A business travel bug…

I’ve just spend the last week working in Dublin and, while the workshops and coaching sessions went very well, I managed to pick up an unwelcome dose of flu. It’s an unfortunate risk when you’re a frequent flyer and I guess it was my turn to pick something up.

Being sick when on holidays is really disappointing. But you get the chance to relax and recover, even if you’re missing out on some of the fun. Being sick when on a business trip is even less welcome. There’s little in the way of breaks and you can’t simply drop everything to recover – you have to work through it and hope for the best.

It started with a night of shivers and insane sweats – I tossed and turned in my hotel room bed, checking my watch seemingly every hour. I woke up drenched, exhausted and aching. And that was only Tuesday morning. I still had to run two one-day workshops and two days of one-to-one coaching sessions!

To cut a long (and sickly) story short, I’m now back in London and in my own bed. My clients were incredibly understanding (if slightly unsure about how close to get to me) and I managed to get everything done. Punctuated by bouts of coughing and general hoarseness.

Most importantly, I fly to Tokyo on Tuesday morning, for a two and a half week holiday and I’m determined to be 100% well by then.

There’s no way I’m spending a very luxurious and delicious fourteen hour First Class British Airways flight coughing and sneezing. Plans for the weekend have been abandoned and I’m just going to rest, drink plenty of fluids and sleep – with the hope that I’ll wake up for work on Monday feeling fine.

Being sick on holidays is no fun at all, but it’s something that happens to many of us. We have the familiar experience of working super-hard to finish everything in time for our break and, as soon as we relax, our immune system seems to relax too, and we collapse into sickness.

I’m convinced I picked this up on my Sunday morning flight to Dublin. The plane sounded like it was transporting the contents of a hospital ward – every second person was coughing or sneezing. My late nights and busy days in Dublin didn’t really help, I suppose.

But rather than cough and shiver my way to Tokyo, I’m going to do everything I can to feel better so we can enjoy our time there. I never want to be sick in Japan again – it feels like such a waste of the long journey.

So, here’s to a relaxing weekend and a much healthier start to next week. And then, another fabulous adventure in Japan!