There are two ways to think of your next flight. Either it鈥檚 a great respite from never-ending push notifications and e-mail, or it鈥檚 one big, noisy, very uncomfortable mobile office. I鈥檓 guessing that many of us think of it as the latter, given that millennials were just dubbed the for our inability to leave work. If you have to, here鈥檚 how to keep the iron in the fire after wheels up.
Plan Ahead
Anker PowerCore+ 26800 ($70)
Make sure you always have enough juice for all of your gadgets with . It鈥檒l power your phone up to ten听times and your MacBook up to three times on a single charge, so desperately searching听your terminal for a free power outlet will be a thing of the past.
Taos Mountain Energy Bars ($28 for 12)
Hunger is the enemy of focus, so don鈥檛 rely on airline peanuts or pretzels to keep you fueled. 听makes some of the only energy bars I鈥檝e had that don鈥檛 actually taste like energy bars, and with almonds, coconut flakes, chia seeds, honey, and ground vanilla beans, its toasted coconut flavor is a personal favorite.
Google Drive
Betting on a plane鈥檚 Wi-Fi is a recipe for disaster. Move anything you want to work on into or Docs, and enable off-line access so you can edit freely without having to pay for spotty internet access. Plus, no Wi-Fi means it鈥檚 easy to stay focused on what you need to get done instead of mindlessly scrolling through e-mail听or Instagram.
Get Organized
Airhook听($22)
Comfort is the key to being productive on a long flight, and for me that means legroom. The听 is the perfect solution鈥攊t hooks onto a closed tray table and holds a drink and your phone or tablet. That way you can stretch out and still have enough space to use your laptop听where it was meant to be used: your lap.
MacBook Air听($1,199)
To get any actual work done, you鈥檙e going to need to move beyond your phone to a legitimate keyboard. But a bulky laptop takes up a lot of valuable tray-table real estate. Apple鈥檚 latest 听has a price tag to match its name, but it鈥檚 also just 15.6 millimeters thick and听13 inches wide.听And at听2.75 pounds, it won鈥檛 weigh you down as you trek around town.
This Is Ground Mod Tablet 5 Organizer ($385)
From cords to flash drives to notepads,听it鈥檚 a lot easier to get your work done if you don鈥檛 have to dig through your backpack鈥攐r worse yet, your carry-on鈥攅very time you need something. This high-end, 听has designated spots for everything from your passport to your AirPods, and you can customize the interior with one of several magnetic inserts, so you鈥檒l have everything exactly where you want it.
Minimize Distractions
Bose Quiet Comfort 35 Wireless Headphones II听($350)
Push notifications and urgent e-mail听might not be an issue after the cabin door closes, but the guy snoring two seats over certainly won鈥檛 help you finish that report. Tune him out with , which feature Bose鈥檚 first-rate noise-cancellation technology, 20 hours of battery life, and Amazon Alexa or the Google Assistant built in.
3M Privacy Filter听($29)
I do a lot of video editing for work, which tends to attract eyes on a plane. If you鈥檙e working on anything confidential, or you don鈥檛 want your seatmate leaning over your shoulder, a privacy filter like from 3M goes a long way toward听making an airplane a more comfortable听and secure听place to work.
Go Analog
Moleskine 12-Month Weekly Notebook Planner ($18)
Depending on the length of your flight and the nature of your work, you might be better off keeping the electronics in your bag and using a pen and paper instead. I love 听because of its calendar and planning tools and the fact that there鈥檚 still enough space on the adjoining pages for notes and massive to-do lists. Long plane rides are the perfect time to reevaluate the tasks on my list and plan longer-term projects.
Inventory Bolt Action Pen ($80)
Normally, I prefer a number-two听pencil for听making notes, but that鈥檚 not practical on a plane. Instead of annoying your neighbor with pencil shavings, invest in a high-quality pen like the . Made from raw brass stock with a bolt action听click mechanize, you鈥檒l have it for decades.