippantly take additional days off your boss is definitely not going to be happy and in most cases will inform you in no uncertain words. If you are coming in late inform, if you are stuck or need another day call up and inform your boss if not you team. If you don't want to do that be there on the day you promised.

More often than not above pointers will get you the leaves you want. Remember every culture has a different view on days off and travelling, most of the old time views are not in our favor. It is our responsibility to train our employees and when our turn comes be generous with our employees.

A note to our employers

No one should be forced to work on days they don't want to. Unless there is a life and death situation let people live their lives you will have a place people will love coming to.

If you found this post helpful help other out by sharing.

Transport

Currency

Entry and Access

Accommodation

About the Guide

The World Heritage Sites

When we stick to a brand or a product without giving others a chance it is us clinging to our way of life and the need to walk in a comfort bubble.

Travelers swear by the airlines they fly and the bags they own. All that is good but there is a flip side to brand loyalty. If you have ever spent extra money to get something you already know because all the other options are foreign, you have already experienced the expensive side of brand loyalty. From the pizza and burger you have been craving instead of the rice plate to the expensive brand of shampoo you have packed in multitudes just to make sure you pamper your hair well. Hey ladies I know what I am saying is second nature to all of us, but tell me how long is the supply going to last if you are on a RTW trip and visiting all the humid South Asian cities. I have carried a lot of toiletries for my two day trip and I have spent three to four time for my lunch simply because the restaurant seemed up class or because I knew the brand.

Giving up brand loyalty is not just for those who are travelling a lot or travelling without their jobs it is actually far far more important for those who are traveling with their jobs simply because it saves you money. When you travel with your job you have people who depend on you, obligations you have to fulfill, you are still not a nomad who can wipe her hands and mind free and think only about herself. you need money not just to sustain travel but to maintain roof over your head when you along with paying for those hotels as you travel. Commute is a daily thing and so are utilities and social commitments. Saving up and making it a habit will surely keep you travelling happy and working happy.

When we travel for business it is usually for a week or two at max and many of us come back without knowing what that place offered. Stuffed with hotel breakfast and office lunches it is very rare to have business traveler sit down in a local shop or trade their shampoo for something local. We rarely take chances and I believe that takes a lot away from travel just the way it did for me when we went for our honeymoon.

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Ever paid more to get your brand of Beer?

Before we go in depth on all the issues that brand loyalty can create for a traveler who is either traveling or saving up for her travel it is important that you realize some major things up front.

Currency changes the ball game:

Are you earning in Dollars and planning to spend it in Ringgit or Rupee? If so than you will have a lot less to worry compared to people earning in those currencies simply because your money runs way longer than theirs. But do remember if your favourite brands are present in the country you are going to there are high chances that the same stuff is going to cost you less when you land in the foreign land. 2$ go a long way in SriLanka.
Bottom Line: earn in an expensive currency and spend in a cheaper one or else learn to survive on less and forget those 50$ bottles of whisky.

Somethings cannot be replaced

Most of these things are medically related, but after the recently comparing cost of insulin injections in India and US I am inclined to say you will be better off visiting a high end hospital in a developing country and still save a ton. Tim Ferris had a lot to say about this in his book-----. Now when things are not medically related there are always things that you simply can't compromise on. Maybe you HAVE to use tampons but they are not available in most parts of the world so you stock up. Maybe there is only this specific shampoo which is saving the last hairs on your scalp so you stock it up and leave behind something else.
Bottom line: if there is really something that you cannot live without (or you will come to some harm) it is no problem being brand loyal or stocking them up.

The world is getting smaller

No seriously this is the truth, most often than not you can find the exact same thing in a remote country though you will pay more. There are cases when I have heard people exclaiming that they got their home brands cheaper in India than wherever they are from. If you look carefully there will be a Made in India/China/Vietnam or something similar on most things. So in case you are planning to pack everything stop and do some research that thing might already be available in the country you are heading to. If what you want satisfies both above requirements and is not available stock up otherwise you will find a way.
Bottom Line: You might get your brand where you are going, maybe even cheaper or better and you don't even have to compromise.

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Sure you don't want to try something- Different?

There are reasons why choosing a local brand will help your travels and experiences even if the regular you is a bit uncomfortable.

They are usually cheaper

We all know and agree you need money to travel and you need to spend smart if you want to travel more. If you have a million at your disposal please feel free to laugh at us mortals. When you choose a much cheaper product compared to your usual you are cutting down from your established expenses. Not only will this now become a recurring saving you will more often than not start applying it to more and more consumables. Trade off between local chocolates and the dark chocolate you are used to at home can be worth a lot as soon as you start comparing prices. In India most chocolates start from 10 INR but imported dark chocolate will rarely start below 40-50 and that is actually the entry level pricing.

