Thanks for all of the helpful replies! I seems like a bit of a catch-22: if I earn a ton of miles with my personal and business cards by switching to all United cards, and I earn 1-2 rides in the front of the plane with award tickets, then I won't earn enough PQM to reach 1K. If I buy all economy tickets, and snag 1K, with the hope of upgrading to business (or buy all business with the hope of upgrading to first), there is no guarantee of an upgrade... even with 1k and the 6 bonus upgrades. Business would be fine, as long as I can lie flat or close to it. Really, that is my only goal: a good night's sleep.

I really appreciate the help. I'm new to the world of business/first. I've finally succeeded enough in my profession to stop using miles for free economy seats. I think my strategy will be to buy all of my tickets and use miles for upgrades, with perhaps buying economy on the European legs and business on the Asian legs. That way if I don't snag an upgrade, it won't be too painful!