Recently, when Nancy and I showed up to pick up a rental car, we were told we'd have to wait at least an hour and a half. Bewildered, I looked around and realized we were surrounded by people, weary from a day's travel, also waiting for their cars.
There were about 30 frustrated travelers wondering why the reservation we had made wasn't being honored. And more were streaming in.
Nancy and I started to laugh. We'd been traveling all day and we were ready to find a hot meal and a warm bed, but we were stuck and there was nothing we could do about it. We started laughing with the people around us too.
We laughed with the lady who's flight had been canceled earlier in the day, the guy who was meeting his boss for the first time and the guy who just kept saying, "But I had a reservation..."
We started cheering for people when their names were called. I remembered this Seinfeld skit, found it on Youtube and played it for everyone in the room.
Finally, an hour and 45 minutes later, when my name was called I threw my hands up and yelled, "I got a car!" Everyone cheered. After I got my keys I ran around the room, giving high fives and yelling, "Everyone gets a car today! Don't give up! You! Will! Get! Your! CAR!"
I think the word Nancy used was "obnoxious" when she talked about it later.
It was awesome!
I realized later, this could have been a totally different experience. If I had been alone and not with my best friend, I would probably have been miserable. But we decided to laugh and that changed everything.
Our attitudes changed. The attitude in the room changed. Frustrated and angry people began to laugh and were encouraged. Not because the situation changed, but because we chose to point out the absurdity of our circumstance.
It was a good reminder that my attitude doesn't only impact me, it impacts the people around me. My mood has "ripples" that bump into others. The impact of those ripples, for good or bad, is up to me.
There were about 30 frustrated travelers wondering why the reservation we had made wasn't being honored. And more were streaming in.
Nancy and I started to laugh. We'd been traveling all day and we were ready to find a hot meal and a warm bed, but we were stuck and there was nothing we could do about it. We started laughing with the people around us too.
We laughed with the lady who's flight had been canceled earlier in the day, the guy who was meeting his boss for the first time and the guy who just kept saying, "But I had a reservation..."
We started cheering for people when their names were called. I remembered this Seinfeld skit, found it on Youtube and played it for everyone in the room.
Finally, an hour and 45 minutes later, when my name was called I threw my hands up and yelled, "I got a car!" Everyone cheered. After I got my keys I ran around the room, giving high fives and yelling, "Everyone gets a car today! Don't give up! You! Will! Get! Your! CAR!"
I think the word Nancy used was "obnoxious" when she talked about it later.
It was awesome!
I realized later, this could have been a totally different experience. If I had been alone and not with my best friend, I would probably have been miserable. But we decided to laugh and that changed everything.
Our attitudes changed. The attitude in the room changed. Frustrated and angry people began to laugh and were encouraged. Not because the situation changed, but because we chose to point out the absurdity of our circumstance.
It was a good reminder that my attitude doesn't only impact me, it impacts the people around me. My mood has "ripples" that bump into others. The impact of those ripples, for good or bad, is up to me.
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