Ever had a hairy landing on a plane?
When you fly as much as I do, you get a few “experiences” under your belt. From cancelled flights to turbulence that bumps you out of your seat…it’s all part of the fun. (remember the Lizard sitting in my seat a few years ago ? (Making Newt Friends). A couple of weeks back, Connor and I headed to Monaco to watch The Villa playing an away match in the Champions League. Great trip, but the flight into Nice?, That was something else. The flight was pretty uneventful, but the landing didn’t quite go to plan… As we approached Nice, the British Airways flight came in low – really low. I looked out of the window, and we were barely 10 metres above the ocean. For a split second, I thought, “This is it.” I did what any rational person would do, I zipped up my jacket (Don’t know why) , grabbed my wallet and passport – just in case. Then, just as we were about to touch down, the engines roared back to life. We shot straight up into the sky – it was a classic ‘touch and go’. Now, I’ve done this before in a private plane, but on a commercial flight? Not exactly reassuring. The pilot? Silent. No announcement. Just a whole lot of circling while the people in the cabin speculated and started to panic! Eventually, he came on the intercom. “Sorry for the delay. You may have noticed we had to abort landing – there was a hazard in front of us.”
I wasn’t buying it. I turned to Connor. “Nah. My mate’s a pilot. They have to do these touch-and-go landings now and then to keep their licences up to date.” And that got me thinking… As a business leader, how you communicate in times of uncertainty is everything. The passengers panicked because they didn’t know what was happening. Silence created fear, and speculation filled the gaps.
It’s the same in business. When things go wrong – and they will – your team and your clients need to hear from you. Staying calm in chaos is key, but so is keeping people informed. So next time you hit turbulence in business, don’t just stay cool – communicate. Keep your team and customers in the loop. Reassure them. Tell them what’s happening. Be honest – they’ll trust you and like you all the more for it. And maybe keep your jacket handy. Just in case.
Got any “bad flight” stories? I’d love to hear them…