Hurricane season is for bargain-hunters

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Hurricane season will not keep travelers from their destinations! A recent survey by TripAdvisor®, which mined the opinions of more than 1,000 U.S. travelers, reports that 43 percent plan to hit a hurricane-prone destination this summer or fall – peak hurricane season. This is up from 36 percent last year. Sixty-five percent of the survey’s respondents are doing this to take advantage of a “significant savings.”

Blame the financial crisis.

An already dismal market for travel companies is likely to be exacerbated by storm risk in areas traditionally visited by hurricanes. To 25 percent of the survey respondents, this is why they’re going. Another 25 percent they could be convinced to enter hurricane neighborhood for discounts of greater than 50 percent on travel and accommodations.

Many of these survey-takers speak from experience. Thirty-two percent of them have been through hurricanes while on vacation … and it would take a lot to get them to leave. Eleven percent would bail when a Category 1 storm hits, and another 18 percent would move for a Category 2. The tipping point is Category 3, which would prompt 26 percent to leave, with a Category 4 storm shedding another 10 percent. Three percent of respondents would leave for a Category 5 storm, and only 2 percent would stick around regardless of hurricane potency. A whopping 29 percent answered, “I don’t know.”

Thirty percent of respondents simply avoid certain destinations because of hurricane risk, with the Caribbean the destination most avoided during storm season. Fifty-five percent would only cancel their plans if a storm was imminent, while 19 percent would cancel on possibility alone. Some hedge their bets – 30 percent said they are likely to buy trip insurance to protect their hard-earned cash from hurricane-related cancelations.

“Despite some reluctance to visit hurricane-susceptible destinations during storm season, a large number of travelers are willing to roll the dice if the price is right,” said Michele Perry, vice president of global communications for TripAdvisor.

Fear-free vacation, part I: look busy while you recharge

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Many are afraid to take vacations these days, according to a recent study by Challenger, Gray & Christmas. The 200,000 layoffs in the United States in January alone underscore the importance of looking essential in the workplace. But, you can’t push on forever. Fatigue will catch up with you, and you’ll just need a break. Instead of skipping your vacation and burning out – or taking your trip and worrying the whole time – just look busy. Get credit for being a committed company guy without actually getting committed.

It’s not hard to look busy in the wired age. Armed with a laptop, Blackberry and easy access to the web, you can swap e-mails, review documents and stay on top of your workload. This, however, is exactly what you should not be doing. That’s action work – which you need to avoid for a bit. So, instead of being a slave to your devices, the advice below to look like a machine even when your mind couldn’t be farther away from the office.

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1. Take care of the easy stuff fast
Yes, this involves doing work … but it’s easy work. If you see an e-mail that doesn’t take a whole lot of brain power to answer, click away at the keyboard. You’ll look responsive, helpful and generally in touch.

2. Buy time
For more involved questions, reply quickly with something like, “Give me a few days to wrap my head around this. Can we catch up when I get back?” Again, you look engaged, even though you really give less than a damn about your colleague’s needs.

3. Save some e-mails for later
You don’t have to reply to all the easy messages right away. Put some off until right before you go to bed. It’ll look like you’re blocking out time late at night to address company issues.

4. Reply from your laptop
If the recipient gets an e-mail from your laptop (rather than your Blackberry), the e-mail signature should show the difference. Even if you clear the “Sent by Blackberry” message from your account, you won’t have the benefit of your sig line – name, address, phone number, etc. Someone will notice the difference. Using your laptop means your laptop is open (duh) … and implies that you’re on the clock.

5. Hold back some productivity
Everybody tries to tie up loose ends before going on vacation (or should). The mistake they make, though, is sending everything before they leave. Save some stuff to send when you arrive at your destination and hint that you took care of it on the plane.

6. Print a tree’s worth of documents
When you do this, make sure people at the office see you. It’ll look like you’re bulking up for the flight.

7. Check in
Don’t be too showy. Shoot a simple e-mail to your boss, asking, “Anything blowing up I need to know about?”
Risk: The answer may be “yes.”

8. Schedule your e-mail
If you’re running on certain e-mail systems, you can schedule messages to send at a specific time. Use this to push e-mails while you’re on the beach, at the bar or in the spa. Be careful, though, as someone may reply.

9. Make up a contact
Here it goes: “I met this really interesting [choose profession]. We spent half a day by the pool talking about [something relevant to your job].” Then, tell your boss you need a few days to digest it. If he remembers – or cares – about what you were “digesting,” just say that your company “isn’t there yet” and sigh or roll your eyes.

Not enough for you? Don’t worry, this is just the beginning. We’ll have more tomorrow!