You are experiencing more

Living like a local, experiencing things their way is what most of us dream of when we travel. What better way to experience local culture than to accept and enjoy local produce and products. Lettuce tastes good but have you tried some ripe mangoes or a dragon fruit. You might not be able to put it in a sandwich but really you want a sandwich when you can eat from a Mamak shop and savor piping hot nasi goreng? While in Malaysia for a month I realized potatoes were very expensive and lemon was too much pricing at 99sen per piece. In India that would be a rarity though now produce has gone higher here too. That meant no homemade lemon water and no potato but I filled up my cart on pineapples and watermelons and some very different mee than I was used to.

You are supporting a local business

Well local or not all businesses have dubious policies but supporting a local company makes much more sense than filling up coffers of a multi-national. Eating local, buying local helps the economy and money goes directly in the hands of the people you came to visit. If you have an option drink from a small tea shop and skip the expensive cafe. When you stock up you are supporting your own local business but stocking up usually results in heavier baggage and rarely lasts the whole trip.

Your baggage is lighter

When you stock up or carry what ever is important to you, baggage becomes heavy from the get go. I love shoes and made the mistake of carrying 4-5 pairs for many trips and had over 10 as we left for our honey moon. I wore 2 pairs at max and now travel with just two or add up another if it is required for a specific task. Not only were we marginally spared form paying for extra baggage, that weight was a nuisance. Another issue you risk facing is bursting liquids. Hopefully nothing will actually burst but there are high chances of leakage and when you have multiple bottles the chances multiply.

You save up

Though this follows from the first reason of avoiding brand loyalty when you are traveling it is always better to reiterate because not only will you save money while you are traveling you can keep on saving money when you come back or start when you are building your kitty. Remember most of us cannot recognize varieties of rice but a slightly cheaper but comparable variety will probably do the same thing for you once it is a part of your meal.

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If you are traveling with your job and will probably not take a round the world trip until later in life do remember all of this applies to you too. Whether you are an Expat or you are a student or you have a regular salary funding your family coffers staying away from brand loyalty both while travelling and at home can be a savior and breathe fresh air into declining bank balance.We came across Jeera Soda in Hyderabad and loved it. Stuck to coke and other well known aerated drinks I had never looked at the local variety in them until recently and some of those will surprise you.

Not just that when you restrict yourself to a certain brand or product you are letting go of all the experiences and tastes you might get with the other brand or product. We buy a certain kind of oil for daily cooking, if you have been in India you would know that these vary according to regions and you will find people cooking in Ghee to people cooking in olive oil. Though any refined oil works for most of the population now my travels have introduced me to mustard and coconut which I now love because of the flavors they impart. These same ones were at some point discarded because of their distinctive taste.

Delicious Dosas on the Highway near Kadpakkam

If you think that the chains or big name restaurants are the place to eat, I do not disagree with you completely. Sometimes comfort of something you know and a familiar taste can ease all the discomforts of a hectic trip in a dusty mini bus filled to its brim. I have whenever possible grabbed a burger and coke in other countries and other parts of India just to see if it tastes different. I now know that mayo is way sweeter in Srilanka than anywhere else, and so is the coke apart from being VERY expensive. Seriously I had a veggie KFC burger there. Just like I know No Subway really puts right amount of veggies in Malaysia, no clue why but that's how it works and I could go on and on.
But when you stick exclusively to the top brass of the restaurants not only are you doing a disservice to your pocket but also to the local cuisine. Any part of South India has its own version of Idli which can cost you 20 for 4 pieces in a local shop to 100 for 2 pieces in a well established name and way above that in a five star hotel. The choice is always yours but I am yet to find a big place which does idli sambhar better than the local shops.

There are many things in which brand loyalty can pay you in the long run. Airlines and Hotel miles are one such example but you have to be prepared to spend for the first few nights before you get a free night stay or fly a while before you get some free flights.

I have observed that when we stick to a brand or a product without giving others a chance it is us of clinging to our way of life and the need to walk in a comfort bubble. Though I would probably never tough a live octopus let alone eat it I will travel to japan and may be eat something else which is local and vegetarian, there always is something.

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If you have ever felt restricted because of your comfort needs or because you seek a certain product or brand let us know also if you have had any positive or negative experiences with local produce or product put it in comments. All those who tasted Durian or Durian candy I feel you unless you liked it (HOW?).