LandJet Limo
Ever wanted to do business on the road? There have been many attempts to crack this particular problem over the years, but it has often been the case that salespeople and other busy professionals tend to leave a bunch of stuff in their car that should help them to manage life on the road. Of course, most of the time this is not the case.
Many people who spend a lot of time in their car leave it messy and disorganised. Others just do not manage to deal with the problem effectively, and instead have a situation where they have a number of resources at their disposal in their car, but do nothing more than muddle through, using a calendar reasonably well one day, and being hopelessly disorganised the next.
Now, however, a number of companies are tackling the problem in some quite unique ways. Rather than make do with a car that one can stuff all of their business resources into, like a laptop or a small fold-out desk, they have instead gone for the van approach. With this, companies have produced vans that are specially made for mobile office work. They often contain computers and desks, with workstations dotted around the interior. They also have a number of screens inside, upon which can be viewed any number of presentations or software. Meetings can be facilitated in these vehicles too, with specially made sections that can be pulled out or popped up, which offer, in some cases, seating and desk space for up to eight people.
Other companies modify vans and trucks especially, so that they create a developed vehicle, which has office space built into it. This is a common way of doing it. A van is gutted of all non-essential materials, and then a desk is built in, with viewing screens, telephones and so on.
The first option has been pursued in a rather energetic way by a company called LandJet. This company have been producing solutions for automotive problems for a number of years, and one of their most recent projects is the Mobile Office Van (MOV) concept.
Described as a ‘corner office on wheels’ their MOV solution offers an amazing working experience, with a real corner office built into a van, one that should keep even the busiest executive hooked up with their colleagues, and in control of their work demands.
LandJet believe that down time is one of the biggest problems facing mobile workers today. They also know that if a call is missed, then there is every chance that the busy mobile worker could miss out on their bottom line.
The LandJet Limo model, brought to market in 2009, is indicative of their approach when it comes to mobile office solutions. They have stuck everything you could possibly want from a mobile office into their vehicle, and some of the options that you can add to the basic vehicle are truly astonishing. The end result is a vehicle that easily rivals most standard offices for connectivity and luxury.
High speed Internet access comes as standard. This essential aspect of mobile working is so well developed inside the limo that the possibility of downtime is not an issue. Instead, users of the vehicle can expect true connectivity at all times.
There is also a sturdy filing cabinet that allows for hard copies of important documents to be safely stored, and when you consider that this is a motor vehicle, this is an especially exciting feature. Prior to this, many people would just use the trunk or the passenger seat to store such materials.
Large monitors also come as standard, so presentations can be delivered to your clients while you are en route to your destination. This is especially important for those clients who need to be wowed within a narrow time window. Take them on the road and do it there.
The company also offer full video conferencing packages that can be added to the limo package. Add to this VOIP packages too, and one can see why mobile offices are quickly becoming the preferred way of doing business of many people.
With a host of uses and applications, and a relevance to many different fields and industries, the LandJet limo is one of the hot mobile offices this year.
Is Your Car Ready?
Many harassed and tired office workers are totally unaware of the fact that they can transfer their office to the road. All those mornings when you are late for work, or stuck in traffic, these are times when the stress builds up. However, there is another option, and that is the car office.
This is a relatively new phenomenon. Basically, the concept is simple: convert your car into a mobile base from which you can conduct most of, if not all of, your business dealings. The concept has caught on with people from a number of professions, most notably sales, where many people spend much of their time on the road. It is now, however, becoming an attractive prospect for workers from all fields.
In fact, mobile command centres are not just for the military. The number of vehicles that are now fitted out to house the latest in high tech communications is slowly rising. There are some vehicles that have telecommunications resources within them that would put major office complexes to shame.
Other examples of modification include NASCAR vehicles being transformed into mobile offices. There are a number of avenues that one can follow, as it happens. Many office workers are taking the process step by step, and slowly transforming a van or truck so that the extra space that they contain can be converted into mobile office space.
However, before you toss your laptop and all of those paper files into your car and prepare to hit the road, you have to ask yourself if your vehicle is suited to the demands of mobile office work. First of all, for example, you must ask yourself if it has adequate storage space. The typical trunk on the average small car is not exactly spacious, and if one is not careful, they could be looking at using the passenger seat for most of the organisation and storage that they require. If you do have a small amount of storage space, use boxes and vinyl zipper bags that can be used to contain most types of document and other materials such as stationery. They can also be compartmentalised, which means easy organisation of all of your important documents while you are travelling. The good news here then is that even if you have a small amount of trunk space you can still use it to prepare yourself for meetings and other business appointments.
A word of warning on this, however. If it is also used as a family car, you may have to consider all of the things that you need to leave in it on a regular basis, such as car seats, and other things that have to stay in the vehicle the whole year round. Think carefully about this, and decide whether or not the car is suited to your needs when it comes to business. If it isn’t, maybe it is time that you scaled up to a bigger car that you could utilise for business.
And when you choose storage products for your mobile office, take the time to research. It is very easy to get carried away and go for the stylish option, when what you really need is tough durable storage that can withstand the knocks and bumps that being on the road can bring to your vehicle. Buy boxes and storage units that can withstand most anything. They are a better investment in the long run, and will boost your business by protecting key documents and materials from the worst.
When it comes to keeping records in your car, many road office users like to total up their mileage and keep the details to hand in the vehicle. The reason for this is that it will be a lot easier when it comes to tax time to fill in returns. This means that you also stay focused on using the car as a business vehicle.
There are many other tips and ideas that you could utilise to help you make the most of your car as an office. Just remember that most people fail in business because they do not believe in what they are doing. Having a car office means believing in it, and treating it with an appropriate level of respect.
The Three Key Organisational Tools for Your In-Car Office
In these busy times, many people are now finding that they can derive massive benefit from running an office from their car. Salespeople are the most obvious choice in this area. They run from appointment to appointment, and while doing this they can also run up a massive, unproductive mess in their vehicles. Some salespeople have taken this as an opportunity, however. They realise that they have to pretty much run an office from their car. When it comes to organising their week, for example, they have to do a lot of this from their vehicle. In addition, their day has to be organised too. Having the foresight to run a healthy working day out of their car makes all the difference to their wellbeing and their stress levels.
Let us take the most basic problem that many people who work on the road have. Say you have to meet an important client. They have a ten o’clock with you. The meeting is incredibly important, because the outcome could mean a major sale for you and your firm. So you are on the road, and primed for the meeting.
When you get there however, you realise that the major document that you need that client to sign is not in your car. Normally you are pretty efficient. However, with this client, the document that you need to clinch the deal is on your kitchen table, rather than your passenger seat. So the outcome is a lost sale.
It does not have to be a sales matter. You could be a consultant, who has a number of appointments in a day with high powered clients who demand the best service. They are relying upon you for information and advice that can help them run their organisation better. If you turn up without that key information, the end result is a loss of business. You have to be reliable, and if you are not, because the key documents are in your home or place of work, then you will lose trust, and money.
There are a number of measures that you can take that will transform the organisation of your in-car office. For the purposes of this article however, let us focus on just three core essentials.
The first and most important piece of advice that you can take on board is to make sure that your organisation is impeccable. In fact, there is absolutely no margin for error here. If you are not organised, scenarios like those above will occur, and you will find yourself leaving key documents at home, or not turning up with some document that you promised to bring.
So get a calendar. Everyone is now reachable by cell phone. This means that they could very easily call you out of the blue and make an appointment or change an appointment. You must have a calendar that is handy. You can have a paper one to hand and use that one. Or alternatively, you can buy a PDA (Personal Data Assistant) and synch that with your computer when you get home. Whatever you do, if you do not have a calendar that you can access when you are in the car, you cannot run an effective office from your car. For salespeople and consultants in particular, this is crucial. Not being able to input key information into your schedule on the fly will cost you money.
