IT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENS THAT DETERMINE YOUR LIFE

personal developmentpersonal growthlife coachingnew perspectivebehaviour changethings meaning

22 May

It’s not what happens that determines your life, it’s what you do with it. What happens, happens to all of us. What you do with it is up to you. The meaning you give it is up to you.

This morning as I was on my way to enter the security gate to catch my 07:00 flight. A red light flashed as I scanned my boarding pass. The screen read “flight cancelled”.

What?! Nooooo! Really?! Come on!!

A million thoughts were racing through my head as I made my way over to the ticket counter. Why my flight, why didn’t I check before I left home, how could they…

I pulled up my phone to check what alternatives I had. All last minute flights were 3x the price, with a stop and leaving first in the afternoon. Meaning I will loose both the hole day and waste money.

I checked my email and saw that I was rebooked on a pm flight with a stop in Venice, which made no sense as I was travelling North.

As I stood in the queue waiting for the customer before me to finish, I closed my eyes. I took a few deep breaths and reminded myself that all the energy I spent on getting irritated over the situation was a waste of time as I could not change it and it did not help me move forward. Then I heard a voice behind me asking if she could assist me.

Surprised I turned around, it was a lady with a Swiss pin attached to her blouse who greeted me with a smile. I told her about my cancelled flight and she guided me over to her desk a few metres down the hall. I told her that I was booked on a pm flight and that it would be great if I could reach my destination asap.

She quickly tapped a few commands in your computer, checked possible connections and reassured me that there was another earlier flight that had a seat available that she would get me on. A few minutes later I had new boarding tickets in my hand for a flight leaving 30 min later. She told me to quickly go to the gate. I thanked her and rushed to the security.

All of a sudden the cancelled flight was forgotten and I felt blessed to have been rebooked on a flight with just a 2h delay.

When you focus on what’s possible you are in the receptive mood for solutions.

LEARNINGS: