This past week was pretty tough for me. My wife Roselyn was sick with the flu and kindly shared it with our daughters. Afterall, sharing is caring right? So there I was quarantining myself in my study thinking that I’d dodged a viral bullet when I sneezed.

There’s something about that first sneeze that caused me to instantly reflect upon whether I’d forgotten to sanitise my hands after dealing with one of the other three germ buckets in the household. Heedless of my reflection my body went into overdrive to try and combat the microbial attack.

For several days I felt like a billion tiny invaders were trying to pull me down but like a trooper my brain said “No” and I kept on working. It’s times like this that some of us need to get a revelation about the fact that our brain is merely a passenger in our body and sometimes the body steps in to say it’s in charge……so day three comes around.

Under the unending onslaught my body told my brain that it’d had enough and so I spent half the day sleeping. I woke up to a throbbing headache, a nose that dripped like a tap and eyes that felt like they were exploding in my skull.

Not to mention the itchy ears. What is it with itchy ears anyway? How on earth can you scratch your ear? Trust me, I tried and failed at that task. I watched on from the couch while the rest of the family got better, and I sarcastically thanked them for sharing their misery with me.

Over the last few years I’ve watched many domain investors throw money at some pretty crazy ideas and invest in nonsensical domains. Some of these investors have already completely burnt their cash and have exited the industry.

I’ve also watched the quite diligent investors that have methodically planned how they are going to get a return on their investment….and they’re making money hand over fist!

The secret to any business really isn’t a secret at all but it does require a sustained level of tenacity and diligence. Everything in business starts with a plan and the end point of the plan should ultimately be how the business is going to be sustainable and turn a profit.

When I look at investing in domains it’s exactly the same thing. You need a plan. If you don’t have a plan, then you are very likely about to burn through some of your kids’ inheritance.

Let’s get down to the basics. If you have a reasonable sized domain portfolio, I can almost guarantee that 20% of the domains should be monetised for their traffic. This will provide an immediate cashflow that will at the very least help out with renewals or you may find yourself in the enviable situation of turning over an immediate profit.

It’s good to be back from ICANN and a couple of weeks’ vacation in the south of France. I must admit that there’s nothing quite like taking some time out to refresh yourself and get a new perspective on our incredible industry.

As a co-founder of ParkLogic, while away,I found myself reflecting upon each of our service offerings and asking two questions:
1.    What problem does it solve?
2.    What business is it in?

These two questions force me to focus on what value are we adding to the target market. It’s really big picture stuff but during a time of vacation I find it’s a unique opportunity to work on the business rather than in the business.

So while I was looking an aqueduct built by the Romains in Pont Du Garde I began pondering about business structures that are built to last. In fact, I find that I can’t help but consider this when staring up at an amazing feat of engineering that was built over 2,000 years ago.

After visiting the musuem I found out that business was the main reason why the aqueduct was built. The Romans invested in serious architecture to move water fifty miles and then sold access to the water to make a massive profit. In fact, in Rome they had a ministry of water that was one of the more prestigious civil services because of the money it generated.

ICANN finished a few days ago and I've finally got the energy to write a few thoughts down about it. I must admit that it does help that I'm now on vacation in Provence, France....

In terms of business, ICANN was gruelling. After stepping off the plane on the Saturday I literally had back-to-back meetings from early in the morning until late at night. For me, each day at ICANN is becoming much more like NamesCon with a continuous stream of excellent meetings followed by a quick sleep.

Of course, it’s always good to catch-up with friends. Many of the relationships go back more than a decade and it’s a privilege to know people of the calibre of many of them. I remarked that one of the great things about the domain industry is that not matter which city in the world I happen to be in there is always a person I can have dinner with.

One of the strange things about ICANN is that it’s almost completely unaware of the domain investment community or at the best views it with a bit of distain. What all of the registrars and registries need to understand is that domain investors underspin the entire eco-system…..that’s the drum that I beat over and over again anyway.

I’m leaving in a few hours to head to the ICANN conference in Barcelona. I must admit that I’m not looking forward to sitting in a tin can at 30,000 feet for 24 hours….which causes me to reflect on the lessons I’ve learned from traveling the many miles to different events around the world.

For a start, I don’t let anyone plan my trips…..I’ve tried different travel agents and they always get it wrong. I’ve found the more time and care you take before you leave the ground the easier the trip becomes.

Anything and I mean anything that you can do to speed yourself through security and check-on is a MUST. I have an APEC card that allows me to go into the diplomatic/crew lines through most customs and being a member of the Qantas club reduces your time checking in considerably.

I should also mention that when traveling for business I only take carry-on luggage. That fourth pair of shoes you are packing just in case the laces break on the previous three aren’t necessary. If you’re traveling for five days, then why take changes of clothes for ten? Let's face it.....the worse case scenario is that you use your Visa to buy that thing you need.

I have my favourite jeans and t-shirt for being on the plane and one of the first things I normally do when I arrive at my destination is get them washed for the return journey. It really doesn’t cost that much compared to the amount of time you have to wait for the carousel at the airport to popup your bag….assuming that it does actually arrive.

This trip I will be checking on my bag…..because Roselyn is traveling with me and we plan on having a couple of weeks’ vacation after the conference. I must admit that I am checking bags on under sufferance......gggrrrrrrr! I guess it's one of the problems with traveling with someone else....