Something New

Seven years ago I took a leap and left the safety of the hospital world and joined a company for which I would travel part time for work.  This transition thrust me into airports and airplanes, multiple time zones, and cities and towns I never thought I’d see.  I also learned, very quickly, that if I was going to do this right, I needed to learn how to maximize my benefits.  After all, travel doesn’t have to be a burden if you are prepared.

I live in Seattle, all the way up in the Pacific Northwest.  My very first work travel took me from Seattle to Laguna Niguel, California.  This was a quick trip on Alaska Airlines to Orange County Airport  and, so it seemed, traveling was easy.  The next trip however, was to Kansas.  That was a Delta flight from Seattle to Atlanta to Wichita – literally flying all the way across the country only to fly halfway back.   It was at that time that I knew I had to fly smarter.

I learned as much as I could about airlines, alliances, credit cards, and travel hacking in general.  I worked hard at manufactured spend in the beginning (when it was easy) but less so now that it is a little harder and I don’t have as much time.  Now, my hope is to be able to share some tips so my friends and colleagues can maximize their travels.  Along the way, I hope I learn some new things as well.