I was sitting in a small regional plane at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport waiting for the go ahead to disembark the plane. As I sat in the airplane I noticed the Captain of the airliner (another small regional plane) next to us walking around his aircraft. He looked under the nose. Then he walked to the engine closest to me and visually inspected it. Finally I saw him go under the fuselage, run his hands on several areas, and continued with his inspection. 

There was a part of me that figured that United Airlines would have someone else who could/would do the visual inspection of the aircraft, freeing up the pilot to do all of his pre-flight preparations in the cockpit. Yet, even if there is someone else who could do it and does do it, I can understand why the pilot would do it also; after all, it’s “his” plane isn’t it? And his life and the lives of the passengers on the flight (like me) are counting on him! 

In other words, regardless of what anyone else is supposed to do, he is ultimately responsible isn’t he? 

Are You the Captain?

As I thought about this-and as I am writing this, I have to admit to feeling so BUSTED! on this in my life right now, and throughout my life in general. I like the idea of being the “Captain” but I have too often resorted to blaming the “flight attendants” or “ground crews” in my life when things go wrong, for not doing what they were supposed to do, instead of taking ultimately responsibility as the “Captain” of the plane.  

After all, it feels better to point fingers at someone else, right? I don’t want to be the guy hit by the bus (or the airplane). Let someone else take the heat, especially if they contributed to the problem. 

And, while I think it is important to recognize the roles that other people play when things go wrong, or not as planned, it’s probably more important to understand and recognize the roles we play. 

Think About It

• If your people don’t perform their jobs well, have you taken the time, energy and effort to equip them to do their jobs?
• If your relationship with your supervisor is poor, have you taken the necessary steps to build a solid work relationship?
• If the car doesn’t run well, is it because Toyota makes a lousy car, or because you’ve only changed the oil once every three years?
• If your career isn’t progressing the way you were hoping, is it because of “politics” or because of something you’ve done or haven’t done?

This doesn’t mean you micromanage your life, or the people in your life, by the way! At some point you do have to let people do what they do, with the rewards and consequences that follow. 

This is more about the condition of our hearts, of our core beliefs and what we run towards when things get rough, difficult, or when we have those “epic fails!” in our lives.

Aircraft Out of Service

Incidentally, I was in the gate area for about a half hour waiting for a connecting flight when I heard the announcement that there was a flight delay due to a mechanical issue. The airplane had a faulty de-icing valve and they were waiting for a replacement aircraft to arrive. I looked to see which flight was delayed, and it was the one with the Captain I had been watching. 

Of course, I don’t know if the Captain was the one who saw the valve, or if he went out there to check on the valve, but either way he was the Captain of the plane and he took ultimate responsibility to ensure it was “a-ok.”

Sounds like good advice for my life…(trust me, I need it!)

I think it’s good advice for you too! 

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