How to Travel With Co-Workers

Traveling with co-workers isn't always easy. If you and your colleagues are attending an out-of-town meeting, conference or other event, your company's management may require that you travel together. Though this can be initially awkward if you don't know your co-workers well, it's also an opportunity to get to know them better. You may find that you have more in common than you thought.

Instructions

1

Decide who should drive if you're driving together. It's a positive gesture to ask if anyone really wants to drive or wants to avoid driving. If you do so, no one is offended before the trip even begins.

2

Talk about personal interests rather than just work. One of the biggest problems of spending time away from work with your co-workers is that they often will talk about work. If you're not at work, you might not want to think about it. Jokingly create a "no work talk" rule for the trip or for part of it. For example, if you're driving to a meeting, talk about work only in the last part of your trip, to help you prepare for the meeting.

3

Exercise patience if you don't get along with some people in the group. It's not likely that you'll be friends with every colleague, and nothing that says you have to be. It's important, however, to be patient and civil. Tension between co-workers can make the trip awkward for the other people and lead to problems at work once the trip is over.

4

Give everyone a chance to talk by asking the quiet people questions or directing comments toward them. Often, when a group of individuals gets together, one or more people dominate the conversation because they enjoy talking. When everyone gets his say equally, everyone will feel more like a team and not resent those who talk the most.

5

Develop a payment plan if you are eating out or buying snacks together. If you're the boss, it's appropriate that you pick up the tab, which you can later expense. Your co-workers may expect that you'll do so, so be aware of this and ready to act quickly when the bill comes at a restaurant, for example.