Guilt and fear: balancing vacations, work and getting away with either

by Tom Johansmeyer on

People are nervous. They’re afraid to appear unnecessary in a market where employees are being shed regularly. The strain is brutal. We’re all “doing more with less,” which increases stress and compounds the need for a break. If you decide to take that vacation, you have two options: look valuable or be valuable.

Looking valuable is tough. Skillful deceit is necessary to create the various digital smokescreens that will conceal your revelry and inspire awe and sympathy in your colleagues. The trick is to enjoy every minute of your trip but look like you’ve pissed the entire experience away for the sake of supporting your colleagues back home. Done properly, you recharge your batteries and get credit for commitment. One misstep, however, can show that you’re nothing but an opportunist.

Tread lightly.

Of course, there’s a group of people out there who would never try merely to appear productive. Why? They are – they’re machines. Vacations don’t exist, and these folks try to stretch the work day by every minute they can scrounge. Bosses may love this quality, but spouses and kids don’t. You’ll need a ruse, and getting caught can cost you.

Don’t worry, Gadling‘s here to help.

Between my own experiences as both a workaholic and a shameless corporate actor and those of the Gadling team, be ready for tk days of advice on how to be who you want to be. The first two days will help you be a better screw-off, enjoying your vacation while looking like Mr. Corporate America. The two days after that – we’ll help you look like you’ve put your family first without neglecting they guy who signs your paycheck.

Along the way, drop a comment with your ideas. We’re all in this wretched recession together, after all.

Continental pilot pension scam, nine disappointed pilots

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Continental Airlines is looking to cash in on pilots who cashed in on a divorce scam. The pilots used sham divorces to divert more than $10 million to their ex-spouses. Post-divorce, the exes cashed in on retirement benefits, and the fliers could stay in the sky – and keep earning.

It’s really pretty simple. A couple divorces. The pilot assigns all pension benefits to the ex-spouse. Then, the recipient goes to a state court and gets an order for a lump sum. After the divorce was final long enough for the money to start rolling in, these couples “reconciled.” Yep, they remarried once the scam was complete.

So far, eight of the nine pilots are gone (either by quitting or being fired). One was rehired, because he promised to repay the cash. Apparently, he didn’t do so fast enough and has been named as a defendant. The spouses are being pursued, as well. Seven of the alleged scammers are men, and two are women.

If you don’t want to believe that greed is responsible for the situation, you can call what these pilots did a Darwinian play to protect their cash. The average pilot on Continental is eligible for a lump sum of up to $900,000 upon retirement. But, some airlines are terminating their pension programs and turning them over to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which backstops pension plans up to an amount that’s not even close to $900,000. Faced with the prospect of losing their pensions, therefore some are turning to (alleged) fraud.

In addition to the nine who got nailed, other pilots have tried and failed.

Think that’s bad? Click the pictures to read about other women causing problems in the sky:


Flexjet cards moving, as even the rich feel the sting

by Tom Johansmeyer on

The days of the private jet may be over – or at least put off for a while – but those with means are still doing all they can to avoid commercial flights. Fuel prices have come down over the past year, but it still costs a bundle to put a private jet in the sky, especially when much of that “extra cash” has disappeared.

So, it looks like uncooperative financial markets are making private jet alternatives, such as the Flexjet 25 Jet Card, pretty attractive. In fact, sales for this particular solution are up this year … pretty surprising in this market. The company had a record-setting month in January and is about to double its sales team. When you look a little deeper, though, you can see why the wealthy are going with a “debit card” for flying.

In addition to the sheer cost of owning, managing and operating a private jet, this group of travelers is looking to the future. The effective price per flight increases when you consider the expenses that come with keeping a jet on the ground – from crew to storage. Even if the worst of the financial crisis is behind us, the absence of recovery means that jet owners are worse off than they were 12 months ago. Without a distinct change for the better, this population needs to reconsider its commitment to private flying.

With fewer flight hours logged, the ground costs become proportionately higher, leading many to question the sense of having a jet at all. The Flexjet 25 Jet Card is among the solutions that can help the truly upscale traveler cut personal expenses without luxury. Since it offers the best of both worlds – conspicuous luxury at a lower price – it’s hardly surprising that the card is gaining traction right now.

Flexjet’s good news may be indicative of a broader trend in the travel industry, particularly among high net worth travelers. Doubtless, financial pressures lead people to make cuts, and the rich are no exception. But, it would be hasty to conclude that a dip in the Dow means total abstinence from the good life. Gradual change, when possible, is the likely course of action. As the recession runs its course, it may give life to a new breed of luxury travel companies that make comfort, convenience and style more affordable … but hardly cheap.