If a client calls up when you are on the road you will want to make notes if that call turns into an extended conversation. It is extremely important that your car has some kind of notepad in it. This can be a paper or electronic one, it does not matter. Whatever shape it takes, make sure that it is easy to access, and allows you to make notes quickly.
Finally, index cards should be part of your in-car office stationery. If someone calls you, or you have a thought that you need to get down, having these little cards to hand means that you can record the info and then input them into your at-home or office organisational tool. Carry a pack in your case or your pocket. They are invaluable.
Take these three core tools on board, and use them in your day-to-day work. Running an office from your car is easy, as long as you know how to organise yourself. These simple ideas will help you to do that.
Nissan NV200
Nissan NV200
With so many people now taking their work on the road with them, there have been many attempts in the past to create a vehicle that could service their needs. Most people use their conventional car as an office, and there is an art to this. Some choose to keep the car clean and tidy, and install small but useful space-saving solutions that ensure that any work that is done is carefully organised and easily accessible.
The challenge of making the conventional car into an office space without making it cluttered and unusable is a considerable one, and having a vehicle that can meet the needs without any compromises is what many car office workers wish for. Some people have even gone to the lengths of customising their van and making that into an office, due to its size.
For decades now the road van has gone through few modifications. Designed purely for functionality, the van carries working men and women across the town and country, stopping now and then for fuel and work. There really hasn’t seemed to be a need for the van to be changed. What could you possibly do to the humble road van anyway? It is functional, and that is it.
Some car makers have made inroads into making vans that are specifically to be used as offices. Well, Nissan have taken the whole thing one step further. Aware that people who use the van do, at some stage, wish it was little bit more functional, they have risen to the challenge with their concept vehicle, the Nissan NV200. This van is more than something special, it is an actually a van that functions exceedingly well as an alternative office. In fact, it could quite easily be used as an office.
The company’s aim was to improve the looks of all those office on the road vehicles that re out there at the moment. It is a relatively new genre when it comes to the automotive field, and some bi players are involved. However, there have been few really good looking office vans. Functionality has more often than not won out, with the office vans that have been released recently looking like boring old trucks, with no concession to the aesthetic ideal.
What Nissan have done with the NV200 is to make a van that functions better than most offices do. They have also gone for the looks factor too, with a vehicle that no one would say is ugly, or boring.
The vehicle has been developed for the needs of someone who has to regularly take their office out on the road. Tough and durable on both the inside and out, it has been utilised by people in the scientific community, who often have to work with delicate materials, as well as use the latest computer hardware and software in order to get their office work done.
It has a massive 2820 mm wheelbase, and is a whopping 1820 mm tall, which makes it one of the best vehicles on the road for storage space. This gives it an immediate edge over many of its competitors. Nissan have obviously gone for something that would cover all of the bases when someone has to work on the road. You can pretty much store anything in this van, whatever your work patterns or field.
The interior of the van can, within seconds, be converted into a mobile office. When we say ‘office’ we mean office, with pretty much everything you could possibly desire for on the road working coming with the van’s setup. This is an incredible vehicle, with a desk folding down easily inside that is spacious and very workable. Alongside this there are two LCD monitors, which can be used for extra screens if you are working on a project that is particularly complex. A laptop that goes with the monitor and desk setup is provided in a shockproof case just beneath. The basic setup for an office can be achieved in around ten seconds.
Add to this s a host of other features, and you have a vehicle that can be used for office work while you are on the road. An exceptional vehicle, and understandably lauded as the future of on the road office work.
Ultimate Road Office?
The Ultimate Road Office?
A great number of professionals are now seeing the amazing value that a mobile office can bring. From salespeople to consultants rushing to their next seminar or presentation, using your road vehicle as a mobile base for organisation is fast becoming the way forward. One of the best ways to make use of your car in this situation is to find a way to maximise the space you have. People have used special compartments with Velcro fastenings that can be fitted inside the trunk, and therefore easily used to compartmentalise all of the materials and resources that you need in your busy life on the road.
