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1 July 2007
Terry's Top Twelve Travel Tips
Who will manage your safety?
By Terry Riley
When I meet people for the first time—be it on an airplane, at a
conference, in a seminar, wherever—sooner or later the question is asked
of me: “What do you do for a living?”
 To this inquiry I have prepared a selection of responses depending upon
whether I want the conversation to continue (e.g., “I’m an astronaut”) or
terminate (e.g., “I practice proctology”). However, on the occasions that
I come clean about my work (“I help companies prevent the robbery, rape,
kidnapping and murder of their traveling employees”) I usually get a
couple of follow up questions.
First: “Is traveling overseas really that dangerous?” And next: “Hey, I’m
going to be traveling to [fill in the blank] next month. What advice do
you have for me?”
My answer to the first question goes something like this: “Yes, travel
exposes unsuspecting travelers to a host of hazards—and not just overseas.
There are dangers in every city on every continent.”
My customary answer to the second question is a glib, “Don’t go.” After
all, for me to offer up a couple of pearls to make a person feel better
about his decision to travel to [fill in the blank] can be both
disingenuous and dangerous.
Nevertheless, the same questions keep surfacing. Therefore I’ve drawn the
top travel tips from my book,
Travel can be Murder, and listed them here
so that if we should ever meet, we’ll have a head start on our
conversation. Moreover, if you follow these travel tips—here comes the
disclaimer—in most cases you will reduce your risk of being victimized.
#12 Don’t go
(Granted, this is really a don’t travel tip, but it bears mentioning.) If
you genuinely feel that you could be in danger by traveling to your
destination, don’t go. Applying some creativity may lead you to finding
another way to accomplish your business goal without having to make an
in-person visit. For sure it’s not worth risking your life to advance your
career. You can get another job, but another life?
#11 Protect your identity
When making any and all reservations, use only your first initial and last
name. There are fewer things that can disarm an otherwise cautious
traveler more than to have his name used by a stranger. While you are trying to
figure out how you know a guy who called out to you, he may be figuring
out how he can snatch your goodies. And if you are a woman, advanced
notice of your gender is denied to anyone who may be lying in wait.
#10 Pack a “survival” kit
My kit includes a small flashlight (in case of power failure), duct tape
(to prevent smoke from entering a hotel room where I might have to await
rescue from a fire), and of course a cell phone (that will work at my
destination).
#9 Know where to go and how to get there
Before you leave home, contact a friend, colleague or government official
who is familiar with your destination and who can give you the real skinny
on how to get around. Study a map of the area to plot out your routes
ahead of time, and take the map with you. (By the way, the corollary to
this tip is also important: Know what places to avoid and how to
circumvent them.)
#8 Get your rest and avoid alcohol and other drugs
Travelers who are confused, tired, drunk or doped up are easy prey.
Combine these vulnerabilities and your chances of being victimized
increase substantially.
#7 Keep a low profile
Affluent Americans and employees of American corporations are prime
targets. Don’t advertise your wealth, your citizenship or your company
affiliation. Leave expensive jewelry at home, cover your identification
and remove your company’s logos from your clothing and luggage.
#6 Travel light and keep moving
Criminals prefer stationary and slow-moving targets—the expression is
“sitting ducks”—so you want to be able to move smartly along your way.
Carry only what you need in transit. If you have excess luggage or
cumbersome items to transport, ship them in advance.
#5 Make eye contact
Develop a habit of looking around and making eye contact with
others—especially with those behind you. A strong deterrent to crime is
the possibility of being caught. A criminal is way more likely to be
caught if he can be identified. And he knows it.
#4 Stay with others
Criminals prefer lone targets. There is safety in numbers even if those
“numbers” are strangers.
#3 Trust your instinct
Listen to your internal danger alerting system and act on its warnings. In
most cases it won’t let you down.
#2 Never trust others to manage your safety
You are ultimately responsible for your personal safety while traveling.
#1 Never trust others to manage your safety
This tip is so important it bears repeating: You are responsible for your
safety. No one else. You!
This article originally
appeared in Executive Travel magazine
© 2007 Applied Psychology
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