Why you should take your family on a business trip 

By Small Business Team on Small Business UK - Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

Imagine that you’re away on business and you’ve just closed an important deal. You go to the bar with your colleagues to celebrate before returning to your hotel room. You should be feeling elated but something’s missing. You talk to your partner and kids on Skype, but somehow it’s not the same. You want them to be there, to be something more than just a face on the screen.

If this sounds familiar, perhaps it’s time you considered taking your family on business trips with you. Figures from Navan show that over a third of business trips are extended for leisure time, so you’re in good company.

Here are some of the advantages of mixing business with leisure.

Travel costs

Cheap holidays can be difficult to organise but if you’re already on business, your costs can be considerably reduced. Chances are that your own room and flights are already paid for, and that you have a certain amount of money to spend on your meal allowance. If you’ve accumulated enough air miles over the years, you might not even have to fork out on your family’s flights.

Experience something different with your kids

A change of scene sometimes brings out the best in people. On most business trips, there’s a whole heap of dead time to fill. Why shouldn’t you be with your kids, allowing them to experience a part of the world they haven’t seen before? Even if you have a busy schedule, there’s every chance you’ll be able to tack on a couple of extra days at the end of your trip so that you can enjoy a little family time.

It benefits your kids

We’ve touched on this above, but everyone’s heard of the saying ‘travel broadens your horizons’. One of the ways to ensure your children grow as people is to take them out of their comfort zone and see how they respond to the world around them. It also helps to develop their social skills and possibly their language skills, depending on where you’re going and if they’re learning them at school.

No more guilt

It can be hard to enjoy yourself when you’re away on business. Even in the face of success, there can still be that nagging feeling that you’re missing out on your children growing up. Get peace of mind by taking your family with you so that all parties can sleep soundly at night.

There are countless advantages to taking your family on business trips with you, only some of which are highlighted above. For many people, it’s the simple chance to achieve a sensible work-life balance that’s the deal-breaker.

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Read more

Business travel insurance – everything you need to know – If you or your employees are heading on a business trip in the near future, get them covered with the right travel insurance

Business travel etiquette: tips for your next international trip – Going abroad on business? Ensure you know the local etiquette if you’re heading to Japan, Dubai, Australia, Mexico, China, Thailand or India

How to implement change successfully to your business travel – Paul Casement, director of sales and account management at Clarity, explores what businesses can do to make business travel successful

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