Other examples of using the vehicle space well include utilising the glove compartment more effectively, and stuffing it full of quality healthcare products. People who use the road a lot find their health waning if they are not careful. Using vitamins and other supplements, as well as basic first aid materials, is essential. Finding a way to store them effectively is one of the key skills needed of you are using a ‘mobile office’.
However, some people have taken the whole thing one step further. They have designed vehicles specifically made for professional life on the road, vans that are, essentially, truly mobile offices, with the space and resources that enable the user to have a base from which to work while on the road.
Take Scott Jones’ vehicle, for example. Jones is s a CEO, he operates Escient Technologies. He is a very busy man, and he uses a very special vehicle to allow him to keep in touch when he is travelling. This vehicle makes it easy for him to ‘stay in the office’ even when he is on the road, miles from his usual desk. The vehicle is a Chevrolet Extended Van. He has tinted windows on the outside and a second office on the inside.
Jones is a philanthropist and an accomplished entrepreneur in the field of high tech equipment and applications. Widely recognised as a key figure in voice mail, he is credited with bringing revolutionary technology to the multiple user field of voice mail applications.
He has also been instrumental in helping many technology firms get off the bottom rung of the ladder and get started in the field. One of these companies is Bostech, which is an e-commerce country that is based in Indiana. Taking all of this into account and his own work with his own companies, it is no surprise that his friends and colleagues describe him simply as a ‘busy man’.
Resources
A busy man needs the kind of resources that enable him to make the most of his time. Knowing this, Jones and his team worked to create a vehicle that could be used as a true mobile office. They called it ‘Digital Wheels’. Looking like any other black Chevy van from the outside, it is only when the back doors are flung open that you see the amazing array of incredible high tech machinery and hardware that makes ’Digital Wheels’ Jones’ office on the road. When Jones does business, electronics and hardware that are found in the back of the van are the nerve centre that allows his work to be done.
All of the many tasks that we face on a daily basis are easily managed from inside the Digital Wheels van. So Jones wants to reply to an email? Easy, he has all that he needs to check every aspect of email communications in the van. This means coordinating his email campaigns, or replying at length to important emails that concern the many concerns that he manages.
He can take phone calls as easily as you or I can when we use our bricks and mortar offices. Conference calls can be conducted from the back of the van easily and effectively, with no disruption or fuss. When it comes to searching the web (remember his niche) Jones can do this just as easily as if he were sitting in his normal office. And if he wants to sit down and watch a web presentation or some video that is pertinent to his job, he can kick back and do this in the comfort of the Digital Wheels vehicle.
Full Meeting Potential
What is more, he also has the facilities inside the van for a meeting. This is a real meeting, with a conference table that allows up to eight people to enter the van and hold a discussion, just the same as if they were meeting up in Jones’ real life offices. Imagine the scope of the activities that could take place in the back of the van. Having the conference table and the high tech equipment means that Jones can hold meetings with many clients and associates, without being anywhere near where his company is located. The potential is huge.
His Internet access is second to none. He has high speed Internet access that is totally mobile. This means that the high speed access he enjoys in the office is replicated in the van, even while the vehicle is moving. Again, this brings explosive impact to his business dealings. He is not limited by speed or access potential.
Add to this a colour laser printer that allows him to print out key documents while on the road, and you can see why, when it comes to document handling and management, Jones has nothing to limit his activity.
He also enjoys a phenomenal touch screen interface in the van, which enables him to access all of the audio and video services that the van has installed. This is true functionality, with Jones being able to draw on any of his resources without having to endure fiddly interfaces and downtime.
There are also three LCD screens that are at the cutting edge of viewing technology. These screens allow every person who is in the van (including the driver) to view anything that has been called up onscreen. The potential for meetings and presentations is incredible.
