From O’Hare International Airport, a flight to Kansas City, Mo., takes about an hour and a half. Minneapolis takes slightly less. St. Louis is even closer.

Take off, ascend, descend, land – destination achieved. And yet, Dave Hubbard chooses to drive.

“When I fly, it has to be more than a six- to eight-hour trip [on the road],” said Hubbard, president of Exemplar Financial Network in Crystal Lake. “That is a big change.”