Handling uncertainty has been one of the hardest but most necessary skills in this travel life. I face uncertainty daily in schedule, sleep patterns, paychecks, band dynamics, meal times, etc. For that, I look for consistency anywhere I can. Routines and familiarity are key. Here are some of my daily tricks:

• Start your day the same way. Your mind and body will be able to handle far more travel uncertainties if you feed it some consistency in the morning. Plus, it just feels good. Self-care is key! My morning: Something physical (stretching/physical therapy/workout), a cold shower, and a little time enjoying Instagram (obvi.)

• End your evening the same way. Spending a few minutes setting out your essentials will make your morning easier. Nobody has time in the morning to dig through a bag, design outfits, or discover you’ve left something behind. “Morning You” will thank “Nighttime You.” (This might mean doing this before you start enjoying the evening’s cocktails… 😀 ) 

• Allow alerts from apps, but use the “Do Not Disturb” function. Travel makes it hard to keep up with the rest of the world. It’s easy to miss large current events, friends’ birthdays, social media campaigns, etc. Rather than actively searching headlines or social media while traveling, I allow apps to send me alerts, BUT, all phones have a convenient “Do Not Disturb” function that blocks them when you’d like to be left alone. Some days I leave DND on all day. I usually allow alerts from news, weather, certain email and social media apps. (If you’re vacationing, you might skip this. Go off the grid!) 

• Don’t pack new clothes. It’s tempting to go on a shopping spree before a big trip, but trust me, it’s not worth the risk. Those new shoes will give you blisters and that new sweater will itch you into a frenzy.  It’s easy to have lofty clothing goals when you’re at home in front of your own closet, but as soon as you’re traveling it’s very unsettling to open a suitcase of brand new items. Comfort in your clothes frees your mind to enjoy the trip! (One exception: a new item/outfit for some type of one-time occasion, like a formal dress for a wedding.) If you insist on needing something new for travel, give yourself a week or two to try it out in several scenarios. I learned this lesson on a long walk through cold, rainy Dublin wearing a little leather jacket and painful heels. Both felt great at home, but had no place on an Irish excursion. I was fed up enough to leave them behind in my hotel room, never to be seen again. Housekeeping probably had a good laugh.

• Keep lists for EVERYTHING.

• Pack a “comfort sack.” My bag is my best friend. It keeps all the things that make me happy: my phone, my journal, snacks, my favorite scents, etc. Little familiarities throughout the day are wildly helpful and can be very comforting when experiencing so many new scenarios. (I’ll list my whole packing list in a future post as well.)

• Carve time for “adulting.” Traveling for extended periods can cause the stress of “neglecting responsibilities” to set in, so take a litle time to address things back home. I pick a few mornings on tour where I do normal things like pay bills, do laundry, and check in with family. It helps me feel grounded, and allows me to keep a firm grasp on life outside of the trip.

• Don’t be afraid of chains. It gets risky to fill yourself with nothing but brand new, foreign foods every day. Of course we’d prefer to go local, but sometimes chains are your best bet for consistency.  I decide my “splurge days” to eat local (more in a previous hacks list: link here) but I don’t feel guilty for going with something I know and like in between. I’ll pick up a Subway sandwich, Starbucks parfait, or a few staples from the hotel breakfast and not think twice about it.

• Pick your media subscriptions. This may sound a bit crazy, but the familiar voices of your favorite movie or TV series can be wildly comforting. If you’re traveling a lot, this would be worth a Netflix or Hulu subscription. I often have an episode of the BBC’s Planet Earth on while I’m working in my hotel room, and regularly refer to Kathy and Hoda from the NBC’s Today Show as my “friends,” since they accompany a lot of my morning routines.

• Make a playlist for the trip. Listening to the same list of songs while you’re traveling is a nice consistency and also solidifies your memory of the trip. The opening to Taylor Swift’s new album will always take me back to the morning darkness of my Anchorage hotel room and I love that!

Nashville’s playlist ⬇. Follow me on Spotify here.