Add to this hands free phone technology, a GPs system to rival most any other system on the planet, and three onboard telephones, and you can see why Jones and his staff think they have cracked the mobile office problem.
The system works well, because it allows Jones to conduct real meetings while on the road. All aspects of the meeting can be conducted for within his van, including presentations, and full discussion of all the key issues a meeting brings up.
The office also allows Jones to communicate with anyone on the planet who has a telephone or Internet connection. This allows him to manage his business while on the road, as well as talk to people who help him to do business while travelling.
He finds it useful when commuting to and from his home office, and also prefers to use the van rather than fly, simply due to the functionality that he enjoys while inside it.
Not Just Work…
He also uses the van for family life, entertaining his son while on the road. So it is no surprise that the van comes with a complete home cinema set-up, with full audio and visual Nirvana for him and his son to enjoy. It has digital quality television reception, even while on the go. In addition to this, it has a rear-mounted CD player unit, so that everyone in the vehicle can hear music while the van is moving.
An interesting problem that can come with vehicles like this is a down-to-earth issue, that of suspension. The shock absorbers on the vehicle are heavy duty and this is due to the fact that a simple bump in the road could cause problems to all of the equipment in the van. It would be no good to Jones, for example, if he lost the telephone connection, or his email access. So the makers of the van took this into account.
When it comes to price, there is a shock in store. Jones was asked recently how much the vehicle cost. He replied in a cryptic fashion, stating that Digital Wheels cost more than a Rolls Royce but less than a Lamborghini. This prices the modifications required to the Chevy out of the reach of most companies. However, the van does allow Jones to take eight staff members with him on the road to a meeting or a conference. It also allows him to be in touch at all times. Obviously, his company feels he is worth it.
Car as an office
More and more people are finding themselves using their car as an office environment. This is due to the fact that many of us travel from meeting tom meeting these days. Take the salesperson that has to meet clients in many different locations, sometimes all in one day. It makes absolutely clear sense to make sure that you car is a very organised and productive environment. Treating your car as a business environment means that you can rely upon it as a support tool when you are conducting business on the road. While it may seem most obvious that a salesperson would benefit from a productive car environment, it also applies to other professions too. Take the consultant who has to make meetings and conferences in many different locations during the week. Or the speaker who has to do the same. This article outlines some simple organisational techniques that one can use to make their car a mobile office.
Make sure, for example, that you have an easy to use calendar in your car. Whether this is on a PDA or cell phone, or a paper calendar that you can access on the passenger seat, make sure it is simple to operate and that you can view a week at a time. This way you can always be certain of not missing an appointment in the next few days. It can be argued that the well-run calendar is the one thing that makes busy people effective. Ignore this vital aspect of your working life, and you could very quickly find yourself swamped by work demands that could easily have been lessened with some careful use of a calendar.
Apart from a good calendar, the only other vital part of your day-to-day car office is note taking. Because we are all reachable via our cell phones, clients will often use this as a good way to change appointments, or to make new ones. Also, you may be driving along, and suddenly gain an insight into an aspect of the current project, or even just have a great idea that needs to be recorded. Having a practical notebook to hand, or even some index cards that can be quickly accessed, will mean the difference between being able to record important ideas, and allowing these ideas to fall by the wayside. Part of making anyone’s job fun and rewarding is having ideas that help you to develop. Not being able to record ideas will make your job a lot harder and a lot less satisfying.
Then we lead onto the good stuff. If you have a CD player (and most cars do) then invest in some good business CDs, or motivational CDs, to help make your journey a more productive one. There is nothing more positive than having words of wisdom pumped into your car while you are driving. It is always important to keep motivated, and having this resource to call upon is most definitely worthwhile.
