During the many conferences I attended this year, there was one important lesson that I should have learned but didn’t. It started at the super long two-week conference. Between the laptop, iPad, notebook, knitting, snacks, water, pashmina, conference freebies, and other miscellaneous items, my purse was full. Like, super packed and really heavy full. It was so heavy, in fact, that several people I was traveling with wouldn’t let me carry it, as I was six months pregnant at the time. A woman in my group carried around as much stuff as me, but in her fabulous houndstooth print rolling briefcase, as opposed to a purse that went over her shoulder (similar to this one from Overstock). Needless to say she had a much more comfortable conference than I did. I noticed her bag, and thought, How clever and lovely! Yet it didn’t even occur to me to get a rolling briefcase of my own before the next two conferences I had to attend, where I was seven and eight months pregnant. Whoops.
The moral of this story, friends, is that if you are going to a conference, or any trip where you will need to be carting around a lot of stuff, get a rolling briefcase. Otherwise you will carry too many things in your shoulder bag and end up being uncomfortable and possibly hurting yourself. If you only use it a few times a year, there are plenty of inexpensive options, and it is so worth it!
Readers, have you been to an event where you wished you had a rolling briefcase?
I use every time a pilot case aka flight bag. In the past my old one i have to carry all the time. For more than one year a have a new one that is rolling. And it’s great even on large airports!
One problem I had with rolling briefcases was, they are usually a bit too wide (compares to a carry-on suitcase) that when you walk towing such a briefcase behind you, it kept knocking against your ankle.
Maybe it’s just me. 🙂
I am a fan of backpacks for conferences and the like. In my opinion easier to bring around than a roller, especially in crowds or at speed. Of course I’ve never been pregnant though!
A rolling briefcase can really save you an aching shoulder. Chances are you are likely to be more productive, less tired and have your hands completely free to comfortably take notes during a conference. Although I feel it an accessory that is more popular with men than women.
I have two different briefcases. One a purse type and the other one is rolling basic black case. The roller one is my favorite.
Rolling cases are a back saver! I got a rolling backpack and a rolling briefcase from solo.net. I use the backpack for casual and daily use and the rolling briefcase for meeting and conferences. 🙂
All well and good but having a rolling and carry on and a rolling briefcase make for tough times on the plane as most of the time if you will only be able to take one on board with you while the other gets checked. This is why I would only use the rolling briefcase for day trips or overnights and not for 3 day conferences.
@Janice you are so right. That is why when I travel with the rolling briefcase it replaces my normal carry-on.