Within the last 9 months, I’ve flown so many times across the United States that I’m sure I’ve racked up enough miles to pay for a trip to Disneyland Paris. In that time, I’ve had my patience tested on multiple occasions – certainly more times than I can count on two hands. 

Today, my flight from San Francisco to Orlando went as smoothly as it could go. But back in September, my emotions (and my lack of patience) got the best of me. Looking back now, it was a major learning experience – one that almost cost me an entire day with my wife. With such short trips, time is especially precious, you know? With how big the stakes were, this is one lesson I want to share with you all – one that deals with how emotions affect our ability to make decisions when they matter the most:

Original Blog Entry From September 9, 2023:

My emotions got the best of me this morning.

My flight to Orlando was scheduled to have a 40 minute layover in Atlanta, which honestly already gave me a little anxiety. The first and last time I was in Atlanta International was almost 10 years ago. It didn’t matter to me that I had access to an airport map. Having little experience with this airport made my 40-minute layover feel like it would be the sprint of my life.

For reasons beyond me, my flight was delayed by 30 minutes, theoretically leaving only 10 minutes to make my transfer flight. Thankfully, Delta allowed me to change my transfer flight for no extra charge. So I chose a later flight. No big deal, right?

Guess what? Even though our take-off from SFO was delayed 30 minutes, we still landed in Atlanta on schedule. Once we hit the ground, I thought to myself, “why not try to change my transfer flight back to its original time? I’d get to Orlando sooner and have more time to film content for my Instagram.” Delta still allowed me to change my flight, so I took out my phone and quickly changed my transfer flight back to its original time.

In all my eagerness, I failed to notice that although I chose the correct original flight time, I ended up choosing a flight on the next day. And since I chose the next day, Delta no longer gave me the chance to change my flight back once I realized my mistake.

Starting to shake from the adrenaline pumping through my veins, I started planning my next move. “When the plane gets to the gate, I’ll high-tail it to the front and find the closest ticketing counter to explain my situation. Hopefully they’ll help me out.” Thank goodness for my wife, who I was texting during the whole ordeal – she kept me calm. She found another flight to Orlando on Southwest for a decent price, just in case things went even further south. 

Waiting in line for the ticketing counter felt like an eternity! Shoutout to Delta Airlines though – so far, every single time I’ve flown with them, they’ve had incredible customer service. Not only did the Delta worker book me for the next available flight. She also put me first on the standby list for an earlier (but full) flight. What a superstar!

How does it all end? I received my seat assignment for the earlier flight and made it to Orlando only one hour later than my original scheduled arrival time!

So here I am, sipping a cold one at Vouyager’s Lounge at Disney’s Riviera Resort writing about my adventures. And what’s the moral of the story? I let my anticipation of the future dictate what I should do in the moment. And in my haste, I almost paid the price. In the words of Seneca:

“True happiness is to enjoy the present without anxious dependence up on the future. Not to amuse ourselves. We are the hopes and our fears. But the rest are satisfied with what we have. Which is sufficient.” – Seneca