Good morning, Team!  It’s Friday!

I jumped back into multi-modal travel again this week and was reminded why my annual blood pressure check was so low last month after a 4 month break…and today, it is not.

On my trek back from the East coast, I was in Philadelphia waiting for a delayed flight and relatively calm.  Listening to some music after a stint in the SkyClub.  I spy with my little eye, at Gate D8, far from ideal conditions where the poor passengers exiting the plane have no clear path to the main walkway and the gate agents.ssss….ssss…s.s.ssssss, well they announced that passengers waiting to board should stay back while passengers exit but some aloof, preoccupied, who-knows-why-it-didn’t-strike-them folks that the announcement pertained directly to them, paid no attention.  Apparently thrown off by the request “May I have your attention please?!”.  One passenger with spikes in her cheeks (yes, you read that right) and tattoos on her arms probably wanted each person to stop and take notice  of her choices but most of us preferred that people arriving, arrive so people boarding could…board.

What should you take away from this tiny rant?

For starters, it is not that I take exception to piercings or tattoos.  Quite the contrary.

My dismay was rooted in two grown adults who figured announcements were for others and even after the stream of people started to plug the encumbered path, these two specific road blocks sat comfortably along with the gate agents.sssss…ssss, while the delayed passengers had one final test of patience before their work day was over.

Look up, look around, be prepared, be aware, don’t be that person who becomes so engrossed in your self or your electronic device that you miss the bigger picture, whether its at gate D8 or at home or at the office or with a client.

The early life lesson for me comes from Mr. Kittleson, my driving instructor, who used to say, “View the total traffic picture.”  What’s in your windshield, mirrors, periphery? Move your head and body and watch out for blind spots.  (Note: Just because you have cameras and sensors and bright lights doesn’t excuse you from taking control and exhibiting mastery of the cabin you are piloting.  Those are aids but) Ultimately you are responsible for being a conduit for production rather than a barrier to improvement.

My personal and immediate awareness helped me to realize I’d be better to walk to the end of the terminal and think about something / anything entirely different rather than watch the spectacle or wait for the candid camera crew to pop out of some hidden room and laugh at all of us wondering how someone could be so disconnected from their surroundings.

Have a blessed weekend!

Bonus lesson inspired by the gate agentssssssssssss:

•Don’t forget to do your job and

•Leave things better than what you found them.

Peace be with you!