Are you excited about your new travel assignment and overwhelmed at the prospect of moving? It can be stressful to pack up your life in one city and head to another but with a bit of organizing and planning, you will be ready.
Leaving home for an extended period of time like a 13-week travel assignment means a bit of planning to make your sure your home, pets, and personal business are cared for. Here is a helpful list of things to make sure you do before you leave.
- Forward mail using the USPS website.
- Make a list of items like toiletries, groceries, and household items that you need to buy when you arrive at your destination.
- Update documents that may be expiring like certifications, driver’s license, insurance, and pet license.
- Get current vaccinations for pets. If you’re going to a different state, ask the vet for a health certificate, the official travel document for pets showing they’re current on vaccinations.
Before your assignment, you’ll need to have your current home taken care of whether it’s subletting your apartment, moving out and storing belongings, or hiring a house sitter.
Rent your home. Airbnb, house swap, or management company can help you rent your home while you’re away. With Airbnb, you will still need a house sitter to make sure the home is cleaned for new guests. Social media can help you find someone to trade homes with while you’re both on assignment and a management company or a friend can monitor a short-term renter on your behalf. Whatever you choose, make sure to have a written agreement in place.
Hire a house sitter. Ask them to tend to the landscape, empty the mailbox (junk mail can pile up), and check the inside of the home. Look for signs of break-in like broken windows, check for water leaks, flush toilets, and run the water. Make sure they know who to call for maintenance issues and emergencies.
In our blog post Pack Smarter for Your Next Travel Assignment, we share ideas like taking only a capsule wardrobe of your favorite, color-coordinated clothes, and digitizing important documents to keep your luggage to a minimum.
Utilize your recruiter as a resource.
It will be to your benefit to have a working relationship with your recruiter before, during and after your assignment. Perhaps you have a specific preference or question about the job; just contact your recruiter. They may also be able to provide information about the area where you’ll be working that can help you get settled faster. Most likely they’ve also had other providers working at the same location that you are going to and can give you some best practices on what to do and where to go.
Your new assignment is a great time to explore a new area or to take on a new hobby so we encourage you to research your new city. When your feet hit the streets, you will want to know the closest grocery stores and restaurants along with hiking trails, tourist attractions to visit (and those to avoid), and gyms so you’re not overwhelmed upon arrival.
It’s better to be early than late on a new travel assignment.
Before your first day of work, take a drive to get an idea of how the city is laid out. If you’re used to Phoenix or Salt Lake City which are on grid systems, windy roads might be tricky for you to navigate. We’ve heard from our clients that when they arrive at a new place, they take a day before they have to work to get ready and drive to their workplace just to see how long the commute takes. Not only that, we recommend parking and walking to your floor so you know exactly where you need to be; it can help ease first day jitters.
Meet New People
When planning a trip whether it is a 13-week travel assignment or for fun, we recommend connecting with people you may know in the area and reaching out to meet new people.
Ask friends and family, join networking groups through apps like Meetup, and social media groups for travel nurses. Ask what they recommend for after work activities so you can experience the local culture at restaurants, music venues, coffee shops, art galleries, and outdoors.
You’re on a new adventure and while it takes planning to make sure your home is taken care of while you’re away, the reward of giving back is well worth the effort. There’s a lot to explore and do in your new city! As long as you plan ahead and use your recruiter as a resource, your experience will definitely be a positive one.
Interested in a new travel assignment? Visit the AB Staffing Job Board and call us today!
