From the desk of Kelsey Buell,
I LOVE to travel. Whenever we get the chance, my husband and I always take time to get out of town.
Especially living in the cold tundra of Fargo, ND.
Leading up to our flight though, I have perpetual anxiety about missing a flight.
So naturally, I always want to arrive at the airport in plenty of time, to make sure this doesn’t happen.
Plus, it’s always fun to hang out and see who you might run into at the small town bar in Hector International Airport…
One day, we were traveling with some friends, and we (thankfully) got to the airport with plenty of time to spare.
So we made our way to the airport bar, and enjoyed some food and drinks. (Well, I had a diet coke because, well you know….I’m growing a baby)
So while I watched my husband and friends enjoy their drinks, we kept our eye on the time.
Our flight was still a good 20 minutes away from the boarding time listed on our tickets, when all of a sudden we were startled by an airport employee angrily screaming in our ears.
“If any of you are on the flight heading to Montana, you better run over to the gate, it is almost done boarding. You are LATE!”
My heart dropped. “Oh no!” I thought…”Will I end up living out one of my fears?”
She seemed so upset and concerned we were going to miss our flight. So we rapidly packed up our bags and finished what we were eating and drinking, and began to head towards our gate.
No sooner than she had yelled at us, and we had started walking towards our gate, did we hear a man behind us say, “Well…the plane’s not leaving without me!”
We turn around, and there was the pilot.
We had a good laugh and from there, leisurely walked to our plan, reassured we were in fact not running late and that we would be just fine to get on our plane.
So what’s the moral of the story?
First, a “sense of urgency” rarely is a flattering vibe and/or communication style for you.
My sense of urgency can often come across as brisk, intense, or even rude.
In this story, the woman who yelled at us and told us we were going to be late, didn’t allow herself to shine in a very positive picture.
When in a panic or feeling pressed for time, it’s easy to let a “monster like vibe” flow out of you.
I know I am never my best self when I show up with a sense of urgency.
In fact, I typically show up like a bull in a China shop.
So if you’re someone who often has a huge sense of urgency, use it to channel getting your work done, but try to avoid reflecting the urgency in your communication style.
It could rub people the wrong way (and I apologize if you have ever felt this feeling from me!!)
Second, I once heard someone say “Worry is a worthless emotion.”
While it’s important to be punctual and even early, it doesn’t serve you to worry too much about something.
A little bit of worry can be okay because it creates tension that helps move you forward.
But an obsessive style of worrying can be harmful to your mental health.
After worrying and worrying and worrying that I “might miss a flight” or that something else bad might happen, it usually never does!
A woman in one of our peer groups said, “What if the thing you’re worried about happens or doesn’t happen? What’s the worst thing that could happen?”
I think we often get trapped in a cycle of worry, but at the end of the day it truly doesn’t serve us.
P.S. If you’re ready to take things one step further and make a change to reduce your stress and prevent your worry for good, you’ll want to take advantage of our free 20 min. call with our career coach, Grace: Schedule Your Call