When it comes to what you put in your trunk, you can get a lot more creative, and actually utilise this small space to your advantage. For example, you can quite easily find special containers that re designed specifically to be used in trunks to save space. These containers generally have Velcro or other fixings on their base, which means if there is a sudden lurch in traffic; the stuff you keep in your trunk will not go flying and get lost. It also means that the stuff you keep in your trunk will not be dislodged and fly at you or a passenger.
If you need to carry product samples in your trunk, get them organised into plastic bins or containers. Being organised in this way means that you won’t forget anything. It also means that you will be able to lay your hands on important materials at key moments, rather than waste time searching around in the trunk.
So there are some ideas that will help you towards you goal of making your car office a more productive and positive area. Many people now use their cars as offices, but they can only do that if they make a conscious effort to organise the space with care and attention.
Car converted to office
Ever felt like you spend more time in your car than in your office? Ever felt that your car should have a coffee maker in it, as well as a water cooler? The number of people these days who use their car as an actual office on wheels is getting larger and larger, with more of us understanding that using the car is a sensible way to get more out of our working day.
Salespeople, consultants, anyone who travels from appointment to appointment will have a clear reason to get more out of using their car as an office in an effective way. There are techniques out there that have been practised by many and that improve your management of what is swiftly becoming a preferred place from which to organise your working day. Taking some of these ideas on board can help to make your car office even more effective than it is now. From time saving devices to tools that enable you to plan out your working week from the driver’s seat, there are now hundreds of solutions out there to improve your car office management.
One word of warning however. Anyone who does not take the management of their car office seriously runs the risk of losing out. Once you get involved in using this space as an alternative to your office, there is every chance that you will come to rely upon it. Not using self-discipline, and commitment, and a similar approach to that which you use in the real office, could mean that your car office becomes cluttered, and impossible to work in and from.
So, when is a car office best utilised? Well, think of the last time you were in a traffic jam. Pretty frustrating, right? Exactly. So what did you do? Well, if you are anything like the thousands of people out there who are utilising their car in a more effective fashion, you will have reached for your cell phone, and perhaps your laptop, and made a few business decisions, or even called a few prospects or clients. This is fast becoming the norm for many people. Using the car in this way has the benefit of ensuring that you can tie up a deal on the way to the net one on your list. You can even seal a deal on the way t the negotiation if you are shrewd enough.
With this advent of newer and fresher technology, much more of us can be found working in places that are not traditional office environments. For example, there are a large number of people who take their laptops to restaurants and parks, and type away on them, finishing work and dealing with business in a place that is not normally viewed to be conducive. The number of people who regularly forgo the sleeping time on a train and instead spend it on their computer is rising rapidly too. Which brings us to cars.
So many cars these days have an electronic power source, which means that they can be use dot power the laptop that you have. This has lead to more people stopping their car in parts of town, just t finish a presentation before they get to work. Or it could mean that we can stop and type out an email while waiting in traffic. Whatever it means, in car office work is growing.
The obvious client group is that of the sales force. They are used to contacting clients by cell phone while they are on the move, now they are also becoming used to stopping their cars and tapping out an email, or preparing a presentation. This is all on the way to a client’s office. The end result is increased productivity, and les stress. This leaves the sales force to have more energy to do what they need to do, which is make money.
Consultants on the way to make a presentation to a high powered client can spend time honing their presentation in the car park before the big moment. This gives instant privacy, and a place in which they can focus their mind without distraction. This leads to better quality work.
Office work from the car is fats becoming the norm. It will continue to become more popular as people realise that the number of things you can do on the road increases with every advance in cell phone, laptop and wireless computing technology.
Work from your car
The way we do business has changed dramatically in the last few years. The train has now become a second office for millions of people, with some newer trains even offering power sources to recharge laptops and PDAs with. The number of commuters who regularly spend their commute time working has multiplied in a massive way, especially since the nineties. All one has to do is board the train, then hook up your laptop, and the work that needs doing before you reach the office, gets done.
