How to Get a Better Travel Experience Using Social Media

Is there a point to social media? Non-believers might want to give social media a second chance. Travel + Leisure recently sent me to Portland for a quick weekend getaway. My mission: To experience how travel companies respond to social media. After all, no one wants to be greeted with the sound of crickets.

Would my tweets and posts vanish into the Interwebs? And from a trip-planning perspective, could I eat my way through Portland using suggestions gleaned from Gogobot, Yelp, Foursquare, and Foodspotting?

Well, I certainly tried. From booking hotel deals to asking a blogger where to eat, these "9 Rules for Using Social Media on the Road" pretty much sum up what I learned. (Here's the online slideshow.) My only regret is not checking the Twitter feed of Blue Star Donuts sooner. If I had, I would've known that they sell out quickly—and I wouldn't be haunted by this sad photo.

I will be going back for the blueberry bourbon basil doughnut. That's a promise.



Photo credit: Travel + Leisure (top), Amy Chen (bottom)

Pint-size Perks at Cool Companies: Free Beer!

As company culture grows in importance, check out how some companies are going with the flow: Free beer for employees. Pick up the May/June 2013 issue of Draft magazine to learn about the alcohol-friendly policies at Yelp, Arnold Worldwide, and other companies around the U.S.





You can also view Arnie, the Beer Machine, in this fun video. Why settle for a vending machine with root beer when you can get a free bottle of the real thing?

How To Beat Jet Lag, or At Least Try To

How to Build a Community

How do you build a community? I was recently asked to share my thoughts on this billion-dollar question as part of a Q&A with Axiom Marketing. For my two cents, read the interview here.

Photo credit: Amanda Venner/Flickr

Best Travel Gear for Business Travelers: 10 Picks

Most business travelers are able to breeze through airport security with just a carry-on, inducing both envy and promises that "I'll pack lighter next time." To help you pack lighter for your next trip, I interviewed 10 experts for their favorite business travel gear. After all, business travelers have perfected the art of packing light.

View the slideshow at HuffingtonPost.com, ABCNews.com, or see the original slideshow that I created for LinkedIn.

Photo by Amy Chen

Expert Advice: How to Reject Someone — Nicely

Rejection hurts. From job-related scenarios to sticky family/friend situations, experts reveal how to reject someone (nicely). Read my story here or in the February issue of Real Simple.

Thanks to casting agent Bernard Telsey and writer Julie Klam for taking the time to share their expert advice.

And many thanks to a handful of other experts that I interviewed for the piece: Lizzie Post, who chatted with me about how to break up with someone (tip: skip the Post-It note); career strategist Cynthia Shapiro, who shared polite ways to say no to coworkers' invitations; and career expert Nicole Williams, who talked about the importance of quitting a job with grace (Guess what? Your boss might perceive your two weeks' notice as rejection).

Though we weren't able to run all the tips, I definitely learned that there are good ways to soften the blow — and horrible, you'll-wish-you-could-take-it-back ways.

And without further ado, here's a clip from the Sex and the City episode when Carrie Bradshaw gets dumped via a Post-It note (circa 1998). Of course, these days, it probably would've been a text message.