Drivers License Day

Today, my oldest daughter passed her behind the wheel test, alas, she is an official driver.  On the way home from her test, I told I would be driving because she needed to listen.  I told her:

1 - The license does not mean freedom, it means responsibility.  It means she is now responsible for herself, anyone in the car and the people on the road with her.
2 - Even the best drivers in the world are only as good as the people on the road with them.  You have to be on guard all the time and understand what's going on around you. 
3 - Independence is earned and can be taken away as quickly as it's given. 
4 - We all have heard a story about an inexperienced driver, who, through no fault of their own, was involved in an accident and something tragic happened.  Accidents happen...

I wrote this blog for a couple of reasons.  I wanted to make sure I tell my other two kids the exact same things when we drive away from the DMV in the years to come!  Also driving is a privilege that I myself take for granted.  This post is a reminder to me of all the things I do, day in and day out, because I earned them. 

Time to call the insurance guy and knowing that I am making his day more profitable, I keep going! 

Penny For Your Thoughts

That old saying is never more true than nowadays.  I bet I get a survey a day in my personal inbox asking me to rate my last experience.  Looking at my person email now, there is one from United, Hilton, Hertz, Massage Envy and Starbucks and those are just in the last week.  And guess what, I took every single one of them! 

Why, you might ask?!  Not simply because they asked, but because everyone is gauging customer experience right now.  Companies know that they can win and lose a customer with one experience.  If people ONLY take the survey when things go wrong, how can companies know what is happening that is right?  All of these surveys were answered in a positive manner because I had a positive experience for each.  Was everything perfect for each, no…but I gave feedback on that as well.  Does Hertz in Fargo know that the return process is not well marked or understood?  If they didn’t hear it before, they heard it now.  But, if me, or someone else, didn’t take the time to them that, would they ever know?  Would it ever change?  Would people who rented from Hertz this time think that another option is better next time?

I also like to think that ideation starts with a spark.  In a recent survey of our travelers, we heard things that made us think differently about our internal customers and what they deal with everyday…and that’s awesome.  I love the idea of people sharing their thoughts and ideas with the companies or products that they use frequently.  Use the open spaces and share with them what you want to see. 

Gotta run because I just got another survey to complete.  So if I can impart anything, take the survey and keep going! 

One Remaining??

I read this story yesterday and it frustrated me to no end, so I thought, why not share it!  That is what blogs are for...right?

In short, its about a company who hires people to work manual labor on an assembly line, pays them well, gives them advancement opportunities and does a nice job of employee recognition.  In a year, they have hired 280 workers and today, only 1 is still there.  The story infers that people born between 1978 ad 1997 have little to no work ethic and to make matter worse, this a South Dakota/North Dakota company where people here are KNOWN for their work ethic!

In reading the story, I became embarrassed for what we have created.  Human beings who don't want to show up for work.  People who say yes to a job and then, when they find out it's WORK, they give up.  These are people, born or at least living in the heartland of America who should know better.  Did they think that Trail King was going to be an office job with a water cooler and a fancy breakroom?  Did they not read the job description?? 

I will step up, however, for many people I DO know in that age range and say, it's not all of them.  I have nieces and nephews as well as many friends born in these years who work hard, everyday.  They show up for work, they put in their time (some of it hard labor) and at the end of the day, they go home knowing they will do it all over again tomorrow.  I would love to say its because of their awesome aunt/friend, but instead, its because they grew up knowing that there is always work to be done.  

My kids, like many others, whine through their chores.  (Who cares!)  Maybe they don't want to go to the farm and drive tractor on a nice Saturday because their friends are going to hang out.  (Tough!) When they are frustrated with something, they are not allowed to give it up simply because its not fun anymore.  (Suck it up!)

Don't get me wrong, I am not a perfect parent...far from it.  My kids aren't perfect, but they are perfect for me.  I am hoping to turn out human beings who know what hard work is about and the rewards that can come from it.  For parents out there whose children don't have chores, jobs or expectations, I pray for you and your children.  Until something else gets my goat....I'm gonna keep going. 