There are even office share schemes, where people can visit a town or country and rent a desk form which they can make their calls and send their emails. It allows them to catch up on paperwork, as well as have the option of having mail forwarded. These schemes are run on an international basis, with ‘desk sharing’ an option in most countries.
However, one of the biggest breakthroughs when it comes to adaptive working has been the car office idea. This is where someone, through reasons of necessity, uses their car as an office space. To understand this more easily, think of travelling salespeople, who have to store documents, and essentially run their office from their car as they travel from meeting to meeting.
The last article looked at some basic principles for making car office work more productive and effective for you. This one goes a little deeper, and focuses on a few more ways in which your car office can become your base of work.
We looked at issues such as self-motivation in the last article. One other clear issue is the fact that, on a more practical level, you really should investigate whether or not you are running the most economical car. If you do not have a company car (and these are gradually disappearing) then you have to ensure that the car you use will give you the best value for money. The office car can be very useful indeed, but if it is costing you more than it should to run, you are on a false economy.
Invest in a quality ‘week at a glance’ calendar. These are inexpensive, and can be placed on the passenger seat so that you can quickly see where you are at any stage in the week. Their real value comes in when a client calls and asks if you are able to attend a meeting or conference etc. Having the calendar there in front of you means that you can answer these questions quickly and without any fuss, therefore making you more efficient.
And practise some self discipline when it comes to punctuality too. Always allow an extra ten minutes travel time wherever you are going and for whatever purpose. This ensures that you will always be on time, even if there is a little hold up in traffic, or some other unforeseeable circumstance. This makes you look more professional and more effective, therefore bringing you more business in the long run.
On a more practical note, keep your glove compartment well-stocked with all the stuff that you need on the road, such as tissues, throat sweets, and vitamins. This is essential for your well-being, and should be a major part of your preparation routine. Invest in the time and money it will take to do this, and you will feel much better prepared for the rigours of the road.
And because you are treating your car as an office, keep it clean. Wash it regularly and make sure that you get it valeted every now and then. There is every chance that you will have to transport clients to and from meetings etc. If you do not have a car that you can be proud of, the impression that you will leave on the important people will be negative. So treat your car with some respect.
So these two articles gave you some basic tips on how to get the best out of your car office. Follow them carefully, and they will add that something extra to your experience on the road.
Make your car office productive
The way people do business and conduct their work has changed in massive ways over the last few years. People are working more on trains for example. The trains have special plug points where workers can plug in their laptops, and then the normal office routine can pretty much run to plan, with emails being sent through wireless hubs on the train, and documents being prepared. This is no longer new. In fact, many people work on their way to work, as part of their daily commute. Rather than sit there and look at the view out of the train window, they spend their time ensuring that the report has been finished, or the presentation is ready and fine tuned for later that day.
However, what has become more prevalent in recent years has been the trend towards in car working. People are now spending a lot more time in their cars, travelling from appointment to appointment, or presentation to presentation, or even just to a meeting. The trend has become so prevalent, in fact, that people are now looking for ways to turn their car into a real office. There are actually vehicles made now by major automobile companies that are specifically designed to promote office work. But even if you do not own one of these fantastic machines, you can still capitalise on the space that you do have, and make your car an effective office on wheels.
One of the first challenges that will affect anyone who tries to make their car into an effective office is that of information, or rather the lack of it. A car office is only a car office if it can do the same job as a conventional one. Not having that important document in your car office means that you are not using the space wisely. One way to combat this is to make absolutely sure that you pack your stuff the night before the big meeting. This means spending just ten minutes ensuring that everything you need for the next day is there in your car and ready. And when we say ready we mean to hand, in other words easily accessible. Remember, there is absolutely no point in treating your car likes an office if it does not have the systems in place that make it an office. One of those systems is making sure that you prepare everything the night before.
