Stress-free travel with an 'active trip' note

This post has an accompanying video. Become a Personal member to view it.

I recently found myself in an airport immigration queue, passport in hand, metres from the counter. At this moment my brain reminded me of something very important:

  1. Yesterday, I filled in an immigration form and saved a QR code.
  2. I need this QR code now, right now, this instant.
  3. I've no idea where it is.1

In these moments, it's like you're a newborn. You don't know the place, the people, or the language. Your phone probably isn't on the local network. You're helpless, and you know it.

There is also a small window of opportunity to be at the front of the line. I pay an extra $20 to sit up front so that I'm one of the first off the plane. And now I'm about to ruin it by not being organised. Me!

The shame. It hit me like a brick. Wait until they hear about this…

How to not be 'that guy' who holds up the line

So I solved it with a really simple process. I've been using it for a few months now and it works. Make this a habit and never stress again.

This tip isn't limited to travel. Think about any situation where you find yourself needing a piece of information. Current you – un-stressed you, sitting-on-the-couch you – has easy access to it. So let's help future you – first-in-line you, holding-people-up you – by making it as easy to find as possible.

1. Create a new entry in your JDex

If you use Life Admin, there's already a place. Attach this note to the ID 15.21 Important documents & lists.2

Do that by creating a new note called 15.21+ Active trip.

2. Load it up

At the start of the trip, clear the note. Start fresh. It's not a diary.

Add your boarding passes, QR codes, train tickets, and Airbnb checkin instructions. Put them in the note in the order that you'll need them.

Add nothing else to the note. It must be a place of calm.

3. Add a widget to your home screen

Good notes apps will let you add a 'widget' to your home screen that opens a specific note. Bear and Apple Notes do this.

Add a widget that opens this note.

That's it. Now all you need to remember is to open that note.

Video

In the video for this post, I show you exactly how to set this all up. And at the end I give you some tips for getting QR codes and boarding passes out of websites and your email, and into this note.

Become a Personal member to view it, and get the Life Admin System and all future Personal videos.

Footnotes

  1. Of course, it was already in my JDex. I had saved it, in a trip-specific entry. Lucy was next to me in the queue and she said, surely it's in your JDex?

    But in that moment what I needed was a habit. This is that habit. ↩

  2. Small Business has this at 15.11. ↩