Five Cities, Four Flights, Twelve Lessons (None about business)

A friend recently forwarded me an Instagram post making fun of those LinkedIn posts where someone relates a personal experience to business. You know the ones: “My toddler taught me about quarterly planning.” I felt so seen—and so called out. Because of course I do that. I’m constantly relating life to leadership.

So I’m trying something different. Here’s what I learned on my recent trip to Australia, with zero business tie-ins. Maybe you’ll find something useful for your next trip? Maybe you’ll just get a laugh?

The Trip

We headed to Australia at the beginning of April for two weeks, ostensibly to visit my son, a junior studying abroad at the University of Sydney, and to take my mom, who’s 84 and had always wanted to go. Because it was such a big trip, we managed to lure our oldest son—24, living and working on his own in Seattle—to join us. The full family, together – what an unusual and amazing gift!

The Takeaways

1. You can see too much.

We hit five places in two weeks, which meant four internal flights within Australia as well as numerous car and touring bus days. We were constantly on the move. What we learned: adult kids want more downtime. They also want more time away from their parents. Future trips need fewer destinations and more “choose your own adventure” time built in.

2. Jet lag is real.

Someone recommended a jet lag product to me years ago when I was doing work in Japan, and I’ve used it ever since. It worked beautifully going to Australia and I didn’t use it coming home. I’ve been wrecked. My oldest son, a firm believer in data, is convinced it’s pure placebo. I’ve told him I’m fine with using placebos if they help me. (Note after writing this: now they have 1 published research article on their website.)

Either way, my lesson was this: do your future self a favor and plan lighter days after returning from a major time zone shift. Back-to-back meetings while jet-lagged is brutal and by the time you hit the evening, you are done-for. I should know, since this was my last week. . .

3. Know how to take a photo.

We kept asking strangers to take family photos. Quality ranged from brilliant to horrific. Admittedly, I’m not great behind the camera. My daughter, a savvy Gen Z-er, knows exactly how to angle the shot. My mom’s photos were the worst. (Is she even a Baby Boomer? She’s 84—I think that’s Silent Generation. Something to look up.)

Anyway: if you need a good photo, hand your phone to a Gen Z-er.

4. Checking email on vacation is fine—if nothing is urgent.

I don’t mind popping open my laptop during downtime to make sure things are running smoothly. What’s stressful is when something needs a response by a certain time. I had set up enough backup plans that this wasn’t an issue for me. My husband, however, had a few time-sensitive things and felt the pressure more.

The distinction matters: occasional, flexible check-ins are fine. Deadlines hanging over your head while you’re trying to relax are not.

5. Choose charming and memorable over convenient and generic.

Some of our hotels were in truly unique spots—one in a Tasmanian national park, another in the rainforest. Those came from recommendations by someone who knew Australia well. The city hotels we booked through generic TripAdvisor reviews were forgettable. In retrospect, I wish we’d indexed more on character—even if it meant slower internet or no convenient restaurant.

6. Bring your own snacks.

Other countries do not have the same airport snacks you’re used to. Australian airports, even the big international ones, had almost nothing I wanted to eat. Before our long flight home, I made a point to stop at a grocery store. Much better. If you’re picky about travel snacks, bring your own or build time into your itinerary for a proper store run.

7. Don’t commit to seeing people you can’t realistically see.

We sometimes think, “Oh, we know someone there—let’s try to meet up!” But when you’re traveling with family and that’s the priority, scheduling with someone else rarely works. It conflicts with what everyone else wants to do. Trust me: it’s probably not the trip for it. (Says someone who couldn’t make it happen because I realized this after 3 back-and-forth rounds of planning!)

8. Build in time for hiking (or whatever spells rest for you).

Even with all our busyness, we had a couple of days set aside for hiking and relaxing. Those were the best days. If you’re a hiker and you’re going somewhere beautiful, find a great trail. I was surprised to open AllTrails and see how well it covered Australia.

9. There are usually lots of good options—don’t fret.

My oldest son made a reservation at an Indian restaurant based on Google reviews. On the way there, our Uber driver, who was Indian himself, said, “You don’t want to go there—you want to go here.” Family debate ensued. We overruled my son and followed the driver’s advice. It was lovely. But honestly? It wasn’t the best meal of the trip. We could have easily stuck with the original plan. Moral: there are many good options. Don’t agonize.

10. Call ahead anyway.

In Tasmania, with about three restaurant options total, we decided to just show up at one. I told my husband to make a reservation. My husband said, “They don’t mention reservations on the website—it’s fine.” It was not fine. We showed up to a big sign saying “Reservations only.” The second place was closed. The third initially refused to seat us until we begged. Rule of thumb, especially traveling as a group of six: just call ahead. Even if you think you don’t need to.

11. Pick a souvenir tradition.

My daughter collects postcards from every place we visit, writes notes to herself on them, and hangs them on her wall. My son used to collect wallets. I don’t have a tradition like this, but I think it’s a great idea. I did bring home an opal—mined in Australia—as a small memento. If you’re like me, it’s less about finding the best thing and more about having something that brings back the memory and doesn’t feel like junk once you return home. So if you see something that does that, just get it.

12. The 8 Elements of Humor (I remember three)

If you have the chance to hire a stand-up comedian as a tour guide, do it. One of our Melbourne guides was scouted by the travel agency after they saw him doing stand-up—apparently there’s a market for comedic tour guides. We didn’t request one, but after eight hours sitting next to him in the van, I appreciated his storytelling and funny one-offs. He even explained the eight elements of humor (surprise, hyperbole, mismatched expectations … I can’t remember the rest). Not a bad way to pass the time.

That’s what I learned in Australia. No leadership lessons. Just life.