Have you wondered how some business travellers manage to board a plane with one bag for hand luggage? It is very easy with some forethought and you can do it too. You just have to know how to keep things simple and organised.

Through my work as an Image Consultant, I often advise professionals who are required to make frequent business trips for varying lengths of time. Many of them struggle with keeping their packing compact and down to the essentials and be confident that they have everything they need.

The first steps to making your packing a very easy task, is to have a capsule working wardrobe. You can achieve this by knowing your best colours and styles which suit you. This will ensure that whenever you add a new item to your wardrobe, you can be confident that it will work with an existing suit or shirt, smart casual trousers.

So, assuming that you have been following your best colour and style rules, the following will be a breeze for you each time you have to pack for a business trip.

Some basic rules:

Take as little as possible on your trip

Wear your heaviest shoes. Pack shoes at the bottom of your case to avoid crushing any clothes. Utilise the space these shoes provide you with and pack small, soft items such as socks in the shoes that you pack.

Buy travel sized toiletries and keep them only for travelling. Collecting small shampoos and shower gels from hotels will mean you always have travel sized toiletries on the ready. Pack the toiletries in a toiletry bag or waterproof bag to avoid any damages to clothes if any of them leak.

Take an extra waterproof bag for packing wet/dirty clothes for your return trip or use the plastic laundry bag from the hotel room for this purpose.

Below is a packing planner for a 3 night business trip where you have no laundry facilities. Follow this planner and you can be sure you will have everything you need with you and packed properly, will arrive as crisp as it was when packed!

1 sports/casual jacket, 1 pair smart trousers, 1 navy suit, 1 grey suit, 1 pair jeans, 1 t-shirt, 1 polo shirt, 1 casual shirt,(or 2 casual shirts if not a polo shirt) 3 formal shirts, 1 pair formal shoes, 1 pair loafers, 4 pairs underpants/boxer shorts, 5 pairs socks, 3 ties, 2 belts (1 for suits, 1 for jeans), 3 handkerchiefs.

Travel comfortably but not in your jeans if you want to increase your chance of a flight upgrade! By following your capsule wardrobe rules, your 3 shirts and ties are able to be worn with your Navy or your Grey suits.

If you would like help in organising your wardrobe and advise how to achieve your capsule wardrobe, why not book in to see your local Image Consultant. You will find many more essential packing tips like how to fold formal shirts and jackets in Colour Me Beautiful’s best selling book, Image Matters for Men.