Forget about the original purpose of the travel or the kick in the seat of the pants that led you to China. What are the value added bennies you’ve racked up from the experience? Take a break from calculating the ROI of your business for a minute and calculate your ROE instead!  Return on Experience.

I admit it, my initial endorsement of travel might be attributed to reading the adventures of Mark Twain when I was young, but it’s his words of wisdom coupled with my experience of traveling extensively the past two years that has me convinced that it isn’t something to write off as frivolous. Calculating your ROE for travel is as important as calculating the ROI of any asset.

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness…Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.” Mark Twain

An attitude changing experience afforded by travel is likely more valuable than even your college degree. The subtle new ideas and attitudes you’ve garnered by traveling to China are likely to go much further than just propel your career.

Of course multinational companies see the value of business travel, but leaders in virtually every field discipline worldwide are now seeing the benefits. HR now understands just how important it is for employees to take vacations or engage in business travel, because it’s a researched fact that vacation travel and business travel can improve performance. Both are fertile grounds for discovering creative ideas at work and in business. The reason it spurs inspiration is the stimulus. When you’re in a new environment, your eyes are wide open. It’s not the “same same only different” [my all-time favorite tourist t-shirt in Southeast Asia] where you tend to get into a rut and aren’t alert to having a ‘spark moment.’ Things are different and fresh during travel. You’re seeing things from a different perspective and you’re fully engaged in the moment.