5 Tips on How to Stay Calm when you've Missed a Flight

5 Tips on How to Stay Calm when you've Missed your Flight  

(Image credit: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1200017)

You just ran from the train station, dragging your suitcase along, out of breath and at the end of your rope.

You finally get to the airport, rip your ticket out and slam it on the desk to get on the plane, panting like a dog on a hot day.

"I'm sorry, but your flight has already left." Your heart sinks as you hear that dread monotone reply.

Dazed, tired and stranded is not a good combination in a foreign country.

Before you panic and start abusing the person who just told you the horrible news, here are
5 tips on How to Stay Calm when you've Missed your Flight.

1. Breathe

 If you step away from the counter and take some Deep Breaths, it will help your body Relax when the adrenaline of fear starts to take over. You've probably already put it through a lot of stress trying to race to the airport, so give yourself a break.

2. You are Safe

Tell yourself out loud 'I am Safe'. In the grand scheme of things, a Travel hub is a safe place to be stranded. The employees here deal with your problem hundreds of times a day. They see all kinds of emotion and have heard all the stories under the sun. When you remind yourself you're Safe, it helps you to focus on your next plan. Travelling smart is easy if you train yourself to be Mindful, not matter what the situation is. Pickpockets and charlatans will target people who are in emotional distress, so remember missing your flight can distract you from other dangers. Focus on your next move, not the mistake of the past.

3. Stay Positive 

In these situations it's easy to get angry and blame the taxi driver, the traffic, that stupid tourist who held you up on the escalator... and worst of all, ourselves. You're probably thinking 'Whatever! As if I'm gonna be positive in a position like this!"

Here's some news for you: Your brain is a powerful tool and will give you what you ask of it; if you ask it 'Why am I such a loser for being late?' it will reply accordingly with 'Because you're a loser who is always late'. If you say 'How can I make the best of this situation?' it will start giving you solutions; 'You can see this city for another day'. Any time you make a tough decision, take the bricks that are thrown at you and build a house, else you'll develop poor decision making skills that will stick inside your neural network. Also, next time you're in a tricky spot, your mind will seek you past actions for clarity, so build good tactics instead of self hate.

5. Always Be Nice

"If we cannot be clever, we can always be kind."  ~Alfred Fripp 
You may not have the money right now, you may have to wait for you next flight for a whole day, you may be angrier than you've ever been - but that is no one else's problem, so don't make it theirs. The worst thing you can do is to be jerk to anyone. Kindness will get you further than hate ever will. The people you are dealing with could have had abuse all day, and suddenly, even in your circumstance, you are kind. You'll be amazed at what can happen when you treat people with respect and kindness.

The worst that can happen is you have to borrow money to get a ticket home, work to pay it back. The best that can happen is your kindness wins the heart of the person you are dealing with and they book you on the next flight - and you can catch up on a good book while you wait!

As always, Happy travels.

Sam Dunlevie
www.geekswhogo.com