As you sit behind your desk at work looking out at the same view you’ve had for the last ten years, it might be very easy to envy those people who spend all of their time flying from one exotic location to the next, sunning themselves on beaches before meetings – enjoying cocktails on bars as they leisurely sign the latest multimillion pound business deals.

Luckily, there are some comforting home truths about being a business traveller that a lot of people don’t actually think about. The main one: they travel economy. While the bigger bosses of large companies are able to afford business class seats that are basically airborne bedrooms, the vast majority of business travellers don’t have that luxury. In fact, a recent study found that 80% of business travellers travel in economy.

And they travel a lot. Imagine spending 300 hours a year on a long haul, economy flight. It means that although they might enjoy a few hours in an interesting location every now and again, those business travellers we envy so much actually spend nearly 40 work days a year sharing their cramped work space with 150 other adults and children. It means they spend a lot of time with a much smaller desk, no room to move around and a laptop with a battery that’s likely to shut down just before they save. All to the beautiful noise of a jet engine.

Plus there’s only one toilet the size of a stationary cupboard and a very limited choice of culinary options. In the office you can also get some fresh air by simply opening your windows, which usually isn’t recommended at forty thousand feet.

Alright, it might not quite make up for the fact they get to see the world while you’re stuck behind your desk, but at least it means when you do on holiday the flight will be an exciting part of the journey as all that anticipation builds up. For the business traveller, it’ll feel like another seven hours in hell.