Tim: I'm Tim Cole, and as an experienced travel writer, I'm

here to tell you not to believe everything you read in

guidebooks because following some of the
recommendations they give can result in the most bizarre
situations. I'll never forget the night I arrived in Sydney, for
example. I'd turned up at the address of what I thought
was a budget hotel given in the guidebook at 1 a.m.,
exhausted and looking forward to a few hours' rest, but
instead found myself at a comedy club, which at the time I
didn't find at all funny.
The problem is that too many travellers are too trusting of
their guidebooks and don't bother to research even the
most basic facts before they set off. Some guidebooks are
only updated every couple of years, so it's no wonder
many things have moved on by the time you get there.
The most important thing when choosing a guidebook is to
check the publication date; if it's not within the last twelve
months, don't buy it.
Then the other thing to think about is who the guidebook is
aimed at. If you're into the history and culture of a place,
don't buy a guidebook full of information on the alternative
nightlife scene. But my pet hate, and something I'm always
extremely wary of, are the restaurant suggestions. So
often I've turned up somewhere and the menu, price and
décor bear no relation to the place I've been reading about
– if they haven't already gone out of business and shut
down, that is.
Other things to look out for in a guidebook are the maps.
These need to be detailed but not so small you can't read
them. You don't want to have to carry a magnifying glass
around with you. Books that include unnecessary
information are another thing I find annoying – like photos
of famous places, for example. We already know what the
Eiffel tower looks like! Why not include more background
information instead?
Of course, most guidebooks are also now available in a
digital format and many travellers prefer using these
because they're obviously not heavy to carry, so you can
download as many as you like. But I don't find them easy
to use at all because navigation is much harder than
flicking through the index at the back of a book. Life's just
too short and you can never guarantee you'll have wifi
access anyway. Until I can get a digital travel guide which
is tailor-made for my individual trip, I'm happy to stick with
the traditional form of guidebook.
However, on my trip to Hawaii last summer I experimented
with a new way of getting good travel advice: Twitter
tourism. Instead of using a guidebook, I decided to rely on
the advice of locals and visitors alike – and let them
choose what I should visit, where I should stay and what I
should eat. I didn’t mind as long as their advice was based
on a recent experience. It actually worked out really well
and it felt like a real adventure. Without the Twitter travel
tips I'd never have visited the Ukulele Festival or eaten
spam sushi. One thing I'd never imagined doing – and I'm
so grateful for the advice – was a ten-kilometre kayak
expedition along the coast for a night time swim with
manta rays in a huge cave. A truly magnificent sight. And
my top tip for anyone visiting Hawaii!
Interviewer: My guest today is Diana McLeod, careers
advisor at the University of Blackstable. She'll be talking to
us about how our work can make us happy. Thank you for
joining us, Diana. Isn't the key to happiness in the
workplace keeping ourselves interested in what we do?
Diana: You would think so but it’s actually quite hard to
say whether it leads to happiness or not. A few months
ago I saw some results of a survey in which graduates
were asked to rate different careers in terms of how
interesting they were. I was amazed to see that teaching
was rated as the least boring. It came in way ahead of
careers in the media or in advertising. Teachers say their
work is challenging, that no two days are the same, that
they get lots of opportunities to interact with other people
and that there’s some scope for using their creative skills –
all things that keep them engaged. But whether they were
happy or not is another question.
Interviewer: So perhaps we should be asking, ‘What is it
that makes us unhappy at work?’
Diana: Yes, indeed. Common complaints are long hours,
a long commute, unrealistic deadlines and job insecurity.
You just can't feel happy if you know they're going to fire
you any minute. That is definitely top of my list and it's on
the increase. After that I'd put having to move away from
your friends and family to take a job and contact with other
people at work that is unsatisfactory in some way.
Interviewer: Are these poor relationships at work
prevalent in smaller companies, too?
Diana: Well, bullying, for example, happens in all sorts of
organisations but it's true that the bigger the company or
institution is, the more likely it is to occur. Small
businesses do have a much lower incidence, which is one
reason for the high levels of job satisfaction that their
employees experience. In a small company, everyone is
treated as if they count. There may be fewer opportunities
for training and development than in the big corporations
but there's more chance of your skills being appreciated.
This is also because you've got fewer people above you
telling you what to do. No one likes that.
Interviewer: Becoming self-employed would solve the
problem, of course.
Diana: That's true but people need to bear in mind that the
boundaries between work and leisure will begin to blur. As
likely as not, you'll end up with your nose to the grindstone
at all hours of the day, though you'll probably mind that a
lot less than if someone else had coerced you into working
on a long weekend. You're in control of your own destiny
and that tends to make us happier.
Interviewer: I suppose money is a great source of
satisfaction, though.
Diana: In fact, it doesn't make much difference once you
have enough to meet all your basic needs. A bonus or pay
rise might lift your spirits but not for long, especially if you
suspect you didn't deserve it. In fact, if you don't see them
as being related to the quality of your work or the intensity
of your efforts, they'll ultimately reduce your motivation.
The carrot and stick approach won't always motivate us or
keep us happy.
Interviewer: But one key to happiness must surely be
success.
Diana: Happy people often are successful at work but
they were probably happy in the first place and that
affected their behaviour in such a way that their employers
noticed them and promoted them. So how do we get
happy? By feeling that we matter and that our work is
making a positive difference to others. There's a saying
that you do a job for the money, a career for the status but
a vocation because you care. So if you would do what you
do even without being paid for it, then it's pretty much
guaranteed to make you happy.
Interviewer: Well, I must say that's very encouraging and
very good advice, especially at a time when many people
find themselves starting their working lives as volunteers.
We're opening the lines to callers now, so if you would like
to talk to Diana about your career plans, the number to
dial is ... [fade]