On the road again: the conference and the way home
The conference today was good, with interesting content and chances to meet with a lot of friends who happen to be clients. Technology really has changed the world, and a great many more changes lie ahead. I’d love to live longer than Jon Moore and be able to see the next century and more of changes. The odds are high that I won’t get that chance, but I’d love it if I did.
Tip of the day, a warning to those who talk on their cell phones while in bathroom stalls: It is not a good idea to loudly say “I love you.” The men walking by your stall will generally not be happy to hear this. Really.
I weirded out a very lovely, thirty-something blonde woman tonight. That wasn’t my intent, but it’s part of what I did.
She was ahead of me in line at airport check-in. She’d been flying for most of a day, was exhausted, and was counting on getting to rest in the Admiral’s Club. As it turned out, despite what her original airline had told her, its partnership with American didn’t extend that far. She was quite upset, but eventually she gave up and headed toward security.
As I caught up to her (when alone, I walk quite quickly), I told her I’d get her into the Admiral’s Club as my guest, no strings attached. I directly stated that I was not hitting on her. She accepted but asked why. I just shrugged.
The security people stuck several other passengers between us in line, so I told her I’d wait for her after I cleared security. I did. When she was done reassembling her luggage in the usual post-security dance, I walked in front of her, and she said, “You waited! You really did.”
I said, “I said I would. When we get to the Admiral’s Club, I’ll tell them we’re traveling together, which lets me bring you in as a non-paying guest. Just smile.”
She said, “Will that work?”
I said, “You’re blonde and beautiful. It’ll work. It’s probably worked for you for most of your life.”
She laughed, stared at me for a few seconds, and said, “Yeah, it usually does.”
We proceeded into the Admiral’s Club, where my line was probably enough to get her in and her smile certainly would have closed the deal had it not been.
I went off to work.
She tapped me on the shoulder and said, “That’s really it?”
I smiled, said, “Yup,” and found a place to work.
I never saw her again.
Did I do it because she was a beautiful blonde? No, despite mentioning that fact several times.
Why did I do it?
She was upset, I could help, and I believe in practicing random acts of kindness. That’s it.
By the way, I’m writing this on the red-eye flight from SFO to ORD. I was lucky enough to have my first-class upgrade requests granted by the mysterious gods of the airlines, so I have a reasonably comfortable seat and an annoyed attendant who wishes I would fall asleep but who nonetheless brings me Diet Coke and water each time my glasses near empty. My seat’s light is the only one still on. Everyone else is sound asleep. I just finished PT work and am about to start writing. I will not sleep tonight due to a combination of too much work to do and my inability to sleep soundly on planes. (At best, I can doze, and even that is rare.) I was in bed only 4.5 hours last night and woke up four times due to my typical anxiety about having an early alarm (6:30 a.m.). I’m exhausted, but I will keep working.
People often ask how I can have a hugely demanding job as a tech-firm CEO and still write every day. A day like today, when I’ve now been up for over twenty hours and slept very little the night before, illustrates the core of the answer: You do it. No matter what, you do it.
You do the job in front of you. You try to be kind when you can. You regret your failings and try to correct them, even though you know you will never get it all right. You do it.
Which is what I’m now going to do now instead of yakking at you.
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6 comments:
The problem, of course, is now we wonder...would you have even noticed the lady was having problems if she were middle-aged, overweight and unnattractive???
And we can't know the answer. But we ponder. Because human nature is what it is.
:>)
As for the sleep issue, I wouldn't even be *functioning* let alone writing on that little sleep. Could I run away from danger down an alley on that little sleep? Sure. But there'd have to be a big, bad ugly chasing me.
Your question about the woman's looks is one I've received from multiple folks, so I'll answer it in today's blog post. The short version, though, is yes, I would have helped that woman you described.
I work that hard on so little sleep in part because somewhere inside me, below the conscious level, is that big, bad ugly chasing me. In fact, a whole crew of them is always on my ass.
I guess I have a few uglies chasing me too, but they must not be quite as big and ugly as yours! You're funny.
BTW, I figured you would probably notice even an average lady floundering--and if you noticed, there was no doubt you'd help. I hadn't thought of the, Would you have helped were it a man? question, which was quite interesting.
I can say that as a woman in that situation...I don't think I'd offer to help a guy get into the club. I'd help the lady without thinking much about it, but I'd likely be too wary to offer assistance to a guy that might take it wrong.
Of course--that begs the question. If a lady or a guy offered you the help--would *you* take it? :>)
Given your bathroom issues (you really need to avoid airport bathrooms!) maybe you'd accept help so long as you weren't in the bathroom????
If the offer of help came while I was in the bathroom, I definitely wouldn't take it!
If it came while I was elsewhere, I suspect I still wouldn't take it. I have trouble accepting help, particularly when I don't think I've earned it.
Aha! I suspected as much. It could be a guy thing. You know, that macho ego thing going.
Or it could be a hero complex.
:>)
You may be right. It doesn't feel to me like macho ego, though the hero complex accusation did make me twinge.
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