On a monthly basis, Via Her World will feature a profile of a frequent woman traveler. Our first interviewee is Jessie Conners.

Jessie Conners is a nationally acclaimed keynote speaker who appears at over 300 events per year. A wealth-building expert, she started her own marketing firm at 17 years old and began investing in real estate at 19. She has made countless television appearances, including The Apprentice, Oprah, CNBC and The Today Show. She received international attention from her appearance on the first season of the hit TV show, The Apprentice.

So, Jessie, what have you been up to since the Apprentice?
Wow. A lot happened since then. The Apprentice was almost 7 years ago! The year after the Apprentice, I started investing in real estate, buying and selling properties for myself, not as a realtor. I started working with Robert Kyosaki, the author of Rich Dad Poor Dad. He had me fly all over the country for speaking engagements. I now work with Armando Montelogo who was the star of Flip This House and I do all of his speaking engagements and teaching. I have been doing this for 6 years now. I fly every Monday and come back on Friday. I’ve been a Hilton Diamond member for years now. I have a lot of miles. I racked up so many miles that my husband and I go on vacation all the time for free. It pays for the hotels and airfares. We are actually going to Tokyo, Beijing and Seoul in First Class next week--- all the hotels and airfares are paid with by my points. My husband and I love to travel outside of the US. We’ve been to 20 countries in the last two years! We actually lived in London for one year in 2007 to 2008 and during that time I was commuting from London to the US for speaking engagements. That’s how I racked up gazillions of points!

Do you have a favorite city for your business travel?
I love New York. It’s my favorite city to travel to. I have a lot of friends there. I was there for 3 months when I was on the Apprentice. That’s my very favorite. I also love San Diego because the weather is very nice and people are so friendly. I also like Denver quite a bit, not as much during the winter, although it is warmer there than in Minnesota where I live, but the summers are just so pretty. And, this is quite a random one, but I also really like Salt Lake because the mountains are very pretty and Park City is awesome! The thing with the US is that you see the same things everywhere. You see McDonald and Starbucks everywhere for example. It’s not the same as when you travel from Amsterdam to Paris for example. There’s not as much culture.

So, you are on the road so much! What do you miss the most being on the road all the time?
My husband! I miss him. He travels, himself, to New York quite a bit. Once in a while we are in New York at the same time, which is very rare. Every weekend when we come home, it’s like date night and we can’t wait to hang out.  Although it’s hard to be away, there are cool things about it too.

How do you keep in touch with your husband, family and friends?
I use email a lot. I have a blackberry and my husband and I text a lot. And we speak on the phone once a day. I recently got a flip cam to record weird crazy experiences on the road. For my friends, I use Facebook. It’s my lifeline.

Being on the road all the time can be kind of draining. How do you deal with fatigue and jetlag?
I work out every day on the road. It’s something that I absolutely have to do, and when I am home, I do yoga. Actually, if I can squeeze a session before my flight on Monday I do that too. That keeps me sane. I eat very badly. I love to eat. My favorite thing is to have a cheeseburger and a pizza, so I have to work out a lot!

So I assume you use the fitness centers at the hotels?
Yes!

Have you ever stayed in a hotel that offers yoga lessons or yoga mats in the room? I know that it is a growing trend.
Well, I tried it one time but it wasn’t convenient for me. When I am on the road I do two presentations a day: one at 10am, and the other at 6pm, so I have that weird free time in the middle, and usually the class schedules are not convenient for me.

Hotel food is not the healthiest, so how do you stay healthy?
Even though I eat very badly, I count my calories. Obviously, during the weekend I splurge. I try to stay around 1600 calories. If I have a burger, I will have something smaller for breakfast and dinner. I have to do that because my first couple of years on the road, I gained 15 lbs! It’s hard when you eat out all the time, you know…
It’s nice to have Subway or Panera Bread because you can find their calories count online.

How do you track your calories?
I use the notepad on my blackberry. Every day I track my workout and what I ate for the day. It’s like a food diary.

Do you order room service? Or are you adventurous and try new restaurants?
Sometimes I am tired and just go back to the room and order in.  Other times, I go for dinner with my staff. We sometimes pick a chain, but often, we look for new local places. Lately I have been into Vietnamese Pho, and always look for that. It’s great during the winter.  One of the girls that I work with, Danielle, often looks for places for us. I like the dive looking places, you know, the mom and pop places.

Are you comfortable dining alone? I know some women aren’t…
Absolutely!  It’s not all the time, but I dine alone about once a week. I always have my iPad and blackberry with me, so I’m checking out my emails and other stuff so I don’t feel uncomfortable or anything. But, when I eat alone I like to go to places that are quite fast.  

Is there anything you can’t travel without?
My iPad and Blackberry for sure!  This is kind of funny also, but I always bring a blanket for the plane and for the hotel it makes the room feel homier. That’s one of the things that I have to have!

How do you pick your hotel?
I like the Hilton, that’s my favorite, because they always give you hotel points. You never have to fight them on that… with Marriott you do. I always stay on the Executive Floor because I am a Diamond member. Unlike some people, I like to stay close to the elevator. I just feel some security being closer to the lobby.

Anything you wish hotels would do?
I was at this hotel this week in Fort Lauderdale and it was raining. I asked for an umbrella to go to the car. They didn’t have valet there, but the front desk person went to get my car for me. It never happened before, but I thought it was great. I like little touches like that.