Life on United Concourse C21

Yep I’m traveling alot and although my blog is dedicated to the front line champions, it also includes entries about my life as a trainer. This summer that would be the Traveling Trainer- yeah, you know you’ve seen her waiting for some cancelled flight on some concourse. She doesn’t look mad because she has surrendered to her other persona. You see, when I train I have a totally different personality then when I fly. For those of you who’s seen me in action in my training, I’m memorable. I’m like an entertainer, I motivate a group, energize them to think different, keep it moving at a fast pace, time each exercise with precision, diffuse the potentially difficult participants, encourage team members to try new techniques, and generally bring lots of life into my training. I’m in control from the minute the course is announced to the minute the evaluations go out.

 It’s super different when I travel because I have to relinquish all my control. It happens the minute I get to the United Express check-in and continues until the cab drops me off at my house. My entire travel personality is this non-descript person who just blends in with the blue and silver United decor. I look like everyone else at the terminal- I surrender to whatever happens and put my fate in other’s hands.  It’s taken me awhile to learn how to do that because I used to wind myself up and decide to blast everyone if things weren’t going right. It never helped nor made any difference. I’ll never forget the time I was stuck on United’s Concourse C21 waiting to get a flight that was running 4 late. I had been bumped off 2 flights and was so frustrated that I decided to scream at some agent at the counter only to find one of my training participants was a few steps away and did a double-take when they heard me coming unglued.  Hmmmm, Is this the same trainer I had who was so positive and upbeat?