Best known for founding Yo! Sushi and revolutionising airport hotels with YOTEL, Simon Woodroffe reflects on his jet-setting global career in his new memoir Yo! Man.

“No alcohol. Take melatonin. And 48 hours before travel, start thinking in the time zone of your destination.”

Those are the personal jetlag-busting rules of Simon Woodroffe, founder of Yo! Sushi and Yotel, who shared them in conversation with Globetrender founder Jenny Southan following a panel discussion in London organised by IdeasFest.

Woodroffe, one of Britain’s most celebrated entrepreneurs, was speaking at the event about innovation, entrepreneurship and the lessons he has learned from building multiple businesses over the past five decades. Afterwards, in a one-to-one conversation with Southan, the topic turned to travel and how he manages the physical demands of a life spent crossing continents.

His approach is refreshingly simple.

First, avoid alcohol when travelling. Second, take melatonin to help regulate sleep patterns. Third – and perhaps most interestingly – begin mentally adjusting to your destination before you leave.

“48 hours before travel, start thinking about the time where you’re going,” he said. “And when you get there, never think about what time it is back home. It’s all in the mind.”

The exchange came as Southan attended the event in her capacity as co-founder of Jetlag Noodles, a new functional instant noodle brand designed to help travellers combat the effects of being out of synch with their circadian rhythms.

Following the discussion, she presented Woodroffe with samples of the company’s two products – Revive, formulated with ingredients such as ginger, chilli and guarana to support energy and alertness, and Reset, featuring miso, sesame, magnesium and vitamin B6 to encourage relaxation and recovery.

His reaction was immediate.

“I love noodles and hate jetlag, so this product is just what I want!”

The moment felt particularly apt given Woodroffe’s longstanding connection to the travel industry. While many know him as the founder of Yo! Sushi, the entrepreneur also went on to create Yotel, the hotel brand that reimagined guest rooms through the lens of airline design, drawing inspiration from the space-efficient luxury of first-class aircraft cabins.

During the panel, Woodroffe reflected on an extraordinary entrepreneurial journey that began when he left school at 16 with just two O-levels. After a colourful early career that included designing stages for major rock acts such as Rod Stewart and Paul McCartney, he went on to pioneer conveyor-belt sushi in the UK and later disrupt hospitality with YOTEL.

One of the themes that emerged throughout the discussion was the importance of urgency and self-belief. Woodroffe described what he calls “the gift of desperation” – the feeling that pushes entrepreneurs to act rather than wait.

“I got out of bed in the morning more to avoid being very poor than to become super rich,” he told the audience.

He also spoke about the power of conviction when launching new ideas, recalling the early days of Yo! Sushi.

“The voice that said, ‘You can’t do anything,’ became a voice that said, ‘You’re going to be very successful.’ I know it’s delusion, but it gets you out of bed.”

Woodroffe is currently promoting his new memoir, Yo! Man, which charts his unconventional path from rebellious teenager to serial entrepreneur, taking in everything from rock-and-roll stage production and television ventures to the creation of globally recognised brands.

Looking ahead, his outlook remains optimistic. "Today, the world is our oyster," he says. For entrepreneurs willing to think globally and step out of their comfort zones, he believes the opportunities have never been greater. "There is more opportunity today than there's ever been to reinvent everything."