Election Update

We are down to 96 days before GBTA elects a new President, Vice President and a number of open board seats.  I, however, will not be making a run for any of the officer positions.  (Long story, but the decision has been made.)  So, if you are considering running, you have just a few days to nominate yourself or others.  Keep in mind, the more candidates in the pool, the better our chances of making this association worthy of our membership.  Get out and run, get out and vote! 

Will do love u. Have fun!

For all the English majors out there who read this, get off my case about the inappropriate use of capital letters and punctuation in the title...it's by design. 

This was a text I just received from my fourteen year old daughter Katey.  She is preparing to go volunteer at a fund raising event tonight in Fargo and I am writing this from the lounge in O'Hare waiting to fly to Germany.  I texted her earlier and told her to enjoy the event. 

First of all, she tells me she loves me.  As any parent knows, that coming from your child, is like gold!  There will be days coming up where she doesn't really like me and she might even question that she loves me.  For the moment, I will bask in this part of the text for as long as I can. 

Second, she reminds me to have fun!  Let's all admit that traveling for works can be less than "fun."  Its meeting room after meeting room, discussion after discussion and at times, difficult decisions and conversations.  But she is right, travel should be seen as an adventure.  Something to cherish and enjoy.  No matter how many times we go to the same places, see the same people, we need to endeavor to try something new and make the experience fun.

This past weekend, we celebrated my Mom's 80th birthday.  If you have met her, you know, she likes to have fun.  She has a laugh that fills the room.  She loves to tell a story and she loves to spend time with people she loves.  When I was leaving her party, she said, "You have a safe trip to Germany and have a good time."  To this, I replied, "Will do!  I love you!" 

In that odd twist of time and generation, all wishing well for each other, I keep going! 

It's Almost Here!!

Last year on stage at GBTA, I introduced my fellow industry partners to a documentary on aviation.  I am happy to say, the documentary is ready for the big-screen and it's available this week! 

The global premier of Living in the Age of Airplanes will happen tomorrow night at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington DC.  After that, starting on Friday, the film will be available in select cities throughout the country.  I invite you to review the link and find a theater near you.  Take the family, share it with your friends and make a night out of it.  Trust me, you will not be disappointed.  If your city is NOT on the list, there is a link for you to try to get it to your town.

http://www.airplanesmovie.com/

While waiting excitedly, I, like the industry I love, keep going!  

The Ever Shrinking Airplane Seat

I overheard a conversation the other day of three people talking about the ever shrinking airline seat.  We all know they continue to get smaller in width in order to make more room on the plane for more seats.  We also know that people have been shown willing to buy more legroom at times.  Let's look at the stats.

The Journal of American Medicine states that 34% of people in the US are not just overweight, but obese.  Additionally, I found a statistic that says the average waist for men in the US has increased almost four inches in the last five years.  So, as the midsection increases, the seats gets smaller.  Riddle me that...

On the other hand, statistics produced by the CDC shows that from the 1960's to early 2000, the average height for men increased just over one inch and for women just over one-half inch.  So, with height increases of about an inch over 40 years, the airlines believe leg-room is the most marketable opportunity.  (Trust me, I LOVE the leg room, but I am not average or normal by any means!) 

The airlines talk about being customer centric, but continue to cram people into smaller seats and have to put up with their fellow passengers spilling over into their space.  With the new aircraft coming into the marketplace, I hope that someone at one of the airlines is looking to make better use of the space for the customer and not just their bottom line. 

Would people be willing to pay slightly more for more width, like they do legroom?  Right now, the airlines answer is "buy a second seat" if the problem is that bad.  We don't force the guy who is 6'11" to buy the seat in front of him.  If he wants extra leg-room, he can buy it for under $100 in most cases.  Another seat, well, that's an expensive endeavor. 

I encourage folks at the airlines to look at the stats and if they are really concerned about making the customer feel welcomed and appreciated, put some thought behind what could be 1/3 of the people on your planes.  Until then, don't look for customer satisfaction rates to improve at the same rate of increase as the US waistline...and keep going!