Equally important is that you know where everything is. Many people who use their car as an office tend to place their work in easily manageable compartments in the trunk. Many stationery companies now produce simple compartments, often made of a fabric, which can be stuck to the floor of the trunk of a car. This means that you can effectively organise the trunk as you would a drawer or filing cabinet at work. Having the entire account documents in one compartment, for example, means that they will not be lost, and when you need to find them, they are always in the same place. While this may seem a little anally retentive, the amount of problems that occur due to the fact that a car worker does not have the right documents is reason enough to invest today.
Another good tip if you intend to use your car as an office is to become very self-motivated. It is so easy these days to be distracted by what is on offer just outside the car environment. When driving, the number of cafes and restaurants that are around can easily take your mind off the work that you have to do. Do not be seduced by these, it will waste your time. Build in a lunch break just like you normally would, otherwise you will be stopping endlessly for coffees and pastries, and not focusing on getting the most out of your day.
Still on the subject of food, make a real effort to not eat in your car. This almost goes without saying, but your aim is to treat your car office like the real one. You wouldn’t treat your office in such an awful way, so don’t eat in your car. Otherwise everything just feels unprofessional.
The next article in this two part series will explore more ways in which you can make your car office environment more productive.
Organisational Tools for Your In-Car Office
In these busy times, many people are now finding that they can derive massive benefit from running an office from their car. Salespeople are the most obvious choice in this area. They run from appointment to appointment, and while doing this they can also run up a massive, unproductive mess in their vehicles. Some salespeople have taken this as an opportunity, however. They realise that they have to pretty much run an office from their car. When it comes to organising their week, for example, they have to do a lot of this from their vehicle. In addition, their day has to be organised too. Having the foresight to run a healthy working day out of their car makes all the difference to their wellbeing and their stress levels.
Let us take the most basic problem that many people who work on the road have. Say you have to meet an important client. They have a ten o’clock with you. The meeting is incredibly important, because the outcome could mean a major sale for you and your firm. So you are on the road, and primed for the meeting.
When you get there however, you realise that the major document that you need that client to sign is not in your car. Normally you are pretty efficient. However, with this client, the document that you need to clinch the deal is on your kitchen table, rather than your passenger seat. So the outcome is a lost sale.
It does not have to be a sales matter. You could be a consultant, who has a number of appointments in a day with high powered clients who demand the best service. They are relying upon you for information and advice that can help them run their organisation better. If you turn up without that key information, the end result is a loss of business. You have to be reliable, and if you are not, because the key documents are in your home or place of work, then you will lose trust, and money.
There are a number of measures that you can take that will transform the organisation of your in-car office. For the purposes of this article however, let us focus on just three core essentials.
The first and most important piece of advice that you can take on board is to make sure that your organisation is impeccable. In fact, there is absolutely no margin for error here. If you are not organised, scenarios like those above will occur, and you will find yourself leaving key documents at home, or not turning up with some document that you promised to bring.
So get a calendar. Everyone is now reachable by cell phone. This means that they could very easily call you out of the blue and make an appointment or change an appointment. You must have a calendar that is handy. You can have a paper one to hand and use that one. Or alternatively, you can buy a PDA (Personal Data Assistant) and synch that with your computer when you get home. Whatever you do, if you do not have a calendar that you can access when you are in the car, you cannot run an effective office from your car. For salespeople and consultants in particular, this is crucial. Not being able to input key information into your schedule on the fly will cost you money.
If a client calls up when you are on the road you will want to make notes if that call turns into an extended conversation. It is extremely important that your car has some kind of notepad in it. This can be a paper or electronic one, it does not matter. Whatever shape it takes, make sure that it is easy to access, and allows you to make notes quickly.
Finally, index cards should be part of your in-car office stationery. If someone calls you, or you have a thought that you need to get down, having these little cards to hand means that you can record the info and then input them into your at-home or office organisational tool. Carry a pack in your case or your pocket. They are invaluable.
Take these three core tools on board, and use them in your day-to-day work. Running an office from your car is easy, as long as you know how to organise yourself. These simple ideas will help you to do that.