Last month our family had the opportunity to travel to five destinations in Europe (London, Paris, Naxos, Santorini, & Madrid). It was unquestionably my favorite trip of all time.
But I’m not writing about how awesome the trip was; this is about an experience in the Athens airport that still has me thinking…
After multiple gate changes and delays, it appeared as though our flight was going to board. I didn’t hear the boarding announcement, but everyone was lined up at the gate so our family got in line. After about 20 min of waiting with no movement, I decided to step out of line and ask the airline attendant if we were supposed to be lined up to board.
She acted surprised, as if she didn’t even realize we had formed a long line. “No, of course not,” she replied sharply, “I’ll let you know when you ought to line up to board.” I quickly informed everyone that we were not boarding and that there was no reason to stay in line.
This didn’t occur once, but twice within a matter of about 40 min. Both times, dozens of people lined up at the gate to board the plane with no announcement having been made. And twice, those same people were eventually asked to sit back down
While I might have been the only person in the airport that found this amusing, it also made me reflect on the power of a crowd. When the majority of people around you are doing something, it’s natural to assume you ought to follow suit.
Where in your life/business are you going with the prevailing thought of the crowd, without questioning whether it’s getting you closer to your desired destination?
Here are just a few prevailing beliefs you OUGHT to question…
- If you want to win, you have to hustle. Hustling is a badge of honor; wear it proudly.
- Productivity is king. The more productive you are, the better the outcome.
- Time is your greatest resource; learning to manage it better brings greater success.
If you follow the crowd’s advice above, you’ll end up exhausted and focused on finding incremental improvements in your schedule rather than exponential growth through leverage.
Here’s what my clients have found makes ALL the difference)
- Hustling to succeed after years in business is like a 40yr old man reliving the high school glory days.
No one finds your ability to stay stuck in the hustle and grind of your business impressive. It’s time to graduate from high school and learn how to scale your success through influence rather than your own personal hustle
- Presence is king.
The greatest gift you have to offer this world is not your productivity, it’s your presence. Your team, your family, and your customers are far more impacted through your full engagement, than being mentally split in 100 directions but highly “productive.”
- Time is NOT your greatest resource; Energy is.
What good is flawless time management if your level of focus, creativity, ability to problem solve, & be fully engaged in what you’re doing are operating at 60-70% capacity? If your energy is right, everything else will follow.
Don’t stand in line just because the crowd is doing it. They’re not always right!
